Abstract: In this study, the fresh leaves of arbor tea trees from four renowned ancient tea tree growing regions in Yunnan Province: Dingjiazhai, Jingmaishan, Kunlushan, and Bangdong were chosen to prepare ripe Pu-erh tea through sun drying followed by fermentation. To evaluate its sensory characteristics, sensory evaluation was combined with quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA). Additionally, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and headspace solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) were employed to analyze the chemical components and volatile compounds of the tea. Key aroma components were identified based on their odor activity value (OAV), and a flavor wheel was constructed therefrom. The results indicated that the four Pu-erh tea infusions displayed a bright reddish color, a mellow taste, and floral aroma characteristics. The mass fraction of soluble sugar was between 4.27% and 6.58%, and the mass fraction of theabrownins was between 11.66% and 14.83%. HS-SPME-GC-MS analysis identified 75 volatile compounds, with the major ones being alcohols and esters. Among these compounds, 34 were identified as characteristic aroma compounds as they had an OAV of greater than 1. On this basis, a flavor wheel covering 10 aroma attributes including as fatty, woody, floral, and aged notes was developed. Furthermore, four key compounds responsible for the floral aroma were identified: α-terpineol (average OAV = 223.09), linalool (average OAV = 57.78), α-ionone (average OAV = 363.81), and β-ionone (average OAV = 3 930.55). In summary, we concluded that the high concentrations of α-terpineol, linalool, α-ionone, and β-ionone in ripe arbor Pu-erh tea formed the material basis for its floral aroma characteristics. This provides a scientific foundation for standardizing the quality of ripe Pu-erh tea products.

Key words: arbor tea; ripe Pu-erh tea; quality characteristics; key aroma components; flavor wheel