compounds of green coffee beans include short-chain fatty acids, aldehydes, and nitrogen-containing aromatic molecules, such as derivatives of pyrazines (green-herbeaceous-earthy odor). Briefly, such volatile compounds are responsible for the less pleasing odor and taste of green coffee versus roasted coffee. Commercial success was realized by Starbucks in creating Green Bean Refreshers using a process that primarily isolates the caffeine from the green beans but does not actually use steeped liquid from the beans. Many consumers experiment with creating green bean "extract" by steeping green coffee beans in hot water. Often, the recommended times of steeping (20 minutes to 1 hour) extract too much caffeine to provide a pleasant taste. A steeping time of 12 minutes or under provides a more palatable liquid that can be used as a base for a drink containing more of the nutrients and less caffeine that using just isolated caffeine extract. The alkaline stock base that results can be paired with acidic or fruity extracts, with or without sweetener, to mask the vegetable-like taste of the extract. When green coffee beans are roasted, other molecules with the typical pleasant aroma of coffee are generated, which are not present in fresh green coffee. During roasting, the major part of the unpleasant-tasting volatile compounds are neutralised. Unfortunately, other important molecules such as antioxidants and vitamins present in green coffee are destroyed. Volatile compounds with nauseating odor for humans have been identified, including acetic acid (pungent, unpleasant odor), propionic acid (odor of sour milk, or butter), butanoic acid (odor of rancid butter, present in green coffee with 2 mg/100 g coffee beans), pentanoic acid (unpleasant fruity flavor, present in green coffee at 40 mg/100 g in coffee beans), hexanoic acid (fatty-rancid odor), heptanoic acid (fatty odor), octanoic acid (repulsive oily rancid odor); nonanoic acid (mild nut-like fatty odor); decanoic acid (sour repulsive odor), and derivatives of such fatty acids – 3-methyl-valeric acid (sour, green-herbaceous, unpleasant odor), acetaldehyde (pungent-nauseating odor, even when highly diluted, present in dried green coffee beans at concentrations of about 5 mg/kg), propanal (choking effect on respiratory system, penetrating-nauseating), butanal (nauseating effect, present in dried green coffee beans at 2–7 mg/kg), or pentanal (very repulsive nauseating effect). References External links Coffea Edible nuts and seeds Crops Coffee