Volatile Flavor Analysis and Sensory Evaluation of Jinhua Tibetan Tea during Pile Processing

In order to investigate the formation and changes of aroma components during the pile-fermentation of Jinhua Tibetan tea, chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to determine the volatile component, and sensory evaluation was used to test the flavor. Results showed that, 80 volatile compounds were identified from Jinhua Tibetan tea. The main aroma components were alcohols, acids, hydrocarbons, and heteroaxygens in the Mao'chao stage, which were alcohols, ketones, hydrocarbons, and others in the final stage. The main alcohol compounds such as 2,3-butanediol, cyclohexanol,2,5-dimethyl-, 2-decen-1-ol, (2E)-, 1,2,3-butanetriol disappeared over the fermentation. In S2 stage, limonene became the main volatile component, accounting for 85.4%. With the pile-fermentation of Jinhua Tibetan tea, alpha-terpineol, linalool and its oxides, which were associated with floral smell, decreased significantly. 1,2,3-trimethoxybenzene and alkenals, which were associated with woody and stale smell, increased significantly. The results of this study would lay a theoretical foundation for aroma characteristics of Jinhua Tibetan tea, and provide a reference for tea processing and quality control.