Development of green, oolong and black tea from artemisia capillaris

Abstract

Artemisia capillaris or Yin Chen Hao has been used in Chinese herbal medicine for over 2,000 years. It is an effective remedy for liver problems, being specifically helpful in and strengthening effect upon the liver, gallbladder and digestive system. The objectives of this study were to develop green tea, oolong tea and black tea from A. capillaris, to compare the A. capillaris in terms of sensory attributes and physical characteristics, and to determine minerals content and phenolic compound in the teas. The colour of A. capillaris green tea was green; while A. capillaris oolong tea and black tea was dark green. The teas have been compared with true black tea in sensory evaluation to evaluate sensory attributes such as colour, aroma, bitterness, taste and overall acceptance. The results showed that A. capillaris black tea colour and aroma was the most accepted. On the other hand, A. capillaris green tea was the most accepted tea as it showed the highest mean score for taste, bitterness and overall acceptance attributes. All the samples showed no significance difference (p<0.05). Determination of mineral content using AAS in green tea, oolong tea and black tea showed that the highest mineral content that found in the teas was magnesium, ferum, followed by calcium and copper respectively.