SummaryGC headspace analyses of various aromatizing herbs have been compared with those relating to the essential oils, obtained by steam distillation, of the same plants. In this way it was possible to establish the most significant differences between the composition of a herb flavor and that of its essential oil. In particular, we observed some very volatile compounds in the headspace samples which were absent from the essential oil; these components may make an important contribution to the herb flavor. The identification of these substances is still in progress.

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SummaryA simple, quick method is described for GC head space evaluation of herbs and drugs. The proposed procedure consists of milling a weighed sample of a certain herb in a glass device like a Braun MXK coffee grinder, modified in such a way that a special gas-tight valve allows the direct sampling of the vapors. Glass capillary columns are used to analyze the head space volatiles. Some preliminary applications of the method are given.

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