Key Laboratory of Tea Biology and Resources Utilization, National Engineering Research Center for Tea Processing, Tea Research Institute Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Ministry of Agriculture, 9 South Meiling Road, Hangzhou 310008, China.
College of Food Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
Molecules. 2021 Jul 13;26(14):4255. doi: 10.3390/molecules26144255.
Aroma deterioration is one of the biggest problems in processing tea beverages. The aroma of tea infusion deteriorates fast during heat sterilization and the presence of ferrous ion (Fe) aggravates it. The underlying mechanism remains unveiled. In this study, Fe was verified to deteriorate the aroma quality of green tea infusion with heat treatment. Catechins were necessary for Fe-mediated aroma deterioration. By enhancing the degradation of catechins, Fe dramatically increased the production of hydrogen peroxide (HO). Fe and HO together exacerbated the aroma of green tea infusion with heat treatment. GC-MS analysis revealed that the presence of Fe enhanced the loss of green/grassy volatiles and promoted the formation of new volatiles with diversified aroma characteristics, resulting in a dull scent of green tea infusion. Our results revealed how Fe induced aroma deterioration of green tea infusion with heat treatment and could help guide tea producers in attenuating the aroma deterioration of tea infusion during processing.
香气劣变是茶饮料加工过程中面临的最大问题之一。茶汤在热杀菌过程中香气迅速劣变,而亚铁离子(Fe)的存在会加剧这种劣变。其潜在机制尚不清楚。本研究证实 Fe 会通过热处理加速绿茶浸提液的香气品质劣变。儿茶素是 Fe 介导的香气劣变所必需的。通过促进儿茶素的降解,Fe 显著增加了过氧化氢(HO)的生成。Fe 和 HO 共同加剧了热处理绿茶浸提液的香气。GC-MS 分析表明,Fe 的存在促进了青草味挥发物的损失,并促进了具有多样化香气特征的新挥发物的形成,导致绿茶浸提液香气沉闷。我们的研究结果揭示了 Fe 如何诱导热处理绿茶浸提液的香气劣变,并为茶生产企业在加工过程中减轻茶浸提液香气劣变提供指导。