Structure/Odor Relationships of (&sminus 0;)- and (&splus 0;)-β-Vetivone, and Their Demethyl Derivatives

(−)-β-Vetivone ((−)-3a), one of the main constituents of vetiver oil, was submitted to a structure/odor relationship study. The influence of the Me groups at the cyclohexenone ring and of the configuration on the odor was examined. Detailed 1H- and 13C-NMR-spectroscopic data were collected, and the absolute configurations were determined by CD methods.