Liquorice is the root of Glycyrrhiza glabra from which a sweet flavour can be extracted.The root is the most important part, send out an extensive network of rhizomes which are grown for 3 to 5 years before harvested. The roots and rhizomes are cleaned and packed. When cut, the root is bright yellow and smells sweet. It tastes strongly of anise with a bitter sweet flavour. The flavor of liquorice comes mainly from a sweet-tasting compound called anethole ("trans"-1-methoxy-4-(prop-1-enyl) benzene), an aromatic, unsaturated ether compound also found in anise, fennel, and other herbs. The root, especially the root bark, contains about 4% glycyrrhizin, the potassium or calcium salt of glycyrrhizinic acid. The latter is a glycoside of a pentacyclic triterpene carboxylic acid (18ß-glycyrrhetic acid) with two molecules glucuronic acid. Glycyrrhizin is about 50 times sweeter than sucrose (cane sugar). Furthermore, a flavonoid glycoside has been identified: liquiritin. The aglycon liquiritigenin is in part spontaneously formed when the root is dried; it is responsible for the spasmolytic effects of licorice.
