Eugenol
The main aroma compound of clove, also found in allspice, basil and cinnamon leaf.
Also: clove oil compound, allyl guaiacol
Eugenol makes up 70 to 90 percent of clove bud oil. It has a sweet, spicy, medicinal smell and a mildly numbing, antiseptic effect on the tongue, one reason clove oil appears in dentistry and in folk remedies for toothache, which remain traditions rather than prescriptions. In the kitchen eugenol gives warmth to baked goods, meat, marinades and mulled drinks. It is also present in allspice, bay, nutmeg and holy basil. Because it is strong, cloves are used one at a time, and an excess dominates every other flavour. Eugenol is relatively stable and survives cooking better than lighter aroma compounds.