Mechanistic Understanding of Aroma Release in Black Tea

Tea is the second largest consumed beverage across the world after water. The quality of tea is decided by three of its attributes-flavor, color and aroma. Aroma can drive consumer preference as well as rejection strongly. Aroma partitioning is dependent on several factors like storage time, tea origin, preparation protocols and particle size. The focus of this work is to investigate the impact of these parameters on tea aroma release and retention (partitioning) using a model system. The aroma in the brew was pre-concentrated using SPME fiber and analyzed using gas chromatography (GC) coupled with Flame Ionization Detector (FID). This study allowed us to understand that the overall aroma as well as individual volatile compounds released in the end cup varies differently for these parameters. The insights generated from this study can be used to design products to maximize aroma delivery in end cup for different brewing protocols used by consumers.