Tea contains various ingredients. Among them, the key to determining the "tea taste" is amino acid, catechin and caffeine. By understanding the characteristics of these three major ingredients, you can choose your favorite tea product next time you drink tea, and it is easier to brew your favorite flavor.
First of all, the amino acids contained in tea can be said to be the source of umami. Tea contains various amino acids, the most familiar ones include theanine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, sodium glutamate, arginine, serine, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), etc. 15 species. Among them, theanine has the highest content, accounting for about 50% of the amino acids contained in tea trees. In addition to tea tree, other plants are only available in the mushrooms such as Boletus velveta, which is a special ingredient. Dr. Yajiro Saketo in Japan discovered theanine from Gyokuro in 1950. The old scientific name of tea "Thea sinensis" was taken from the original "Theanine" of theanine.
For this reason, theanine has long been regarded as the main ingredient in the umami flavor of tea. However, if there is only theanine, the umami is far less than the glutamic acid contained in kelp stock. Having said that, glutamic acid extracted from kelp and inosinic acid extracted from bonito can double the umami taste. Theanine can also be combined with other amino acids to make the umami more pronounced.
In addition, experiments have confirmed that alpha waves appear in the brain after ingesting theanine. Alpha waves have a relaxing effect on the mind and body, and can also affect brain function (relieve stress), which has attracted much attention in recent years. Theanine can inhibit the rise of blood pressure and promote the secretion of dopamine.
Not just theanine, but arginine is also one of the most noticeable amino acids in tea. Arginine alone has a bitter taste, but according to recent research, tea with more arginine tastes better.
Because both matcha and gyokuro attach great importance to umami, they will try to increase the content of arginine when making tea. However, at present, experts do not know why the more arginine, the more obvious the umami taste of tea, and we look forward to future research to reveal more secrets of delicious tea.
Copyright © 2019 Yukihide Miki All rights reserved and may not be used without permission
◎ This article is excerpted from / "Choose Tea. Bubble tea. Tea tasting, the science of good tea" by Yukihide Miki ◎ Image source/Caishi Culture‧Dazhi Image/Shutterstock
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