Is the redder the black tea soup, the better?

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Some tea drinkers encountered this problem when drinking black tea, that is, some black tea soup was actually golden yellow, and the store said it was very good tea. So he had doubts: shouldn't black tea have red soup? Is the color of tea soup one of the basis for judging good tea?


First of all, the color of tea soup is caused by various tea pigments. During the processing of black tea, a variety of pigment substances, such as theaflavins and thearubigins, are formed, turning the fresh tea leaves from their original green color into black tea with "red soup and red leaves".

The more thearubigins, the redder the black tea soup will be, but isn’t it also the better? In fact, what determines the color of black tea soup is the different ratios of theaflavin, thearubigin, and theabrownin.

Theabrownin is mainly formed by the oxidative polymerization of theaflavins and thearubigins.

When the theabrownin content reaches 6% to 8%, the soup color can show reddish-brown and bright quality characteristics. When the theabrownin content is less than 5%, it means insufficient fermentation, and the soup color will appear bright red and orange. Therefore, high theabrownin content is detrimental to the quality of black tea. The higher the content, the darker the tea soup and the darker the tea base will be.


Thearubigin, the aqueous solution is dark red, which plays an important role in the taste and color concentration of tea soup.

Because of the presence of kombucha, the tea soup of black tea shows the "red" color we see. The higher the content of thearubigins, the better. If the content is too high, it will damage the quality, making the tea taste weak and the color of the tea will become darker. If the content is too low, the tea soup will not be red enough.

Theaflavins are orange-yellow or orange-red in color and are a type of pigment with astringent properties. They are the main component of the "brightness" of black tea. They are an important component of the taste intensity and freshness of black tea. They are also the main substance that forms the "golden circle" of tea soup.

Judging from the color of tea, theaflavins are an important component of the "bright" color, and thearubigins are an important component of the "red" color of black tea.


The quality of black tea requires not only the color of the soup to be "red", but also "bright", and the taste to be strong, strong and fresh. Under natural light, the contact surface between the tea soup and the cup should have a "golden ring". Therefore, the redder the tea soup of black tea does not mean the better the quality, but the three components of theaflavins, thearubigins, and theabrownins must be in the optimal ratio.