What caffeine ingredients make milk tea so stimulating?

Chagee's new drink Wanli Mulan drew complaints of insomnia and heart palpitations after a 700 million cup giveaway for International Tea Day. A medium 470ml cup carries caffeine close to two espressos, and the ingredient list points to a strong black tea base rather than any hidden additive, which explains why one cup can keep a person awake all night.

The caffeine comes from tea itself, the same compound found in coffee, so a milk tea can outdo an espresso when the base is brewed strong. In 2020, a spot check in Haiyan County, Zhejiang, recorded caffeine levels up to 460mg/kg in milk and fruit teas, and similar cases involved Chagee's Boya Juexian, prompting calls for clearer drinking risk labels.

Recently, Chagee's new product "Wanli Mulan" quickly went viral due to its promotion for International Tea Day with a "700 million cups free in 7 days" campaign. However, many consumers reported insomnia and heart palpitations after drinking it, with some even rushing to the hospital overnight for electrocardiograms. The brand's customer service explained that the polyphenols in the black tea base might trigger allergic reactions. According to the disclosed ingredient list, a medium 470ml cup of "Wanli Mulan" contains caffeine close to that of two espressos. Similar issues have occurred with Chagee's other hit product, "Boya Juexian." In fact, market regulators have found through spot checks that some milk teas contain caffeine far exceeding that in coffee. In 2020, a spot check in Haiyan County, Zhejiang, found caffeine levels up to 460mg/kg in milk and fruit teas. This article will focus on this incident, tracing the origins and development of the caffeine issue in milk tea, and discuss how brands should more clearly inform consumers about drinking risks.

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A while ago, Chagee launched a new product called "Wanli Mulan" and, in conjunction with International Tea Day, planned a "700 million cups free in 7 days" campaign, attracting a large number of milk tea enthusiasts. Topics such as "Chagee free cups" and "Chagee busy all day with zero revenue" trended on social media, sparking widespread discussion.

However, not long after, this new product was mocked by netizens on social platforms: "No wonder it's called Wanli Mulan—after drinking it, you directly take your father's place in the army." Many consumers reported being unable to sleep all night after drinking this new product, staying awake until dawn, and some experienced heart palpitations, "rushing to the hospital overnight for an electrocardiogram."

In most people's understanding, milk tea with added milk and syrup should be less energizing than strong tea. But Chagee's new product overturned milk tea lovers' preconceptions, with many surprised to find that a cup of milk tea was more stimulating than strong tea and coffee, leading consumers to suspect the drink contained some unknown "black technology."

A reporter from Southern Metropolis Daily contacted Chagee's customer service regarding this matter. The response stated that "Wanli Mulan" uses a black tea base, and symptoms like insomnia and heart palpitations might be due to an allergic reaction to tea polyphenols. The customer service advised that if customers feel unwell after drinking, they should stop immediately and go to the hospital for a check-up.

Additionally, according to the ingredient information released by the brand, "Wanli Mulan" has a tea polyphenol content of 62.3mg/100ml and a caffeine content of 31.8mg/100ml. Based on this, a medium 470ml cup of "Wanli Mulan" contains approximately 149.5mg of caffeine, close to the caffeine level of two espressos, and may cause noticeable discomfort for those sensitive to caffeine.

It is worth mentioning that this is not the first time netizens have reported discomfort after drinking Chagee. Its hit product "Boya Juexian" had similar feedback previously, and was jokingly called "Boya Juexian" (meaning "no sleep"). The brand had issued a notice about "caffeine content in tea," advising consumers to drink in moderation and arrange their tea-drinking time reasonably.

But the aftereffects of a cup of "Wanli Mulan" still caught many people off guard. In fact, market regulators have conducted multiple spot checks on commercially available milk tea drinks, revealing that some milk teas have caffeine content far higher than coffee.

In 2020, the Food and Drug Inspection and Testing Center under the Haiyan County Market Supervision Administration in Jiaxing, Zhejiang, conducted spot checks on 16 batches of milk tea and fruit tea, finding an average caffeine content of 198mg/kg, with the highest reaching 460mg/kg. For a single 500ml cup of milk tea, drinking it is roughly equivalent to consuming the caffeine of 4.6 cans of Red Bull.

Some argue that when launching new products, Chagee should alert the public to potential drinking risks, informing consumers of the specific contents of tea polyphenols, caffeine, and other easily allergenic ingredients before ordering, allowing customers to decide for themselves whether to purchase, thus avoiding situations where consumers end up in the hospital.

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.