Integrated flavoromics and metabolomics characterize flavor and chemical composition differences in American ginseng-ripe Pu-erh tea blends.

Pu-erh tea occupies an important position in tea consumption because of its distinctive flavor and potential health benefits; however, its flavor acceptability still has room for improvement. To enhance sensory quality and diversify product forms, this study investigated a blending system of American ginseng powder and ripe Pu-erh tea powder and compared the quality and chemical composition of samples with different blending ratios by integrating sensory evaluation, physicochemical analysis, flavoromics, and untargeted metabolomics. The results showed that SP2, consisting of 75% ripe Pu-erh tea powder and 25% American ginseng powder, achieved the highest overall sensory score among the experimental blends (SP1-SP3) and was characterized by an aged aroma accompanied by a chrysanthemum-like note, a mellow and full-bodied taste, and a pronounced sweet aftertaste. As the proportion of American ginseng increased, the contents of caffeine and esterified catechins decreased, whereas the soluble sugar content increased. Tentatively identified 2-methylbutanal and (E)-2-octenal in SP2 were considered potential aroma-active candidates. A total of 1,171 tentatively annotated non-volatile metabolic features were obtained, with representative differential features involving flavonoids, phenylpropanoid-related compounds, and ginsenoside-related components. These compositional differences mainly reflected the respective contributions of the two raw materials and changes in their blending proportions, providing a reference for formulation optimization and quality evaluation of blended products.