Tea is an aqueous infusion of dried leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis L. and is the second most widely consumed beverage around the world after water. Aroma compounds of tea differ largely depending on the manufacturing process, even from the same categories of different origins. The flavor of tea can be divided into two categories: taste (non-volatile compounds) and aroma (volatile compounds). In the present study, we review the formation mechanism of main aromas generated from carotenoids, lipids, glycosides as precursors, and Maillard reaction during the tea manufacturing process, with biological and chemical mechanisms.