Study on the Effect of Infrared-Withering on the Quality of Oolong Tea

Effects of infrared-withering, room withering and heat-withering on the quality of resultant oolong tea was studied by determining their biochemical components and physicochemical parameters during processing. The experimental results indicate that quality of the resultant oolong tea by infrared-withering was better than those by room withering or heat-withering. The optimal craft parameters of infrared-withering is in condition of two 250W infrared light bulb with 60cm radiation height, 30min radiation time and 60min cooling time. The biochemical compositions of infrared-withering oolong tea show that the water extract content, the tea polyphenol content, the amino acids content, the caffeine content, the total catechins contents were 38.51±0.25%, 24.51±0.61%, 2.76±0.06%, 1.2±0.02%, 49.07±0.05mg/g, respectively.