ABSTRACT Yields of summer/autumn tea in China are relatively high, but its utilization and market value remain limited because of the pronounced bitterness and inferior flavor. In southwestern China, fresh summer/autumn tea leaves are traditionally pickled through anaerobic fermentation. In this study, fresh summer/autumn tea leaves were subjected to controlled anaerobic fermentation with Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (LP) inoculation, and the dynamic changes in nutritional quality, fermentation characteristics, active ingredients, and microbial community were evaluated. Compared with the noninoculated treatment (CK), LP treatment significantly reduced levels of water‐soluble carbohydrates (WSCs), acetic acid (AA), and propionic acid (PA), while increasing the acid detergent fiber (ADF) and ammonia nitrogen (NH 3 –N) contents in fermented tea leaves (all p < 0.05). The total free amino acids (FAA) content peaked on Day 30, reaching 8.15% and 7.94% for the CK and LP treatments, respectively. In addition, the contents of the flavor‐related FAA, including Glu and Ala, in the LP treatment were increased by 241.74% and 268.26% on Day 15, respectively. LP inoculation markedly elevated the relative abundance of Lactiplantibacillus and reduced the relative abundance of Listeria . Overall, LP inoculation improved the fermentation quality, enhanced the levels of bioactive and nutritional components, enriched specific flavor‐related FAA, and altered the microbial community by promoting the LAB abundance. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the efficient utilization and value promotion of summer/autumn tea leaves in southwest China.
Luo et al. (Wed,) studied this question.