EVALUATION OF HOPS VII. COMPOSITION OF THE ESSENTIAL OIL OF HOPS

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Analysis of the essential oils from a large number of hop samples, using a combination of gas-liquid partition chromatography and adsorption chromatography, has shown that the oil content is affected by numerous factors including the variety of hop, the conditions during its growth and the treatment received by the cones after picking. Both over-drying and deterioration during storage appear to cause a preferential loss of the more volatile constituents. The total oil can be fractionated into hydrocarbon and oxygenated fractions, and the composition of each fraction would appear to be determined at least in part by varietal factors. It is confirmed that the proportions of myrcene and humulene in the hydrocarbon fraction are related inversely one to the other and can be correlated with the composition of the α-acids and of the β acids present in the hop resins. The biosynthetic implications of these findings are discussed.

This publication has 5 references indexed in Scilit: