the library

Pu-erh

Sweet & rich· tea coffee cacao

Every one of its 15 compounds carries a paper the library can cite.

• caprylaldehydearomaaldehydereads as strong, fruity odor (PubChem)Measured in 37 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the eight key volatiles at OAV >= 100 and one of the five also clearing ACI >= 1 in raw pu-erh — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• 1-octanolaromaalcoholreads as fresh orange rose odor (PubChem)Measured in 19 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the eight key volatile compounds identified in raw pu-erh at OAV >= 100 — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• phenylethyl alcoholaromaalcoholreads as floral, roseMeasured in 41 of 338 ingredients.cite

  omission produced a significant difference — 7 assessors, p < 0.01; odour 'Floral, rose' — Zhou et al. 2025, Foods (Table 1, row 6 'Phenylethyl alcohol')
• isophoronearomaketonereads as camphor-like (PubChem)Measured in 2 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the compounds that rises through industrial pile fermentation of ripened pu-erh: 'while those for woody and minty aromas (e.g., isophorone, methyl salicylate) increased' — Guan et al. 2026, Foods (Abstract)
• linaloolaromaalcoholreads as spicy, citrus taste (PubChem)Measured in 91 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of eight key volatiles identified in raw pu-erh at OAV >= 100, and one of five that also clear ACI >= 1: 'linalool, (E,E)-2,4-heptadienal, (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, 2,6,10,10-tetramethyl-1-oxaspiro[4.5]dec-6-ene, and octanal, were identified as significant contributors to the aroma' — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• phenethyl acetatearomaesterreads as floral, roseMeasured in 13 of 338 ingredients.cite

  omission produced a significant difference — 8 assessors, p < 0.01, the joint-strongest result in the test; odour 'Floral, rose' — Zhou et al. 2025, Foods (Table 1, row 9 '2-Phenethyl acetate')
• 1,2,3-trimethoxybenzenearomaetherMeasured in 1 of 338 ingredients.cite

  an age marker, not a constant: 'a few of the compounds, such as 1,2,3-trimethoxybenzene, hexanal, and 2-hexenal, were produced with a storage time of over two years'. The same paper notes that methoxyphenolic compounds carry the stale/musty notes of pu-erh — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Results, discussion of Table S1 and Figure 1A)
• alpha-terpineolaromaalcoholreads as floral, lilac (PubChem)Measured in 54 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the eight key volatile compounds identified in raw pu-erh at OAV >= 100: 'linalool, α-terpineol, geraniol, trans-β-ionone, α-ionone, (E,E)-2,4-heptadienal, 1-octanol, and octanal' — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• D-limonenearomaterpenoidreads as fruityMeasured in 10 of 338 ingredients.cite

  omission produced a significant difference — 6 assessors, p < 0.05, the weakest of the seven significant results; odour 'Fruity' — Zhou et al. 2025, Foods (Table 1, row 8 'D-Limonene')
• geraniolaromaalcoholreads as sweet rose odor (PubChem)Measured in 26 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the eight key volatile compounds identified in raw pu-erh at OAV >= 100 — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• trans-β-iononearomaterpenoidreads as warm woody, dry, and fruity odor (PubChem)Measured in 19 of 338 ingredients.cite

  reported as 'trans-β-ionone' among the eight key volatiles of raw pu-erh at OAV >= 100 — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• (E,Z)-2,6-nonadienalaromaaldehydereads as fatty, greenMeasured in 8 of 338 ingredients.cite

  omission produced a significant difference — 7 assessors, p < 0.01; odour 'Fatty, green' — Zhou et al. 2025, Foods (Table 1, row 3 '(E, Z)-2,6-Nonadienal')
• cis-3-hexen-1-olaromaalcoholreads as powerful grassy-green odor (PubChem)Measured in 21 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the five compounds identified as significant aroma contributors in raw pu-erh by the combination of OAV >= 100 and ACI >= 1 — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• alpha-iononearomaterpenoidreads as sweet-floral odor, reminiscent of violets (PubChem)Measured in 9 of 338 ingredients.cite

  one of the eight key volatile compounds identified in raw pu-erh at OAV >= 100 — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)
• 2,4-heptadienalaromaaldehydeMeasured in 10 of 338 ingredients.cite

  clears both of this paper's bars — one of the eight key volatiles at OAV >= 100, and one of the five that also reach ACI >= 1 — Guo et al. 2023, Foods (Abstract and Results)