Evaluation of the volatile fraction of commercial virgin olive oils from Tunisia and Italy: relation with olfactory attributes

The volatile profile of fourteen commercial virgin olive oils (VOOs) produced by Tunisian and Italian olive cultivars from different geographical areas and collected from local markets and farms was evaluated by means of headspace-solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. All the samples were also analyzed by a group of fully trained assessors to define their olfactory attributes. The concentrations of volatile compounds as well as the nuances exhibited large variability among different kind of samples confirming that the typicality of VOOs in terms of both organoleptic and compositional characteristics greatly depends on both olive variety and quality. In particular, VOOs from Chetoui were found to exhibit both volatile profiles and sensory notes very similar to Italian samples. Data relative to the main volatile compounds were related to both positive and negative olfactory notes and sensory defects found in some oil samples were well confirmed by volatile marker presence.