Method for improving flavor of tea leaves with reduced caffeine

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a tea leaf high in palatability having tea original flavor while sufficiently reducing caffeine, and a manufacturing method of the same.SOLUTION: There is provided a manufacturing method of low caffeine tea leaf by conducting a firing treatment on a tea leaf extraction treated by supercritical carbon dioxide. There is provided a manufacturing method of low caffeine tea leaf with tea leaf temperature during the firing treatment of 130°C or more in the case of green tea leaf and 110°C to 130°C in the case of black tea leaf. There is provided a tea leaf having caffeine content of 0.5% or less and a ratio of peak area total when analyzed by a gas chromatograph mass spectrometry (GC/MS analysis method) for (A) a firing aroma component (2,5-dimethyl pyrazine or the like), (B) a green smell component (n-hexanal or the like) and (C) an oil smell component (1-pentene-3-ol or the like) of [(A)/(B)] of 3.0 or more and [(A)/(C)] of 1.5 or more.SELECTED DRAWING: None