Thyme Thymus vulgaris Both of the major culinary mints have a refreshing quality, but they are quite different Spearmint has a distinctive aroma thanks to a particular terpene, L-carvone, and a richness and complexity thanks to pyridines, nitrogencontaining compounds more typical of roasted foods than raw ones Spearmint is widely used in the Eastern Mediterranean as well as in India and Southeast Asia, in large quantities, both fresh and cooked, and in both sweet and savory contexts Simpler, clearer-tasting peppermint contains little or no carvone or pyridines; instead it makes a terpene called menthol, which gives it a uniquely cooling quality In addition to having its own aroma, menthol actually binds to receptors on temperature-sensing nerve cells in the mouth, and causes those cells to signal the brain that they are cooler than they really are by 7– 13ºF/4–7ºC Menthol is a reactive chemical that rapidly degenerates when heated, so peppermint is usually not cooked Its concentration increases with the age of the leaf, so older leaves taste more cooling; hot and dry growing conditions cause menthol to be transformed into a noncooling, somewhat harsh by-product (pulegone, the characteristic volatile in pennyroyal) A handful of other mints are worth knowing about Watermint, one of the parents of peppermint and sometimes called bergamot or orange mint, has a strong aroma and used to be much cultivated in Europe, but now is more popular in Southeast Asia Pennyroyal (M pulegium) is an especially pungent, peppery minor mint, apple or pineapple mint (M suaveolens) a sweet, apple-like one, and Mentha x piperata “citrata” the perfumy lemon or eau de cologne mint Nepitella is the Italian name for Calamintha nepeta, a sometimes minty, sometimes pungent herb native to the southern Mediterranean, used in ... somewhat harsh by-product (pulegone, the characteristic volatile in pennyroyal) A handful of other mints are worth knowing about Watermint, one of the parents of peppermint and sometimes called bergamot... usually not cooked Its concentration increases with the age of the leaf, so older leaves taste more cooling; hot and dry growing conditions cause menthol to be transformed into a noncooling, somewhat... suaveolens) a sweet, apple-like one, and Mentha x piperata “citrata” the perfumy lemon or eau de cologne mint Nepitella is the Italian name for Calamintha nepeta, a sometimes minty, sometimes pungent herb native to the southern Mediterranean, used in