Ефірна олія ягід ялівцю

Juniper berry oil comes from Juniperus communis, the common juniper, a species of small tree or shrub in the cypress family Cupressaceae. The species has the largest geographical range of any woody plant. Its fruit are berry-like cones known as juniper berries. A juniper berry is not a true berry but a cone with unusually fleshy and merged scales. The berries are green when young and mature to purple-black over about 18 months in most species, including J. communis.

The oil is composed largely of monoterpene hydrocarbons such as α-pinene, myrcene, sabinene, limonene and β-pinene. A high content of α-pinene, 25-45%, together with other monoterpene hydrocarbons, makes the odour slightly turpentine-like and the oil relatively poorly soluble. The main oxygen-containing component is 1-terpinen-4-ol (1-6%). In one example batch, α-pinene made up 38.2%, myrcene 12.2%, sabinene 8.9% and limonene 6.8%. The quantitative composition differs with factors such as geographical location, degree of ripeness, age of the berries and production method. α-Pinene made up 27% in samples from Greece and 28.6-38.2% in Montenegro.

The oil is soluble in most fixed oils and mineral oil and insoluble in glycerin and propylene glycol. One volume dissolves in at most 10 volumes of 95% ethanol. The oil polymerizes on storage. Annual production of the oil amounts to about 10 tonnes. The cones of a handful of species, especially Juniperus communis, also give gin its distinctive flavour.

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