Rose absolute (Rosa gallica Linné) is an expensive natural product which plays an important role in the manufacture of many famous luxury perfumes. The production of rose absolute in Egypt has increased in recent years.
The composition of rose absolute has not been throughly investigated except for a few reports. However, the composition of rose oils from different origins has been studied in detail. This paper attempts to identify some of the major volatiles of rose absolute prepared from rose variety largely cultivated and processed in Egypt.
EXPERIMENTAL
Preparation of Rose Absolute
Rose absolute used in this study was prepared in the Research Department of Cairo Food Flavors and Essences Co., Cairo, Egypt. Rose flowers (Rosa gallica var. aegyptiaca) were extracted with a high-grade n-hexane to produce 0.29% of rose concrete. Rose absolute was then isolated from the concrete by extraction into a perfumery grade ethyl alcohol. Using essentially the technique described by Guenther, the alcoholic extract was filtered and distilled under vacuum to obtain rose absolute (58.73%). The yield of absolute from rose flowers was 0.17%.
