Description
Wild or cultivated shrub 2 to 5 m (7 to 16 ft.) tall. It grows on the
rocky coasts, in fields, woods, and arid and rocky mountain areas
of central and southern Europe and around the Mediterranean
basin. The plant has grayish stems with numerous, flexible
branches, alternate leaves, and gold-yellow flowers arranged in
terminal racemes that blossom in May. The part used is the flowers.
Genet has a rose and honey-like, persistent odor with a slight,
herbaceous note.
The derivatives are concrete, absolute, tincture, and extract. The
concrete is obtained by extracting the dried flowers in approximately
0.1% yields with petroleum ether; the absolute is prepared
by alcoholic extraction of the concrete. A tincture also is prepared
from the absolute. The concrete is a viscous, brownish mass with
a sweet, honey-like intense odor that characterizes all other derivatives
as well.
Chemical Properties
The concrete is obtained by extracting the dried fowers in approximately 0.1% yields with petroleum ether; the absolute is prepared by alcoholic extraction of the concrete A tincture is also prepared from the absolute It has a sweet, honey-like, intense odor that characterizes all other derivatives The deep herbaceous coumarinic background has great tenacity.
Chemical Properties
Wild or cultivated shrub 2 to 5 m (7 to 16 ft) tall It grows on the rocky coasts, in felds, woods, arid and rocky moun- tain areas of central and southern Europe and around the Mediterranean basin The plant has grayish stems with numerous, fexible branches, alternate leaves and gold-yellow fowers arranged in terminal racemes that blossom in May The part used is the fower Genet has a rose and honey-like, persistent odor with a slight, herbaceous note.
Occurrence
Found in the flowers of Spartium junceum L.(Fam.Leguminosae) (Guenther,1952).
Definition
Extractives and their physically modified derivatives. Cytisus scoparius, Leguminosae.
Preparation
By alcoholic extraction of the concrete (Fenaroli′s Handbook of Flavor Ingredients, 1975).
Essential oil composition
In addition to triterpene and spartitrioside (the constituents of the flowers), five flavonoid glycosides bearing
a catechol structure in ring B were isolated from the butanol extract, and their structures were elucidated as isoquercitrin (quercetin
3-beta-glucoside), luteolin 4?-beta-glucoside, quercetin 3, 4?-diglucoside, azaleatin 3-beta-glucoside (quercetin 5-methylether
3-beta-glucoside) and quercetin 4?-beta-glucoside.
Taste threshold values
Taste characteristics at 30 ppm: sweet, hay, warm, herbal tea with a woody, herbal nuance.
