This study aimed to explore the effects of Eucommia ulmoides blending ratio on black tea quality and optimize the brewing process. Three blending ratioswere designed, and sensory evaluation confirmed that 1:4 was the optimal proportion for Eucommia black tea. Eucommia black tea, pure black tea and pure Eucommia tea were adopted as materials to compare their physicochemical properties and active components. Pure black tea had the highest water content (0.96 ± 0.10%) and water extract (65.60 ± 0.90%), while Eucommia black tea showed slightly lower values of 0.88 ± 0.11% and 62.60 ± 1.11% with good dissolution performance. It possessed higher tea polyphenols (82.03 ± 0.01 mg/g) and free amino acids (16.03 ± 0.28 mg/g) than pure black tea, compensating for fermentation-induced active substance loss and improving tea flavor. Although fermentation reduced its monomeric catechins, Eucommia blending diversified functional components. Brewing conditions significantly affected sensory quality and non-volatile constituents. High-temperature and long-time brewing degraded geniposidic acid and pinoresinol diglucoside and aggravated astringency, while insufficient brewing caused weak flavor. The optimal condition of 80℃ for 7 minutes balanced sensory experience and component retention. This study proves Eucommia blending effectively improves black tea quality, providing technical support for the development of functional Eucommia black tea.

Eucommia Black Tea, Blending Process, Physicochemical Quality, Active Ingredients, Sensory Characteristics