Flavonoid pattern of sage (Salvia officinalis L.) unifloral honey

The aim of the present paper was to determine the flavonoids in monofloral sage (Salvia officinalis L.) honey which is characteristic and specific for the area of Croatian coast and islands. For that purpose 38 sage honey samples from two production seasons were analysed. After specific pollen content determination, and analyses of selected physicochemical parameters which confirmed that samples are in compliance with national and international regulations and can be regarded as unifloral sage honeys, flavonoid fraction was isolated and analysed using RP-HPLC/DAD method. The HPLC analysis showed that all examined sage honey samples contain quercetin (3,3',4',5,7-pentahydroxyflavone), luteolin (3',4',5,7-tetrahydroxyflavone), kaempferol (3,4',5,7-tetrahydroxyflavone), apigenin (4',5,7-trihydroxyflavone), chrysin (5,7-dihydroxyflavone) and galangin (3,5,7-trihydroxyflavone), as well as p-coumaric (trans-4-hydroxycinnamic acid) and caffeic acid (3,4-dihydroxycinnamic acid). Total amount of identified flavonoids varied from 109.4 mu g/100 g of honey to 589.9 mu g/100 g of honey, with the average of 288.5 mu g/100 g of honey. All analysed honey samples showed common and specific flavonoid profile which could be the basis for differentiating sage from other monofloral honeys. (c) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.