Massoia lactone is an

alkyl In organic chemistry, an alkyl group is an alkane missing one hydrogen. The term ''alkyl'' is intentionally unspecific to include many possible substitutions. An acyclic alkyl has the general formula of . A cycloalkyl is derived from a cycloa ...

lactone Lactones are cyclic carboxylic esters, containing a 1-oxacycloalkan-2-one structure (), or analogues having unsaturation or heteroatoms replacing one or more carbon atoms of the ring. Lactones are formed by intramolecular esterification of the co ...

derived from the bark of the Massoia tree (''Cryptocaria massoia'') which is found in Papua, Indonesia though the compound can also be found as a component of cane sugar molasses, cured

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

, and the essential oil of Sweet

Osmanthus ''Osmanthus'' ''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995:606–607 is a genus of about 30 species of flowering plants in the family Oleaceae. Most of the species are native to eastern Asia ( China, Japan, Korea, Indochina, the Himalayas, etc.),and wa ...

(''

Osmanthus fragrans ''Osmanthus fragrans'' (lit. "fragrant osmanthus"; Chinese: , ''guìhuā'', and , ''mùxī''; ; Shanghainese: ''kue35 ho53''; ja, 木犀, ''mokusei''; hi, , ''silang''), variously known as sweet osmanthus, sweet olive, tea olive, and fr ...

''). Chemically, massoia lactone can be obtained as a minor product in transfer hydrogenation of 6-amyl-α-pyrone. Known in the late 18th and early 19th centuries as massoy bark, massoia essential oil was once widely used as a natural coconut flavouring. Natural massoia lactone has been largely superseded by a synthetic alternative because the extraction process is expensive and the process of removing the bark kills the tree. Massoia lactone has an odour that is described as sweet, coconut meat, lactonic, creamy, milky and waxy"Good Scents Company product page for Massoia Lactone"
/ref> and, at a dilution of 20 ppm, a taste described as creamy, coconut, green, and slightly fruity.

References

{{reflist, 30em Lactones Dihydropyrans