Volatile constituents of satsuma mandarins growing in Korea

The volatile flavour components from cold-pressed peel oils (CPOs) of three varieties of Korean satsuma mandarin (Citrus unshiu Marcov. var. Miyamoto; C. unshiu Marcov. var. Miyagawa-wase; and C. unshiu Marcov. var. Aoshima) were analysed by GC, GC-MS and GC-olfactometry (GC-O). One hundred and sixteen volatile components were identified in this study by instrumental analyses, and 51 components were detected by sniffing test using GC-O. Limonene (82.8-89.2%) was the most abundant component in these samples, followed by gamma-terpinene (4.2-5.1%) and myrcene (1.7%). beta-Caryophyllene was the principal sesquiterpene hydrocarbon, its content in C. unshiu Marcov. var. Miyamoto being higher than in other varieties. The CPOs of the three satsuma mandarin varieties can easily be distinguished by the percentages of aldehydes, alcohols, ketones, esters and oxides. The sweet and fruity flavour was stronger in C. unshiu Marcov. var. Miyamoto, while the herbaceous flavour was stronger in C. unshiu Marcov. var. Miygawa-wase and var. Aoshima. Copyright (C) 2004 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.