{
    "id": 1070447,
    "title": "Why do pear drops smell like nail varnish?",
    "slug": "why-do-pear-drops-smell-like-nail-varnish",
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    "url": "https://sweeties.net/wiki/why-do-pear-drops-smell-like-nail-varnish/",
    "modified": "2026-09-26T14:36:52+01:00",
    "excerpt": "Pear drops get their flavour from ethyl acetate, which is also a solvent in nail varnish removers and glues. Same chemical, same smell. It is safe in sweets.",
    "content_text": "If you have ever thought pear drops smell like nail varnish, or nail varnish remover smells like pear drops, you are not imagining it. They share a chemical.\nThe chemical: ethyl acetate\nPear drops usually get their flavour from two esters, a family of chemicals that often smell fruity. One is isoamyl acetate, which tastes of banana. The other is ethyl acetate, which tastes of pear.\nEthyl acetate is a colourless liquid with a sweet smell, and it is often described as smelling similar to pear drops. It is made by combining ethanol with acetic acid, and it is produced on a huge scale. As well as flavouring sweets, it is used as a solvent in glues and nail varnish removers, and even in the process used to take the caffeine out of some tea and coffee.\nSo when you smell nail varnish remover that contains ethyl acetate and think of pear drops, your nose is quite right. It is the same molecule.\nIs it safe?\nYes. Ethyl acetate occurs naturally in fruit and gives a brief, fruity aroma. In sweets it is used in tiny amounts as a flavouring. The fact that the same chemical is also used as a solvent in other products does not make it unsafe in food, any more than vinegar is unsafe because it is also used for cleaning. What matters is the use and the amount.\nNot every nail varnish remover uses ethyl acetate, and not every pear drop is made the same way: some use natural pear juice concentrate for flavour instead.\nWhy the smell is so memorable\nSmell is closely tied to memory. For people who grew up with a sweet jar of pear drops, the smell means the corner shop. For others it means painting nails. The smell is the same; the memory decides whether you love it or hate it.\nThe banana twist\nThe other pear drop flavouring, isoamyl acetate, is sometimes called banana oil or pear oil. It is used to give a banana flavour to sweets and gum, including the American Juicy Fruit chewing gum. So there is a little bit of banana in most pear drops.\nRead more about the sweet itself in pear drops, or try our SW033.",
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