A few questions about oils and Benzyl Alcohol

[TheBomb]

I live in the UK. i know of quite a few places in the USA who sell the different opils for making homebrews and Benzyl Alcohol and BB but nowhere in the uk.

now this might sound like a silly question but could you tell me what they are actually meant for so i can figure out where to buy them from.

are the oild just like regular cooking oil?
if not whats are they meant to be used for

whats the proper use for BA and BB so i know where to buy it from

also do i have to get any special versions of the above of will off the shelf products be fine

thanks

[TheBomb]

well ive been looking and all supermarkets have the oils. they have sunflower oil, seasme oil, cottonseed and a few others. these are dirt cheap and come in large containers of upto 1litre. these seem to be used for cooking

are these the right oils i should be getting? one example is "pure seasme oil" and it is about $2 for 250ml.


now supermarkets dont seem to sell BB or BA so what sort of place should i be looking to buy these. are they classed as aromas?

[scorpio]

Well I for one only use my BA and BB for perfumes and aroma therapy. I've never seen it in a supermarket. However I live in the US. If a oil is 100% pure it should be fine. I like seasme.

[TheBomb]

here are 2 pictures. they both say 100% pure but the seasme is dark brown:

[scorpio]

what's the brand name? I'm just curious. I wouldn't use it regardless.

[WeirdAl]

the one on the left looks like toasted sesame oil, and you don't want that!

BTW, peanut oil is readily available 100% pure, and seems to work well (a little thicker than sesame, though).

[TheBomb]

they are both from "asda" its a supermarket in the uk. they are both about $2 for them bottles.

if i shouldnt use the stuff from supermarkets where else should i look?

[TheBomb]

the one on the left in sunflower oil
ill go look for peanut oil

[TheBomb]

what about this one
its about $2 for this at 500ml

"Sainsbury's Grapeseed Oil 500mlSainsbury's Grapeseed Oil 500ml

It is ideal for shallow frying and quick stir frying. Suitable for salad dressings, baking cakes and pastries. 1 Unflavoured. High in polyunsaturates.

Energy (kJ) 3418.80kj 512.82kj
Energy (kcal) 831.60kcal 124.74kcal
Total Fat 92.40g 13.86g
of which - Saturates 10.40g 1.56g
of which - Mono-unsaturates 20.10g 3.02g
of which - Polyunsaturates 57.70g 8.66g

[WeirdAl]

you want to look for something that's 100% pure, and not toasted or anything... Hard to tell from that, but the grapeseed looks good. Grapeseed is really thin, btw.

[scorpio]

Just for clarificaton the light colored sesame oil is fine. As long as the only ingrediant is sesame oil and it says 100% pure. As for the dark one, like Al said. It looks toasted or something, I wouldn't use that one.

[TheBomb]

the light oil is sunflower oild (on the left). the one on the right is called pure seasme oil.

as advised i wont be using that one.

i cant find usp grade anywhere in supermarkets. is ups grade used for something else? if i dont use usp grade does it matter

one more thing do i have to get usp grade BB and BA?

[GrowPhaster]

Check out this link. Looks like there are 2 types of sesame oil....

http://www.the-nigros.com/notes/lessons/oils/seed.html

Sesame Oil: There are two types of sesame oil. The oil that is made from roasted sesame seeds has a strong, distinctive flavor. It is called dark sesame or toasted sesame oil and has a intensely rich, smoky, sesame aroma; nutty taste; dark, brown color; thick consistency; and cloudy appearance.

The oil made from raw sesame seeds is much lighter (pale with a strong yellow tint) and far less aromatic. It is called light sesame or just sesame oil and has a mild but clear sesame flavor. It is a quality oil suited for general cooking and for baking, sauteing, and dressings.