Cinnamon as a flavor

Cinnamon was one of the first spices prized and enjoyed by man since the early days of civilization. It was precious not only as a flavoring agent, but was estemmed as a medicine, as a perfume and as one of the aromatic is burned as incense.

Cinnamon contains 1-2% volatile cinnamon oil and tannins, exudates and resin. The composition of cinnamon oil is 75-90% cinnamal with small amounts of cinnamyl acetate and cinnamyl propionate.

Cinnamon bark oil and leaf oil are used in numerous processed foods and drinks. It is used for domestic culinary flavoring and for industrially manufactured sauces, candy, pickles and some beverages.

A cinnamon leaf oil of Chinese origin, Cinnamomum japonicum Sieb, contains a high concentration of safrole (60%) and only about 3% eugenol.

Leaf oil is used in perfumery in preference to bark oil, where its spicy notes blend in to produce woody-oriental perfumes.

Cinnamon leaf oil almost equals clove oil in its eugenol content and in this respect cinnamon oil leaf competes with clove stem and leaf oil. Leaf of cinnamon is used for flavoring sweets and confectionery and is a common adulterant for bark oil.
Cinnamon as a flavor