Cocobolo (Dalbergia Retusa) is a member of the rosewood family and grows in Central America from southern Mexico to Panama. It can range in color from orange to red to purple to brown and has dark, irregular grain lines. Like other rosewoods, cocobolo trees don't grow particularly tall and tend to be rather crooked. As a result, it is difficult to find large pieces of lumber and with increased pressure on the species necessitating trade restrictions, it is becoming more difficult and costly to find any pieces at all. 

Three times as hard as maple and twice as heavy as cherry, Cocobolo has incredible properties as a workable lumber. It won't float in water and finishes smoothly without much need for sanding. It can be used for a variety of applications from furniture to pool cues but it is especially prized as a tonewood by the makers of guitars, drums, basses and other musical instruments.