Journal of Tea Science Research, 2024, Vol.14, No.1, 19-43 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/jtsr 19 Review and Progress Open Access White Tea: A Review on Composition Characteristics, Extraction Techniques, and Application Potentials Anqi Guo1, Huafang Feng2, Pu Jing1,3 , YuLan2, Xiaonian Cao2 1 Shanghai Food Safety and Engineering Technology Research Center, Key Lab of Urban Agriculture Ministry of Agriculture, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China 2 Luzhou Laojiao Co., Ltd., Luzhou, Sichuan, 646000, China 3 Shanghai Jiao Tong University Sichuan Research Institute, Sichuan, 610213, China Corresponding email: pjing@sjtu.edu.cn Journal of Tea Science Research, 2024, Vol.14, No.1 doi: 10.5376/jtsr.2024.14.0003 Received: 24 Feb., 2024 Accepted: 09 Apr., 2024 Published: 10 May, 2024 Copyright © 2024 Guo et al., This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Guo A.Q., Feng H.F., Jing P., Lan Y., and Cao X.N., 2024, White tea: a review on composition characteristics, extraction techniques, and application potentials, Journal of Tea Science Research, 14(1): 19-43 (doi: 10.5376/jtsr.2024.14.0003) Abstract White tea has gained significant popularity worldwide due to its health benefits. As the least processed type of tea, white tea is known for preserving a high level of bioactive phytochemicals from fresh tea leaves. However, the composition of white tea can vary widely depending on factors such as harvest season, processing methods, and storage conditions. To effectively utilize the bioactive compounds in white tea, the extraction process plays a crucial role, and researchers have been actively exploring optimal parameters and innovative techniques to improve extraction efficiency. Additionally, extensive research is being conducted to uncover the diverse functionalities of white tea, leading to new discoveries and insights into its applications in the food and therapeutic industries. This review provides an overview of the compositional profiles of different white teas, highlights advances in the optimization of white tea extraction, and provides up-to-date literature on the diverse functional properties of white tea. Keywords White tea; Composition characteristics; Extraction techniques; Bioactivity Background Aside from water, tea, typically made from leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis, is the most consumed beverage with worldwide popularity (Bortolini et al., 2021). Depending on the processing techniques, six types of tea can be clearly distinguished in order of increasing degree of fermentation/oxidation: white, green, yellow, oolong, black, and dark tea (Hinojosa-Nogueira et al., 2021). White tea, an important and minimally processed subclass of tea, is made primarily from newly grown buds and young leaves with downy, silvery hairs–the reason it is called “white” tea (Kosińska and Andlauer, 2014). For premium qualities in appearance and taste, white tea is plucked only once a year in the early spring, and tea quality is positively correlated with the freshness of the harvest (Li et al., 2020). In addition to plucking, the optimal temperature and altitude for the development of tea shoots are 18 °C-30 °C and 1,500 m above sea level, respectively (Sanlier et al., 2018). Due to history and cultural traditions, the vast majority of white tea is produced in China while a small portion is grown by other countries, including India and Sri Lanka. In recent years, Chinese white tea production has increased dramatically from 22,000 tons in 2015 to 74,500 tons in 2020 (Figure 1), likely due to its unequaled flavor and health benefits. As the least processed type of tea, white tea is immediately dried to inhibit oxidation to prevent the loss of components responsible for the three basic and characteristic flavors of white tea: bitterness, umami, and sweetness (Zhang et al., 2017a). In general, white tea has a light, delicate, and sweet/umami taste and fresh/green aroma, which is perceived as more preferable than the second least processed green tea, especially for the brew prepared in cold water from whole leaves (Castiglioni et al., 2015). In addition to its distinctive sensory properties, the growing popularity of white tea is also attributed to its health benefits, in line with the trend of increased health awareness among tea consumers. There is a growing body of evidence supporting the preventive and therapeutic effects of white tea, including antioxidant capacity,
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ4ODYzNA==