In conclusion, a highly precise and accurate HPLC-DAD-MS
method was developed to determine the 10 major components of
74 tea samples, which represented 7 types of tea processing
methods in China. Our present method is adaptable for the quality
evaluation of tea for tea producers and regulatory authorities. By
comparing the contents of the major components and correlation
analysis, the unique aspects of each type of tea processing were
described systematically and correlated with the characteristics in
the chemical composition. The 7 types of tea processing methods
were clearly clustered in four main groups. This study not only
provides scientific information for consumers to distinguish
different teas, but also advanced our knowledge about the effect of
processing on the composition of tea.