Bitterness and astringency are two important quality attributes of green tea infusion, and catechins are the main contributor to the bitterness and astringency. The aim of this work was to quantitatively analyse the bitterness and astringency of green tea infusion according to the concentrations of catechins. The concentration–taste curves of catechins showed a pattern that fit the cubic functions, and their R² values were higher than 0.956. The bitterness of green tea was highly correlated with the concentrations of (−)-epigallocatechin gallate and (−)-epicatechin gallate (ECG) (R² = 0.7769, p < 0.01), and the astringency (R² = 0.7878, p < 0.01) was highly correlated with the concentrations of ECG and flavonol glycosides (myricetin 3-O-galactoside and quercetin-3-O-rutinoside). Taste interactions between different catechins and between catechins and other substances were determined. These results may enhance the understanding of tea chemistry for improving the taste of products from green tea.

苦味和涩味是注入绿茶的两个重要质量属性，儿茶素是造成苦味和涩味的主要因素。这项工作的目的是根据儿茶素的浓度定量分析绿茶浸泡液的苦味和涩味。儿茶素的浓度-味道曲线显示出符合三次函数的模式，其R ²值高于0.956。绿茶的苦味与（-）-表没食子儿茶素没食子酸酯和（-）-表没食子儿茶素没食子酸酯（ECG）的浓度高度相关（R ²  = 0.7769，p  <0.01）和涩味（R ²  = 0.7878，p <0.01）与ECG和黄酮糖苷（杨梅素3 - O-半乳糖苷和槲皮素-3 - O-芸香糖苷）的浓度高度相关。确定了不同儿茶素之间以及儿茶素和其他物质之间的味觉相互作用。这些结果可以增进对茶化学的理解，以改善绿茶产品的味道。