Abstract: The contents of 8 main catechins in 12 local registered tea cultivars in Hubei Province were determined by high performance liquid chromatography （HPLC）. The results showed that the variation coefficients of catechins contents ranged from 1973% to 6717%. No significant trend was found within non\|esterified catechins， while contents of ester catechins decreased in the order of epigallocatechin gallate（EGCG）> gallocatechin gallate（GCG）> epicatechin gallate（ECG）> catechin gallate（CG）. According to the cluster analysis based on catechin quality index， the varieties Echa 1， Echa 8 and Echa 10 were suitable for the production of high quality green tea. Wufeng 212， Wufeng 310， Echa 3 and Echa 6 with high EGCG level could be used for the development of special tea drinks. Echa 2 contained high EGC and total catechin level. Therefore， it was of great potential for the breeding and production of black tea.

Key words: catechins, quality index, Hubei Province, special tea plant resources