The Volatile Constituents of the Coffee Flower (Coffea arabica L.)

• Published in: Flavour and fragrance journal Vol. 12; no. 1; pp. 9 - 13
• Main Authors: Emura, Makoto, Nohara, Isao, Toyoda, Takaaki, Kanisawa, Tsuneyoshi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01.01.1997; Wiley
• Subjects: asymmetric synthesis; Biological and medical sciences; Coffea arabica; Coffea arabicaL. flowers; coffee; Coffee, tea and other stimulative beverage industries; enantiomeric ratio; epoxygeraniols; Food industries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; olfactory/organoleptic properties; volatile constituents; Asia; Sumatra; Indonesia; Volatile compound; Flower; Chemical analysis; Coffea arabica; Coupled method; Sharpless epoxidation; Organoleptic properties; Gas chromatography; Terpene; Odors; Asymmetric synthesis; Dicotyledones; Enantiomer; Angiospermae; Rubiaceae; Epoxide; Plant origin; Monoterpene; Spermatophyta; Chemical composition; Property structure relationship; Mass spectrometry
• ISSN: 0882-5734; 1099-1026
• DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-1026(199701)12:1<9::AID-FFJ606>3.0.CO;2-P

Although coffee beans have been well studied, the volatile constituents of the coffee flower have not previously been investigated. An extract of coffee flower (Coffea arabica L.) was analyzed by GC–MS and found to contain a significant number of nitrogen‐containing aromatic compounds as well as phenylethane derivatives. The novel epoxygeraniols (2,3‐epoxygeraniol and 6,7‐epoxygeraniol) were also detected as minor components. These epoxides were estimated to be an approximately equal mixture of both enantiomers by chiral GC analysis. Optically active 2,3‐epoxygeraniols were synthesized by Sharpless's asymmetric epoxydation (AE), and 6,7‐epoxygeraniols were prepared utilizing Sharpless's asymmetric dihydroxylation (AD) as a key step in high optical purities (96–99% ee). Epoxygeraniols were found to possess rosy and muguet‐like aromas reminiscent of the living flower. Considerable differences of aroma were perceived between the enantiomers. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.