Rosé wines play an important role in the Turkish wine industry, and among them, rosé wines made with the grape cultivar Çalkarası are the most appreciated. The aim of this work was to characterise, for the first time, the aroma of Çalkarası rosé wine.

The aroma of a Çalkarası rosé wine from Turkey has been studied by sensory analysis, gas chromatography‐olfactometry (GC‐O) and four quantitative methods for the chemical analysis of volatile compounds. The aroma of the wine was dominated by fresh fruit, floral and red fruit notes. An extract obtained by a dynamic headspace technique was subjected to GC‐O. The strategy allowed the odorants in the Çalkarası rosé wine to be identified and quantified. The aroma showed a complex profile with 28 compounds determined above their odour threshold.

The results correlated well with previous studies of the aroma of rosé wines. Fruity ethyl esters, β‐damascenone, furaneol, fatty acids and a small amount of 3‐mercapto‐1‐hexanol and 3‐mercaptohexyl acetate all contribute to the aroma, but Çalkarası rosé wine has high level of isoamyl and 2‐phenylethyl acetates, which therefore appear to be responsible for its distinctive flowery aroma.

This work confirms a common base of aroma compounds for rosé wines but also highlights important differences in Çalkarası wine.