The Clever Root

Fall / Winter 2015

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f a l l 2 0 1 5 | 5 3 leave residue in the extract. Those familiar with cork know it as a process that sanitizes cork without the risk of imparting cork taint or 2,4,6-trichloroan- isole and the process is being increasingly used in the nutraceutical and food supplement industries, where requirements for purity are exceptionally high and conventional methods are not up to the challenge. We nose supercritical CO 2 extracts of pi- mento berry, cardamom, butter, celery, coffee, coriander, cumin, and star anise among others. In an effort to differentiate the character- istics of an essence produced using supercriti- cal CO 2 extraction, Aftel offers five different essences of cinnamon and cassia for comparison. Unlike wine evaluation, an exercise that requires the taster to unravel a complex aroma that is greater than the sum of its parts, each vial of essence contains a family of volatile molecules that are most often dominated by one that confers an aromatic signature. In the case of cinnamon, cinnamaldehyde defines the ma- jor tone, making it immediately recognizable as cinnamon. However, of the two largest families of cinnamon from China and Sri Lanka, the latter contains notes of linalool (floral) and eugenol (cloves) that aren't found in its Chinese cousin. It's easy to see why Aftel gravitates towards those essences that are the purest, the most lifted and alive. The super- critical CO 2 cinnamon extract is lighter, less pungent with high-toned floral notes and it's significantly different from the earthier, woody essential oil of Chinese cinnamon. Spending an afternoon immersed in Aftel's world provides a glimpse behind the curtain of an industry that prefers to guard its secrets. She is quick to remind us that even for the most unusual essences, price is no guarantee of quality. "In the fragrance industry, quality and price have never been aligned. I buy carefully and in small quantities in an effort to keep mark-ups reasonable," she said. "Learning to work with beautiful smells is such an incredible privilege, and the interaction you have when your work finds an audience, that's an incredible joy!" A highly-trained nose is greedy and Aftel is no exception; her appetite for aroma seems insatiable Aftel at her scent "organ" which houses the tools of her trade. The perfumer selects only the most exquisite raw materials for her perfumes, elixirs, scented teas, and essences. ■cr f a l l / w i n t e r 2 0 1 5 | 5 3

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