Abstract:
This study involved the selection of 11 cultivars out of 201 screened cultivars of fresh green and purple coloured tea leaves for use in the manufacture of black teas with optimized antioxidant activities. Individual cultivars containing a combination of high leaf concentrations of the catechin fractions; epicatechin gallate (ECG) and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) were used in the processing of theaflavin-3,3’ digallate (TF3) rich black tea. The black tea enrichment with TF3 was carried out through optimization of the processing conditions of each cultivar by varying the aeration times between 0 min and 80 min at an interval of 20 min. The differently processed teas were then assayed for the TF3 contents. The data analysis was carried out using the GENSTAT at p ≤ 0.05. The optimal processing time for Ejulu, TRFK 832/8, TRFK 831/11, TRFK 824/1, SC 31/37, SC 12/28, K-Purple and TRFK 6/8 was found to be 60 min while that of TRFK 301/6, TRFK 301/3 and TRFK 655/1 was 40 min. The optimal TF3 levels were found to range from 0.19% to 0.60%.
