When you think of green tea, the first words that likely come to mind are “fresh” and “revitalizing.” Indeed, green tea is the quintessential tea of spring. With its clear, verdant infusion, a single sniff can be invigorating, while a sip reveals a fresh, sweet mellowness. It’s like capturing the essence of spring in a teacup.
However, the aromatic profile of green tea can vary significantly depending on the ecological environment, the specific tea plant cultivar, and the processing methods used. Let’s explore the nuances of these captivating scents.
What Determines the Aroma of Green Tea?
1. Tea Plant Cultivar
Under identical processing conditions, different tea plant cultivars will yield distinct aromas. A clear example can be seen in Longjing tea; varieties such as Longjing #43, Longjing Quntizhong (Heirloom), Yingshuang, and Jiukeng Quntizhong all produce teas with considerable differences in their aromatic components.
2. Ecological Environment
The altitude, sunlight, and soil composition of a tea garden all play a crucial role in shaping a tea’s aroma.
For instance, high-altitude tea gardens are often shrouded in clouds and mist, characterized by cooler temperatures and higher humidity. The abundance of diffused light slows the growth of tea buds, which is beneficial for the accumulation and development of aromatic compounds. Teas from these regions typically exhibit a more pronounced floral fragrance.
3. Plucking Time
The timing of the green tea harvest is critical. Teas plucked in early spring are prized for their tenderness, yielding a delicate fragrance layered over a fresh, clean base. In contrast, Yuqian tea, plucked later (before the Gu Yu rains), tends to have a bolder, crisper aroma, sometimes with floral notes. Plucking too early or too late can compromise the tea’s quality and taste, making harvest time a key factor in its aromatic profile.
4. Fixation Method
Fixation, or shāqīng (杀青), is a critical step in determining the quality of green tea and is a pivotal stage for aroma transformation.
The primary impact of fixation on aroma comes from how different temperatures affect the tea leaves. The process volatilizes small-molecule aldehydes with low boiling points and pungent odors, which in turn accentuates the more desirable aromatic alcohols.
Therefore, different fixation temperatures create distinct aroma profiles: low-temperature fixation promotes a delicate, fresh aroma, while high-temperature fixation is key to developing chestnut, toasty, and beany notes.
Common Green Tea Aroma Profiles
1. Chestnut Aroma
This aroma is reminiscent of chestnuts and is often described as toasty or roasted. It can be further categorized into three subtypes based on its intensity and persistence: tender chestnut, nutty chestnut, and ripe chestnut.
Generally, a low-temperature fixation yields a tender chestnut aroma—soft, elegant, and often found in high-grade green teas made from delicate buds. A medium temperature brings out a nutty chestnut aroma. A ripe chestnut aroma, similar to roasted chestnuts, typically appears in green teas that have undergone a more intensive heating process.
Prominent examples of teas with a chestnut aroma include Xinyang Maojian, Rizhao Green Tea, and Meitan Cuiya.
2. Beany Aroma
A beany aroma is common in flat, pan-fired green teas, with the most famous example being West Lake Longjing.
However, the beany note in a top-quality West Lake Longjing is not the scent of roasted soybeans but rather a delicate douhua (豆花) fragrance—a fresh, clean, and mellow aroma that is highly distinctive. The Qiantang County Annals record: “Tea from Longjing possesses a douhua fragrance, giving it the name Longjing tea. Its liquor is clear and its taste is sweet, distinguishing it from teas of other mountains.” This scent is described as being similar to that of broad bean blossoms.
This aroma profile is often confused with the chestnut aroma, but the beany note is typically more assertive and stimulating to the senses.
3. Fresh Aroma
Common in baked (as opposed to pan-fired) green teas, this profile is clean, light, and elegant. It evokes the refreshing tranquility of a bamboo grove after a spring rain, offering a pure and natural scent.
Representative teas with a fresh aroma include Huangshan Maofeng and Anji Baicha.
4. Floral and Fruity Aroma
While more common in black and oolong teas, floral and fruity notes can also be found in certain green teas.
For example, Dongting Biluochun is known for its pleasant floral and fruity fragrance. One theory suggests that this is because the tea bushes are intercropped with fruit trees, allowing the leaves to absorb their scent. A more convincing explanation, however, is that Biluochun’s unique aroma is a complex combination of its terroir, specific processing techniques, and the cultivar itself.
5. Orchid Aroma
An orchid aroma is relatively rare in green tea and is typically a hallmark of exceptional, high-grade teas, often those made using the baking (烘青, hōngqīng) fixation method. The fragrance is serene and profoundly refreshing, reminiscent of a delicate orchid.
Examples include Taiping Houkui and top-tier expressions of West Lake Longjing and Huangshan Maofeng.
6. Seaweed Aroma
This unique aroma, reminiscent of seaweed or nori, is characteristic of traditional steamed green teas. In the steaming process (zhēngqīng, 蒸青), high-temperature steam is used for fixation. This method preserves more of the low-boiling-point aromatic compounds in the leaves, resulting in this distinctive marine fragrance.
Representative teas include Enshi Yulu from Hubei province, as well as Japanese steamed green teas like Gyokuro and Matcha.
7. Milky Aroma
Though more commonly associated with oolong tea, a milky aroma can be found in a very special green tea: Huangjin Ya (Golden Bud), nicknamed the “Panda of Tea.”
It is often mistaken for a yellow tea due to its “three yellows”: bright yellow dry leaves, brilliant yellow liquor, and a goose-yellow leaf base after steeping. However, it is technically a green tea.
Processed using a baking fixation, its brewed leaves turn a milky white color. Thanks to an exceptionally high amino acid content, the tea has a remarkable umami-sweetness, with high-quality batches exuding a rich, milky fragrance.
Of course, the world of green tea aromas extends far beyond this list. For instance, most Maojian and Maofeng style teas possess a delicate aroma from their tender buds, while teas rich in fine downy hairs, like Biluochun and Huangshan Maofeng, have a “hairy” or hao xiang (毫香) note. Often, a single tea will present a complex blend of several aromas. We encourage fellow tea lovers to take their time and savor the intricate tapestry of scents each cup has to offer.