Sensomics-Assisted Characterization of Fungal-Flowery Aroma Components in Fermented Tea Using Eurotium cristatum

Abstract

Fermented tea (FT) using a single Eurotium cristatum strain can produce a pleasant fungal-flowery aroma, which is similar to the composite aroma characteristic of minty, flowery, and woody aromas, but its molecular basis is not yet clear. In this study, solvent-assisted flavor evaporation and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry/olfactometry were applied to isolate and identify volatiles from the FT by E. cristatum. The application of an aroma extract dilution analysis screened out 43 aroma-active compounds. Quantification revealed that there were 11 odorants with high odor threshold concentrations. Recombination and omission tests revealed that nonanal, methyl salicylate, decanoic acid, 4-methoxybenzaldehyde, α-terpineol, phenylacetaldehyde, and coumarin were the major odorants in the FT. Addition tests further verified that methyl salicylate, 4-methoxybenzaldehyde, and coumarin were the key odorants for fungal-flowery aroma, each corresponding to minty, woody, and flowery aromas, respectively. 4-Methoxybenzaldehyde and coumarin were newly found odorants for fungal-flowery aroma in FT, and 4-methoxybenzaldehyde had not been reported as a tea volatile compound before. This finding may guide future industrial production optimization of FT with improved flavor.

Exploring the effect of different tea varieties on the quality of Lu’an Guapian tea based on metabolomics and molecular sensory science

“…Next, the tea was distilled in a vacuum environment at 10 −2 Pa with a SAFE unit. The temperature of the thermostatic water bath in the sample distillation area and the circulating water bath in the SAFE unit are both 40 °C ( Cui et al, 2021 ; Shen et al, 2023 ; Zhang et al, 2023 ). The distillate was extracted three times using 30 mL dichloromethane each time to obtain the final extract.…”

Chemical Profile and Aroma Effects of Major Volatile Compounds in New Mulberry Leaf Fu Brick Tea and Traditional Fu Brick Tea

“…Sensory evaluation is a set of techniques to accurately measure human perception of the whole flavour of a food product and is considered to be a very valuable method for analysing key odour-active compounds in relation to aroma character attributes [ 17 , 18 , 19 ]. However, aroma components exhibit different odour thresholds and concentrations, and only a few compounds are major contributors to the overall aroma, and these compounds are considered to be important key odourants [ 20 ]. The key odour compounds between them can be accurately screened and calculated using chemometrics and the odour activity value (OAV) [ 21 , 22 , 23 ].…”

The potential application of fermented tea as a drink for regulating bone mass

“…Fermented tea mainly includes oolong tea and black tea, which have been widely used in the production of functional drinks and health products in recent years ( Yoo et al, 2023 ). When compared different types of tea, there have significant differences in compound composition and health functions, among which the research on the bone protective effects of fermented teas such as oolong tea and black tea has become a hot topic in recent years ( Shen et al, 2023 ). This study systematically reviews the research results and application prospects of the active ingredients in fermented tea leaves of Camellia plants on bone mass regulation.…”