Flavor changes of Yunnan large-leaf cultivar white tea during different aging periods

Yunnan large-leaf white tea gains popularity for its unique flavor attributable to the local tea varieties and environments. But how aging crucially enhances its quality and flavor remains unclear. Here, flavor change and safety quality of "Qinghuan" (QH) stored for different periods were studied, revealing that older teas developed sweeter, smoother, and more balanced flavors, with a stable and pleasant aroma. In total, 32 key non-volatiles (e.g., rutin, (-)-epigallocatechin gallate, p-coumaric acid) were screened by principal component analysis and significant changes were observed in volatiles (alcohols, aldehydes, terpenes) over time. Additionally, aflatoxins in QH teas remained undetected, irrespective of aging time; and oral median lethal doses of 2023 and 2017 QH teas were 17.17 g/kg·bw and 15.09 g/kg·bw, indicating that QH tea has a high safety quality for drinking over the aging time. Overall, QH tea's flavor and safety quality increased with storage time, providing evidence of the temporal value for collecting white tea.