Contribution of Polyphenolic Compounds to the Taste of Tea

Comparison of Phenolic Compounds and Taste of Chinese Black Tea

“…TR was also positively correlated aftertaste of astringency (r = 0.530, p < 0.05), while TB was negatively correlated with bitterness (r = −0.486, p < 0.05). The present finding confirmed the important contribution of TF and TR to taste quality of black tea (Sanderson et al, 1976;Zhen, 2004). …”

“…A delicious cup of tea infusion is an ingenious balance of various taste sensations. Astringency in black tea is divided into two types: tangy and non-tangy (Sanderson et al, 1976). The tangy astringency which is tasteless, mouth-drying and mouth-coating, with a lingering (more than 60 seconds) after taste effect.…”

“…The tangy astringency of black tea infusion is possibly related to the bitterness (Millin et al, 1969). It was noted that the compounds with a galloyl group, TF and caffeine are closely related to the tangy astringency (Sanderson et al, 1976). So, the caffeine together with the black tea polyphenols was necessary for the expression of reasonable amounts of tangy astringency.…”

“…Decaffeination may change the nature of astringency in black tea infusion from the tangy type to non-tangy type (Sanderson et al, 1976).…”

“…The contribution of TF-digallate and TF-monogallate to astringent is 6.4 and 2.2 times higher than that of theaflavin (Zhen, 2004). Sensory analysis revealed that theaflavins taste bitter and astringent with threshold concentrations of 300 _ 1000 mg/L for bitterness and 125 _ 800 mg/L for astringency (Sanderson et al, 1976). Theaflavins in solution are normally very astringent, but in tea the astringent is reduced due to an interaction with bitter caffeine.…”