Characteristic volatile components of Japanese sour citrus fruits: Yuzu, Sudachi and Kabosu

ABSTRACT The volatile components of both the peel and juice of three major Japanese sour citrus cultivars with pleasant flavour, Yuzu ( Citrus junos Sieb. ex Tanaka), Sudachi ( Citrus sudachi Hort. ex Shirai) and Kabosu ( Citrus sphaerocarpa Hort. ex Tanaka) were investigated using the solvent assisted flavour evaporation technique after solvent extraction. Limonene was the most abundant monoterpene hydrocarbon in all the extracts, followed by γ ‐terpinene and β ‐phellandrene in Yuzu and Sudachi and by myrcene in Kabosu. Mintsulfide was newly identified in juice extracts from Yuzu and Kabosu. Among the oxygenated components of these extracts, linalool was the most abundant in both the peel and juice of Yuzu and the peel of Sudachi, while both the peel and juice of Kabosu revealed the presence of high quantity of saturated aliphatic aldehydes. Wine lactone and rose oxide were identified in all the extracts, which have not been previously reported to occur in these citrus cultivars. The odour‐active components of each oxygenated fraction were revealed by aroma extract dilution analysis. Linalool, trans ‐4,5‐epoxy‐(2 E )‐decenal and wine lactone showed relatively high flavour dilution factors in the peel and juice of these citrus cultivars. The enantiomeric distribution of linalool, cis ‐rose oxide, β ‐citronellol and wine lactone was determined using a multi‐dimensional chiral gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. With regard to linalool, the ( R )‐enantiomer was predominant in Yuzu and the ( S )‐enantiomer in Sudachi and Kabosu. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.