Determining the bittering effects and antioxidant activities of beer brewed with Liu Bao tea leaves instead of hops

Liu Bao tea is a popular Chinese black tea with many similar taste components to hops. Herein, Liu Bao tea was used to replace some hops in beer production, with results showing that the addition of Liu Bao tea could keep the physicochemical indexes of lager beer within the standard range. An electronic tongue test analysis indicated that the addition of Liu Bao tea had notable effects on the flavor indexes of lager beer, such as bitterness, after-bitterness, freshness, and richness. Meanwhile, the addition of Liu Bao tea to light beer improved the antioxidant capacity of the latter, which mainly manifests as changes in some phenolic substances in lager beer. Therefore, this study provides additional references for developing tea beer. • Brewing beer by replacing some of the hops with Liu Bao tea. • Liu Bao tea beer also conforms to the physical and chemical standards of beer. • The optimal process and flavor indexes for the Liu Bao tea Beer were determined. • Liu Bao tea Beer has stronger antioxidant activity compared to regular hoppy beers. • Different hop or tea additions alter the composition of phenolic compounds in beer.