Red leaves of Hibiscus acetosella L. are widely used as herbal teas because of their therapeutic and attractive odor. In the present study, the effects of brewing conditions on the aroma and potent aroma compounds of H. acetosella’s teas were investigated for the first time. Four different teas were prepared and labeled as A3NM (98 °C/3 min), A6NM (98 °C/6 min/), A12H (25 °C/12 h) and A24H (25 °C/24 h). The aroma compounds of the teas were extracted by the aid of the liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) method and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). 16 aroma compounds were detected in all the studied teas. The potent aroma compounds were assessed by odor activity value (OAV) and aroma character index (ACI). 3-Penten-2-ol, 2-methoxy-4-vinyl phenol, vanillin, menthol and carvacrol were determined as key potent aroma compounds in H. acetosella teas. The highest release of aroma compounds occurred in A12H. The analysis of phenolic composition displayed 17 phenolic compounds. Among them, chlorogenic acid, vanillic acid, salicylic acid, caffeic acid, cyanidin-3-glucoside, sinapic acid, quercetin 3-O-glucoside, hydroxybenzoic acid, ferulic acid, epicatechin, pelargonidin-3-glucoside, p-coumaric acid, syringic acid, gallic acid and catechin were the most abundant phenolic compounds determined in H. acetosella tea. Results of bioaccessibility suggested that H. acetosella tea (A12H) provided highly bioaccessible (> 80%) catechin, epicatechin, cyanidin-3-rutinoside, ferulic acid, cyanin chloride, gallic acid and salicylic acid. These findings added valuable data to the impact of brewing procedures on the aroma and phenolic compositions of H. acetosella teas.

This study investigated the impact of black garlic (BG) and encapsulated black garlic (EBG) additions (2–8%) on the physicochemical properties, antioxidant potential, aroma profile, and sensory characteristics of bread. Antioxidant capacity, measured by DPPH and ABTS assays, was highest in bread with 8% BG, while total phenolic content increased from 48.27 mg/100 g in the control to 86.56 mg/100 g. LC-ESI-MS/MS revealed significant increases in citric, malic, succinic, and pyroglutamic acids with BG addition. Texture profile analysis revealed that hardness significantly increased with BG addition, reaching 1214.67 g in 8% BG bread compared to 237.39 g in the control, while chewiness also followed an upward trend. In contrast, resilience decreased from 0.57 to 0.29 with 8% BG enrichment. HS-SPME-GC-MS and GC-O identified sulfur-containing compounds, especially diallyl disulfide and allyl methyl trisulfide, as key contributors to the distinctive aroma of BG- and EBG-enriched breads. Sensory evaluation showed overall acceptability scores between 3.78 and 4.10, with 8% BG bread rated highest for flavor and aroma. These findings indicate that BG and EBG can enhance both the functional and sensory qualities of bread, supporting their potential as innovative ingredients in commercial bakery products.

Tea, produced from the leaves of Camellia sinensis, is one of the most widely consumed beverages worldwide. Some consumers infuse these teas by blending with different medicinal and aromatic plants for both taste and health benefits. This study examines the impact of adding four aromatic plants (dried cloves (C), mint (M), rose petals (R), and green tea (GT)) to black tea (BT) on its aroma profile, aroma-active compounds (AACs), and bioactive properties. Sensory analysis and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used to evaluate the aroma profile, while total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity were measured to assess bioactive properties. The black tea (BT) sample with added green tea (BT+GT) had the highest total phenolic substance (TPC) and antioxidant activity (AA) followed by the BT+R, BT+C, BT+M and BT samples, respectively. The clove, mint, rose and green tea added to the BT increased its aroma potential significantly. The types and numbers of the AACs responsible for the unique odour of the tea samples showed significant differences. It was found that the characteristic aroma components found in the added aromatic plants were transferred to the BT. Sensory evaluation indicated that the aromatic plant additions enhanced the overall sensory characteristics of BT, with the BT+rose (BT+R) sample receiving the highest preference scores.

Merlot red wines rank among the most distinguished varietals globally. This study aimed to characterize the phenolic compound profiles of Merlot wines and assess the influence of geographical origin and vintage on samples from two Albanian wine regions. Using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, a total of 31 phenolic compounds were identified and quantified. These were classified into hydroxybenzoic acids and flavan-3-ols (13 compounds), phenolic acids (9), flavonols (5), and stilbenoids (4). The total phenolic content ranged from 294 mg L−1 in wines from the Mati–Mirdita region to 480 mg L−1 in those from the Durrës–Kavaja region, demonstrating significant regional variation. Notably, the hydroxybenzoic acids and flavan-3-ols exhibited the most pronounced differences, with gallic acid concentrations varying from 123 mg L−1 (Mati–Mirdita) to 170 mg L−1 (Durrës–Kavaja). Both regions’ wines were rich in catechin, epicatechin, procyanidin derivatives, trans-caftaric acid, and ethyl gallate. However, procyanidins were found in higher concentrations in the Mati–Mirdita wines, while other phenolics were more abundant in Durrës–Kavaja samples. These findings underscore the influence of geographical and climatic factors on phenolic composition, offering a robust chemical fingerprinting approach for assessing wine authenticity and quality.

BACKGROUND:Phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity, and antimicrobial properties of unripe and ripe mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus L.) fruits and their oils were investigated. RESULTS:A total of 20 phenolic compounds were identified by using liquid chromatography-diode array detection and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry, among which phenolic acids were predominant. The main phenolic compound was catechin in the unripe fruit and trigalloylquinic acid in the unripe fruit oil, whereas galloylquinic acid was dominant in the ripe fruit and its oil. Unripe fruits had the highest amount of total phenolic content (TPC; 2771.4 mg kg-1), whereas the ripe fruit oils had the lowest TPC (14.1 mg kg-1). The quantity of the phenolics decreased as the fruits ripened. Tests revealed significant antimicrobial activity of the fruit extracts against Staphylococcus aureus but not on Escherichia coli, whereas fruit oils showed no antimicrobial effects. CONCLUSION:The fruits and their oils exhibited significant alterations in phenolic composition, antioxidant activity, and antimicrobial effects during ripening. These findings highlight the impact of ripeness on the bioactive properties of mastic tree fruits and their potential applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. © 2025 Society of Chemical Industry.

Mastic gum, a plant-based resin from mastic trees, has become very popular in recent years and has been used in various food products due to its strong and positive aroma properties. In the present study, key odorant compounds of the mastic gum (MG) samples obtained from mastic gum trees (Pistacia lentiscus var. Chia) from two different countries, Türkiye (MGT) and Greece (MGG), were investigated and compared. The aroma-active compounds (AACs) were determined by aroma extract dilution analysis (AEDA) and by using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-olfactometry (GC-MS-O). The two mastic gum samples exhibited similar aroma profiles but significant differences were observed in their concentrations. Among the aroma groups identified in both samples, monoterpenes were the most abundant group with α-pinene as the main compound followed by β-myrcene and β-pinene. On the other hand, the most dominant AAC in both samples was determined to be α-pinene (resinous, forest-like odor), followed by β-pinene (resinous, terpene-like odor), β-myrcene (pine-like, greenish odor), and linalool (floral, fruity odor), all of which had high flavor dilution (FD) values. The findings of the AEDA and sensory analysis revealed that the MGT sample contained more floral and fruity odors while the MGG sample had more resinous and pine-woody odors.

Background and Objectives Bulgur is an important cereal product preferred due to its aroma, nutrition, and economic values. In this study, the effect of cooking process applied to two different bulgur types (regular and firik) on the aroma profile, color properties, total phenolic content (TPC), and antioxidant activity (AA) was evaluated. Findings A total of 27 and 33 aroma compounds were detected in the uncooked and cooked regular bulgur samples, while the firik bulgur samples (uncooked and cooked) had 27 and 34 compounds, respectively. Cooking process caused significant changes, with carboxylic acids and aldehydes being the dominant aroma groups. Uncooked firik bulgur exhibited the highest aroma concentration. Generally, both cooked (4225.6 ng/kg) and uncooked (4745.2 ng/kg) firik bulgurs had higher total aroma concentrations compared to the regular bulgurs (2333.0 and 3255.1 ng/kg). It was found that significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed in the TPC and AA levels; they were higher in firik bulgurs but decreased with the effect of cooking. Conclusion The study highlights that bulgur type and cooking process significantly affect its aroma and phenolic properties, potentially influencing consumer preferences. This is the first study to examine the aroma and bioactive compound variations in two bulgur types with respect to cooking.

Key odorants of juices of pomegranate fruits of Hicaz variety obtained from different juice production stages (fresh: FrPJ, pasteurized: PPJ, filtered: FiPJ, and concentrated: CPJ) were examined. Processing significantly impacted the volatile compounds. The FrPJ and PPJ samples had higher concentrations of aroma compounds than the FiPJ and CPJ samples. A total of 38 aroma substances were identified in the FrPJ sample while 37, 35, and 21 compounds were detected in the PPJ, FiPJ, and CPJ samples, respectively. Phenylethyl alcohol was the dominant key odorant. The total phenolic contents (TPC) and antioxidant activities (AA) of the samples changed significantly. The CPJ sample had the highest TPC and AA due to increased release of phenolics during the concentration process; thus, this process increased the TPC and AA significantly, altering both aroma and bioactive properties. The results emphasize the importance of processing methods in preserving the nutritional and sensory qualities of pomegranate juice.

Wine phenolics serve as robust chemical signatures correlated to grape variety, processing, and regional identity. This study explores the potential of machine learning algorithms, combined with the phenolic profiles of Albanian wines, to classify them according to grape variety. Geographic origin analysis was conducted as a preliminary exploration. The dataset of phenolic compounds included white and red wines, spanning the 2017 to 2021 vintages. Using five supervised algorithms—Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random Forest, XGBoost, Logistic Regression, and K-Nearest Neighbors—a high classification accuracy was achieved, with SVM reaching 100% under Leave-One-Out Cross-Validation (LOOCV). To address class imbalance, the Synthetic Minority Over-sampling Technique (SMOTE) and stratified cross-validation were applied. Random Forest feature importance consistently highlighted trans-Fertaric acid and Procyanidin B3 as dominant discriminants. Parallel coordinates plots demonstrated clear varietal patterns driven by phenolic differences, while PCA and hierarchical clustering confirmed unsupervised grouping consistent with wine type and maceration level. Permutation testing (1000 iterations) confirmed the non-randomness of model performance. These findings show that a small set of phenolic markers can offer high classification accuracy, supporting chemically based wine authentication. Although the dataset is relatively small, thorough cross-validation, non-redundant modeling, and chemical interpretability provide a solid foundation for scalable methods. Future work will expand the dataset and explore sensor-based phenolic measurement to enable rapid authentication in wine.

Althaea officinalis L., commonly known as marshmallow, is a medicinal and ornamental plant belonging to the Malvaceae family and is widely cultivated in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Its flowers have traditionally been used for their antipyretic, emollient, and styptic properties. The present study provides the first comprehensive report on the volatile composition of marshmallow flowers. Volatile constituents of A. officinalis flower extract were isolated using the purge and trap technique and analysed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). A total of 24 volatile compounds were identified, including eight terpenoids, six alcohols, five acids, one sulphur-containing compound, one ketone, one volatile phenol, one ester, and one lactone. Terpenoids represented the dominant chemical group, consistent with other aromatic plants. The major components were pulegone (32.17%), 3-penten-2-ol (8.69%), 4-ethoxy ethyl benzoate (6.68%), 2-hexanol (6.55%), and acetic acid (6.23%), accompanied by minor amounts of higher alcohols, fatty acids and related compounds. Pulegone was identified as the principal constituent, notable for its mint-like aroma and its role as an intermediate in (-)-menthol biosynthesis. The findings highlight the aromatic profile and potential biological relevance of A. officinalis flowers, contributing novel data to the phytochemical characterisation of this species

Strawberries are cultivated worldwide due to their unique flavor and important bioactive compounds. In this study, the aroma profiles of the 'Sabrina' and 'Osmanli' strawberry cultivars and eight selected hybrid genotypes derived from their cross were investigated using liquid-liquid extraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Both aroma and pomological characteristics were determined and compared among the parental cultivars (Osmanli and Sabrina) and selected genotypes. The total aroma content varied between 4650 mu g/kg in 'Sabrina' variety and 29272 mu g/kg in 'Osmanli' variety. The highest aroma quantity among the hybrids was determined in the genotype '2-10' (18769 mu g/kg). It was observed that the characteristic aroma of the 'Osmanli' variety was due to its high concentrations of esters compounds. As a result of the sensory analysis, the most liked genotype was determined as the genotype '2-10' which contained high amounts of esters. Additionally, unlike the Osmanli variety, this genotype has hermaphroditic flower structure, which is quite important in strawberry cultivation. It also had a 70 % increase in fruit size and a 50 % increase in fruit flesh firmness compared to the 'Osmanli'. This study shows that the breeding studies are crucial in strawberries to increase consumer satisfaction and market value; thus, the continuation of these studies is highly recommended.

In this study, aroma profiles and aroma-active compounds of fresh garlic (EFG) and black garlic (EBG) samples encapsulated using the complex coacervation method were investigated. Volatile aroma components were analysed by GC-MS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry) with the HS-SPME (headspace-solid phase microextraction) method. EFG and EBG samples contained 30 and 37 different aroma compounds, respectively. The chemical changes during the fermentation of black garlic caused a significant decrease in the number of aroma compounds. A total of 13 aroma-active compounds were identified in the encapsulated samples. The odor dilution (FD) factors of these compounds ranged from 4 to 1024. Among the 10 identified compounds, 2 were alcohols, 3 were sulfur-containing compounds, 4 were acids, and 1 was a ketone. The remaining 3 compounds were unidentified aroma-active compounds. This study provides an important contribution in terms of expanding the use of encapsulated garlic products in the food industry and developing products suitable for consumer preferences. These findings may lead to the widespread use of encapsulated garlic products in functional food and nutraceutical fields in the future.

Sumac (Rhus coriaria) is a flowering plant that is widely consumed for its promoting health benefits and used in food preparations as a spice in the Mediterranean region. It is a high shrub or small tree with imparipinnate leaves, villus and red fruits with one-seeded drupe, and small greenish-white flowers. The nutraceutical and pharmaceutical potential of sumac makes it a remarkable functional food. In this review, the phytochemical and nutritional properties of sumac as an under valorized functional food have been discussed. Flavonoids, anthocyanins, phenolic acids, and organic acids have been reported as dominant phytochemicals in sumac, which are well known for their pharmacological properties that attract many consumers to commonly choose sumac in their diet as well as food preparations. The remarkable volatile compounds present in sumac give it a unique aroma that increases its acceptance by consumers and potential use in the food industry. Sumac has been evaluated for a broad range of nutritional and pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, anticancer, anti-infertility, and neuroprotective potential. This review has also briefly outlined the safety concerns concerning the use of sumac in terms of toxicology and interactions.

Aroma is a primary determinant of wine quality, consumer acceptance, and preference. More than one thousand aroma compounds may be responsible for the aroma of wines. Despite the fact that many aromatic compounds are available in wines, the application of gas chromatography-olfactometry (GC-O) in flavor analysis is considered to be a valuable technique to characterize odor-active compounds responsible for the characteristic odor of a wine sample. GC-O is based on the use of human assessors, a sensitive detector, to detect and evaluate aroma compounds from a chromatographic column eluate. There are various GC-O methods based on different principles (dilution analysis, detection frequency, and direct intensity) to obtain data on aroma-active compounds in GC-O. This chapter explains in detail the application of dilution analysis, detection frequency, and direct intensity methods from GC-O techniques in conjunction with solvent-assisted flavor evaporation (SAFE) to elucidate key odorants of wines.

Fish or fishery products are appreciated worldwide for their unique flavour and nutritional benefits. Fresh fish is a composite matrix that has a balance of lipids and lipid-derived compounds, amino acids, proteins, nucleotides, carbohydrates, and other minor compounds that are responsible for the distinct and delicate flavour of seafood. Complex lipolytic and proteolytic reactions affect the generation and the perception of seafood flavour. The realization of these complicated interactions, including specific reactions of thermal degradation, Maillard pathway, enzyme activity and oxidation, is summarized, and the constitutive compounds produced from the reactions are explained in detail. This chapter predominantly focuses on the generation of fish flavour and the effects of diverse external and internal processes on its formation. Additionally, an overview of the valorization of seafood wastes and by-products into protein hydrolysates is provided.

The quality of water used in aquaculture ponds is one of the crucial factors influencing the smell and sensory properties of fish. The water samples were taken from the rainbow trout fish ponds from three different fish farms in three provinces in Türkiye in four different seasons. The samples were analyzed for the volatile components by employing HS-SPME/GC–MS. Seven different volatile groups including aldehydes, ketones, esters, alcohols, volatile phenols, terpenes and other aromatic substances were identified in the samples. Among these, aldehydes were found to be the most dominant. (E)-2-Heptenal, nonanal, acetophenone, and 2-ethyl-1-hexanol are thought to be responsible for the off-odors in the water that have the potential to cause off-odors in fish. It was also determined that the amounts of these compounds increases in winter due to lower water temperature. Fish producers should monitor water quality on a regular basis to prevent off-odor compounds that degrade fish quality.

The effects of production parameters on aroma compounds were elucidated by conducting a detailed comparison between fresh and black garlic samples, providing new insights that contribute to the existing body of literature on aroma compound analysis in garlic. A total of 113 aroma compounds were identified including sulfur compounds, aldehydes, ketones, pyrazines, furans, thiophenes, volatile alcohols, and acids. The aroma profile of the black garlic samples varied depending on factors such as temperature, humidity, and fermentation duration. The black garlic sample with the highest aroma quantity was the one produced at the lowest temperature, humidity, and duration. Additionally, a total of 34 aroma-active compounds that create the characteristic odor of fresh and black garlic samples were determined by GC-MS-O and aroma extract dilution analysis (AEDA). The fresh garlic sample contained allyl methyl disulfide and diallyl disulfide, which are responsible for the characteristic garlic odor, while in the black garlic samples, furfuryl alcohol was found to be the most dominant aroma-active compound. The findings of this study will help better elucidate the impacts of production process parameters on the aroma and aroma-active profiles of black garlic.