Volatile Flavour Compounds

Jiang, J. (1993) Identification of flavour volatile compounds produced by Kluyveromyces lactis. Biotechnol. Tech., 7, 863-866. 

GC using chiral columns coated with derivatized cyclodextrin is the analytical technique most frequently employed for the determination of the enantiomeric ratio of volatile compounds. Food products, as well as flavours and fragrances, are usually very complex matrices, so direct GC analysis of the enantiomeric ratio of certain components is usually difficult. Often, the components of interest are present in trace amounts and problems of peak overlap may occur. The literature reports many examples of the use of multidimensional gas chromatography with a combination of a non-chiral pre-column and a chiral analytical column for this type of analysis. 

Examination of the flavour constituents of the passion fruit Passiflora edulis has yielded the novel ionone derivatives (47) and (48). Edulans 1 and II, (49) and (50), and dihydroedulans I and II, (51) and (52), from the same source have been characterized fully. Two bicyclodamascenones, (53) and (54), have been identified as components of the flavour of Virginia tobacco, and several ionone, damascone, and cyclocitral derivatives are present amongst the many volatile compounds produced during flue-curing of this tobacco. ... 

The most difficult problem in flavour research is to interpret the results of the volatile analysis, which gives information on the identity and the quantity of the volatile compounds collected from a given product. Many volatile compounds are not flavour-active, i.e. they cannot be detected in the olfactory system, while others may even in trace amounts have significant effects on flavour owing to their low odour-threshold values that is defined as the minimum concentration needed to produce an olfactory response. Consequently, the most abundant volatiles are not necessarily the most important contributors to flavour. Much... 

Volatile compounds in fruits are diverse, consisting of hundreds of different chemical compounds comprising only 0.001-0.01% of the fruits fresh weight [36, 43]. This diversity is partially responsible for the unique flavours found in different species of fruit as well as differences among individual cultivars. 

Sugars, acids and aroma compounds contribute to the characteristic strawberry flavour [85]. Over 360 different volatile compounds have been identified in strawberry fruit [35]. Strawberry aroma is composed predominately of esters (25-90% of the total volatile mass in ripe strawberry fruit) with alcohols, ketones, lactones and aldehydes being present in smaller quantities [85]. Esters provide a fruity and floral characteristic to the aroma [35,86], but aldehydes and furanones also contribute to the strawberry aroma [85, 87]. Terpenoids and sulfur compounds may also have a significant impact on the characteristic strawberry fruit aroma although they normally only make up a small portion of the strawberry volatile compounds [88, 89]. Sulfur compounds, e.g. methanethiol. 

Important aroma compounds of black currant berries have been identified mainly by GC-O techniques by Latrasse et al. [119], Mikkelsen and Poll [115] and Varming et al. [7] and those of black currant nectar and juice by Iversen et al. [113]. The most important volatile compounds for black currant berry and juice aroma include esters such as 2-methylbutyl acetate, methyl butanoate, ethyl butanoate and ethyl hexanoate with fruity and sweet notes, nonanal, /I-damascenone and several monoterpenes (a-pinene, 1,8-cineole, linalool, ter-pinen-4-ol and a-terpineol) as well as aliphatic ketones (e.g. l-octen-3-one) and sulfur compounds such as 4-methoxy-2-methyl-butanethiol (Table 7.3, Figs. 7.3, 7.4, 7.6). 4-Methoxy-2-methylbutanethiol has a characteristic catty note and is very important to blackcurrant flavour [119]. 

The bulb of the onion (Allium cepa L.) can be eaten raw or cooked after boiling, roasting or frying. More than 140 volatile compounds have been identified in onions. The characteristic onion flavour develops when the cells are disrupted. 

The roundish flower head, the curd, of the cauliflower plant (Brasska oleracea var. botrytis) is the edible portion of this vegetable. It can be eaten raw in salads or as a pickled condiment in vinegar. More often it is boiled and eaten with the main meal or is converted into sauces and soups. Over 80 volatile compounds have been identified in raw and cooked cauliflower. Among the compounds potentially active in cooked cauliflower, certain sulfides such as methanethiol, dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl trisulflde have often been incriminated in objectionable sulfurous aromas and overcooked off-flavours [169, 177, 178, 181-183]. Additional aldehydes have been found to be the most abundant cauliflower volatiles, with nonanal as a major component [175,177]. A recent study showed that volatiles such as 2-propenyl isothiocyanate, dimethyl trisulflde, di-... 

The fruit of the cucumber plant Cucumis sativus) is mainly eaten raw or as pickle. Approximately 30 volatile compounds have been detected in the volatile fraction of cucumber, with aliphatic alcohols and carbonyl compounds being most abundant [35]. Fresh cucumber flavour develops as a result of enzymatic degradation of linoleic and linolenic acid rapidly after the tissue is disrupted (Scheme 7.2), by which ( ,Z)-2,6-nonadienal and ( )-2-nonenal mainly are formed [184]. ( ,Z)-2,6-Nonadienal is the main flavour volatile of cucumber fruit, with ( )-2-nonenal as the second most important compound (Table 7.7) [185, 186]. 

The root of carrot Daucus carota) is eaten raw or cooked. The characteristic aroma and flavour of carrots are mainly due to volatile compounds, although non-volatile polyacetylenes and isocoumarins contribute significantly to the bitterness of carrots [1,2]. More than 90 volatile compounds have been identified from carrots (Table 7.9) [207-215]. The carrot volatiles consist mainly of terpenoids in terms of numbers and amounts and include monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and irregular terpenes. Monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes account... 

The root of parsnip Pastinaca sativa) is eaten boiled or baked. The major classes of compounds identified in raw and cooked parsnip are monoterpenoids, aliphatic sulfur compounds, and 3-alkyl-2-methoxypyrazines [35]. To the best of our knowledge, no investigations have been performed to elucidate the character-impact compounds in parsnip by modern GC-O techniques however, it has been suggested that volatile compounds such as terpinolene, myristicin and 3-sec-butyl-2-methoxypyrazine maybe important contributors to the flavour of parsnip owing to either their high concentrations or their low threshold values, or both [35]. 

The flavour of fruits and vegetables is a very important aspect of quality. This review has focused on the most important aroma compounds in fruits and vegetables of moderate climate and demonstrated that a wide variety of volatile compounds are formed naturally in the products or after processing that influence the aroma and flavour of fresh and processed fruits and vegetables. 

Essences of pink and white fresh guava obtained by direct extraction of flesh juices with dichloromethane revealed that the total amount of Cs aldehydes, alcohols, and acids comprised 20 and 44% of the essence of fresh white and pink guavas, respectively [49]. The flavour of the Costa Rican guava has been described as sweet with strong fruity, woody-spicy, and floral notes [53]. One hundred and seventy-three volatile compounds were isolated by simultaneous steam distillation-solvent extraction. The terpenes and terpenic derivatives were found in this fruit in major concentrations and were strong contributors to tropical fruit notes (Fig. 8.1). The aliphatic esters contributed much to its typical flavour. 

Volatile compounds isolated from strawberry guava fruit by simultaneous steam distillation-solvent extraction were identified by capillary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and were characterised sensorially by sniffing GC [52]. Terpenes and terpenic derivatives were identified and were shown to contribute much to the typical strawberry guava flavour. The presence of many aliphatic esters and terpenic compounds is thought to contribute to the unique flavour of the strawberry guava fruit. 

A wide range of volatile compounds from Indian mango were identified by pioneer group research [20,21]. Esters, lactones, monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and furanones were among the volatiles. It has been suggested that the ratio of palmitic to palmitoleic acids determines the flavour quality of the ripe fruit, a ratio of less than 1 resulting in strong aroma and flavour [44]. 

The volatile compounds of juices made from freshly cut pineapple fruits from different cultivars from Costa Rica, Ghana, Honduras, Cote d Ivoire, the Philippines, Reunion, South Africa, and Thailand were studied in comparison to that of commercial water phases/recovery aromas, juice concentrates as well as commercially available juices [12]. The qualitative pineapple fruit flavour profile showed several methyl esters, some characteristic sulfur-containing esters, and various hydroxy esters were responsible for the typical pineapple flavour profile. 

Table 10.2 presents a summary of odour qualities, odour thresholds in water, and concentrations of some selected volatile compounds, which are characteristic flavour impact compounds, owing to their typical flavour quality and their rather low odour thresholds. These compounds are not formed during fermentation but originate from the raw material and contribute significantly to the typical flavour of a fruit. The components summarised in Table 10.2 are important compounds in wine and different fruits and are discussed later. 

Semivolatile and non-volatile compounds of wood change the colour of the distillate and contribute to an up-rounded flavour. The wooden barrels which are permeable allow air to pass in and cause ethanol to evaporate thus, the ethanol content decreases and the aroma gets more intense, complex, and concentrated. Also harsher aroma constituents are removed and the spirit changes to mellow. The period of maturation depends on the size of the casks used, the alcoholic strength, as well as the temperature and humidity in the warehouse which leads to a smoother flavour. For production of neutral highly rectified distilled spirits like vodka, grain spirit, or white rum, the quality of water is of utmost importance to the flavour. In vodka production different treatments of water like de-... 

This chapter shows how a biphasic medium can help in reducing loss of volatile compounds in a gaseous phase exiting from a bioreactor, in comparison with pure aqueous systems. It also emphasises the usefulness of solvents having low vapour pressure (heavy organic solvents or ionic liquids) in the reduction of the release of compounds into the environment. There are, from this point of view, common interests between engineering needs and environmental concerns in the flavouring industry. 

New or uncommon volatile compounds in floral scents. Proceedings of the 13th International Congress of Flavours, Fragrances and Essential Oils, pp. 135-168. 

Forss, D. A., Dunstone, E. A. and Stark, W. 1960A. Fishy flavour in dairy products. II. The volatile compounds associated with fishy flavour in butterfat. J. Dairy Res. 27, 211-219. 

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