Pu-erh is a variety of fermented and aged dark tea produced in Yunnan province, China. Fermentation is a tea production style in which the tea leaves undergo microbial fermentation. The volatile flavor compounds in raw and fermented Pu-erh tea were extracted by the simultaneous distillation and extraction (SDE) method. The concentrated flavor extracts were analyzed and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Forty-three compounds were idenified in each of the two samples. The patterns in the total ion chromatograms of the two samples were different. The main flavor compounds in raw Pu-erh tea were terpene alcohols, including linalool, 4-terpineol, α-terpineol, nerol, geraniol and nerolidol having floral note. The main flavor compounds in fermented Pu-erh tea were phenolic compounds and methoxy alkyl benzenes having a musty and earthy note.
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