JP7749342B2 - Non-alcoholic beverages - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to non-alcoholic beverages.

There is a demand for non-alcoholic beverages as an alternative to alcoholic beverages. Since they are intended to be an alternative to alcoholic beverages, non-alcoholic beverages are required to have a sufficient alcoholic flavor. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a non-alcoholic beverage with a pleasant alcoholic flavor, which has an alcohol content of less than 1% and a propanol concentration of 6 to 2000 ppm, and which contains a bitter substance, citrus fruit, as one of the bitter substances.

JP 2014-103919 A

However, the inventors discovered that when quasin is added to non-alcoholic beverages, a bitter taste lingers and the complex aroma of alcohol is not fully realized.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a non-alcoholic beverage that maintains or improves the alcoholic feel when quassin is added to the non-alcoholic beverage, while reducing the lingering bitterness and improving the complex alcoholic aroma. The present invention also aims to provide a method for reducing the lingering bitterness and improving the complex alcoholic aroma in a non-alcoholic beverage that contains quassin, while maintaining or improving the alcoholic feel.

The present invention relates to a non-alcoholic beverage containing quasin and nerol, with the quasin content being 100 μg/L or more and the nerol content being 100 μg/L or more.

The non-alcoholic beverage of the present invention contains a combination of specific amounts of quassin and nerol, which maintains or enhances the alcoholic feel that occurs when quassin is added to a non-alcoholic beverage, while reducing the lingering bitterness and improving the complex alcohol aroma. Furthermore, by adopting the above-mentioned configuration, the non-alcoholic beverage of the present invention also has the advantageous effect of improving its drinking experience.

The non-alcoholic beverage preferably contains 100 μg/L or more and 300 μg/L or less of quassin. By keeping the quassin content within this range, the alcoholic feel is maintained or enhanced, the lingering bitterness is further reduced, the complex aroma of the alcohol is further enhanced, and the drink is more satisfying to drink.

The non-alcoholic beverage preferably has a nerol content of 300 μg/L or more and 2000 μg/L or less. By keeping the nerol content within this range, the alcoholic feel is maintained or improved, the lingering bitterness is further reduced, the complex aroma of the alcohol is further enhanced, and the drinkability is further improved.

The non-alcoholic beverage may further contain octanal. By further containing octanal, the non-alcoholic beverage of the present invention maintains or improves the alcoholic flavor, further reduces the lingering bitterness, and further improves the complex alcoholic aroma and drinking experience. Furthermore, by further containing octanal, the non-alcoholic beverage of the present invention also has the effect of improving the fruity flavor. The octanal content is preferably 1500 μg/L or less.

The non-alcoholic beverage may be an alcohol-flavored beverage. In this specification, an alcohol-flavored beverage refers to a beverage that has an alcoholic beverage-like flavor and taste, regardless of the alcohol content.

The non-alcoholic beverage may be a citrus-flavored beverage. In this specification, a citrus-flavored beverage refers to a beverage that has a citrus fruit-like flavor.

The present invention also relates to a method for reducing the lingering bitterness and enhancing the complex alcohol aroma of a non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin while maintaining or improving the alcoholic flavor, the method comprising adjusting the quassin content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more and adjusting the nerol content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more.

The present invention also relates to a method for producing a non-alcoholic beverage, which includes adjusting the quassin content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more, and adjusting the nerol content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more.

The present invention makes it possible to provide a beverage in which the alcoholic feel of a non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin is maintained or improved, while the lingering bitterness is reduced and the complex alcoholic aroma is improved. The present invention also makes it possible to provide a method for maintaining or improving the alcoholic feel of a beverage containing quassin, while reducing the lingering bitterness and improving the complex alcoholic aroma.

The following describes in detail the embodiments of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[Non-alcoholic beverages]
The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment contains quasin and nerol, with the quasin content being 100 μg/L or more and the nerol content being 100 μg/L or more.

In this specification, "non-alcoholic beverage" refers to a beverage with an alcohol content of less than 1% v/v. Unless otherwise specified, alcohol in this specification refers to ethanol.

The alcohol content of the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment is not particularly limited as long as it is less than 1 v/v%, and may be, for example, 0.000 v/v% or more and less than 1 v/v%. The alcohol content of the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may be, for example, 0.001 v/v% or more, 0.005 v/v% or more, 0.01 v/v% or more, 0.05 v/v% or more, 0.1 v/v% or more, 0.2 v/v% or more, 0.3 v/v% or more, 0.4 v/v% or more, 0.5 v/v% or more, or 0.6 v/v% or more. Similarly, the alcohol content of the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may be, for example, 0.95 v/v% or less, 0.9 v/v% or less, 0.85 v/v% or less, 0.8 v/v% or less, 0.7 v/v% or less, 0.6 v/v% or less, 0.5 v/v% or less, 0.4 v/v% or less, 0.3 v/v% or less, 0.2 v/v% or less, 0.1 v/v% or less, 0.05 v/v% or less, 0.01 v/v% or less, 0.005 v/v% or less, less than 0.005 v/v%, or 0.004 v/v% or less.

The content of quassin in the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment is 100 μg/L or more, but from the viewpoint of more significantly achieving the effects of the present invention, it may be, for example, 110 μg/L or more, 120 μg/L or more, 130 μg/L or more, or 140 μg/L or more, and may be 1000 μg/L or less, 800 μg/L or less, 600 μg/L or less, 400 μg/L or less, 300 μg/L or less, 250 μg/L or less, 200 μg/L or less, 180 μg/L or less, or 160 μg/L or less.

The content of quassin can be measured by high-resolution LCMS (Vanquish Q Exactive Focus) in ESI, positive ion mode under the following measurement conditions:
m/z:389.1953
Mobile phase A: 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution Mobile phase B: acetonitrile Gradient conditions: Mobile phase B 5% (0 min) → 95% (8 min) → 95% (10.5 min) → 5% (10.6 min) → 5% (13.5 min)
Column: HSS T3 2.1 mm x 100 mm, 1.8 μm (Waters)
Flow rate: 0.5mL/min
Oven temperature: 40°C
Injection volume: 1μL

The nerol content in the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment is 100 μg/L or more, but from the viewpoint of more significantly achieving the effects of the present invention, it may be 150 μg/L or more, 200 μg/L or more, 250 μg/L or more, 300 μg/L or more, 400 μg/L or more, or 500 μg/L or more, and may be 2500 μg/L or less, 2000 μg/L or less, 1800 μg/L or less, 1600 μg/L or less, or 1500 μg/L or less. When the nerol content is within the above range, the alcoholic feel of the non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin is maintained or improved, the lingering bitterness is further reduced, and the complex alcoholic aroma and drinkability are further improved.

The nerol content can be determined by extracting with a solvent such as dichloromethane, concentrating it appropriately, and measuring it with GC/MS.

The non-alcoholic beverage of this embodiment may further contain octanal. When the non-alcoholic beverage of this embodiment contains octanal, the alcoholic feel of the non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin is maintained or improved, while the lingering bitterness is further reduced, the complex alcoholic aroma and satisfying taste are further improved, and the fruity feel is also enhanced. From the perspective of more significantly achieving the effects of the present invention, the octanal content of the non-alcoholic beverage of this embodiment is preferably 10 μg/L or more, 30 μg/L or more, 50 μg/L or more, 100 μg/L or more, 150 μg/L or more, or 200 μg/L or more, and preferably 1500 μg/L or less, 1200 μg/L or less, 1000 μg/L or less, or 800 μg/L or less. When the octanal content is within the above range, the alcoholic feel of a non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin is maintained or improved, while the lingering bitterness is further reduced, and the complex alcoholic aroma, satisfying taste, and fruity flavor are further improved.

The octanal content can be determined by extracting with a solvent such as dichloromethane, concentrating it appropriately, and measuring it with GC/MS.

The non-alcoholic beverage of this embodiment may contain fruit juice. Examples of the fruit species of the fruit juice include citrus fruits such as lemon, mandarin orange, grapefruit, orange, lime, yuzu, kabosu, sudachi, and shikuwasa. When the non-alcoholic beverage of this embodiment contains fruit juice, the fruit juice content (converted into fruit juice percentage) may be, for example, 0.1 w/v% or more, 0.3 w/v% or more, or 0.5 w/v% or more, and may be 50 w/v% or less, 40 w/v% or less, 30 w/v% or less, 20 w/v% or less, 10 w/v% or less, 5.0 v/v% or less, 3.0 v/v% or less, 2.5 v/v% or less, 2.0 v/v% or less, 1.5 v/v% or less, or 1.0 v/v% or less. In this specification, the fruit juice content (converted to fruit juice percentage) is a value calculated by the formula: "fruit juice content (w/v %)" = ("amount of fruit juice (g) in 100 mL of beverage" x "concentration factor" / 100 mL) x 100. Here, the "concentration factor" (relative concentration factor of fruit juice when straight fruit juice is taken as 100%) can be calculated based on the sugar refractometer reading standard (Bx) or acidity standard (%) set forth in the Fruit Drink Quality Labeling Standards (Notification No. 10 of the Consumer Affairs Agency, September 30, 2011) of the JAS (Japanese Agricultural Standards for Fruit Drinks). Specifically, according to Appendix 4 of the Fruit Drink Quality Labeling Standards (Notification No. 10 of the Consumer Affairs Agency, September 30, 2011), the acidity standard (%) for lemons is 4.5. Therefore, lemon juice with an acidity (%) of 9.0 is considered to be 2x concentrated lemon juice. The fruit juice content (converted to fruit juice percentage) is usually the value listed on the product label.The fruit juice content (converted to fruit juice percentage) is usually the value listed on the product label.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may also contain additives commonly used in beverages, such as coloring agents, sweeteners, high-intensity sweeteners, antioxidants, acidulants, flavorings, and salts. Examples of coloring agents include caramel color, gardenia color, fruit juice color, vegetable color, and synthetic color. Examples of sweeteners include high-fructose corn syrup, glucose, galactose, mannose, fructose, lactose, sucrose, maltose, glycogen, and starch. Examples of high-intensity sweeteners include neotame, acesulfame K, sucralose, saccharin, saccharin sodium, disodium licyrrhizinate, cyclamate, dulcin, stevia, glycyrrhizin, thaumatin, monellin, aspartame, and alitame. Examples of antioxidants include vitamin C, vitamin E, and polyphenols. Examples of acidulants include phosphoric acid, lactic acid, DL-malic acid, citric acid, adipic acid, trisodium citrate, glucono-delta-lactone, gluconic acid, potassium gluconate, sodium gluconate, succinic acid, monosodium succinate, disodium succinate, sodium acetate, DL-tartaric acid, L-tartaric acid, sodium DL-tartrate, sodium L-tartrate, sodium lactate, glacial acetic acid, fumaric acid, monosodium fumarate, and sodium DL-malate. Acidulants may also be used to adjust pH. Examples of flavorings include alcohol flavors (e.g., beer flavor, gin flavor, etc.) and fruit flavors. Examples of salts include table salt, potassium acid phosphate, calcium acid phosphate, ammonium phosphate, magnesium sulfate, calcium sulfate, potassium metabisulfite, calcium chloride, magnesium chloride, potassium nitrate, and ammonium sulfate.

The Brix of the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may be, for example, 0.1 or more, 1.0 or more, 2.0 or more, 3.0 or more, or 4.0 or more, and may be 90.0 or less. In this specification, Brix refers to the reading of a sugar refractometer at 20°C.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may be either non-sparkling or sparkling. Here, "non-sparkling" refers to a gas pressure of less than 0.049 MPa (0.5 kg/cm ² ) at 20° C., and "sparkling" refers to a gas pressure of 0.049 MPa (0.5 kg/cm ² ) or more at 20° C. If the beverage is sparkling, the upper limit of the gas pressure may be approximately 0.294 MPa (3.0 kg/cm ² ).

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may be, for example, an alcohol-flavored beverage. As described above, an alcohol-flavored beverage may be any beverage that has the flavor and taste of an alcoholic beverage.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may be, for example, a citrus-flavored beverage. As described above, the citrus-flavored beverage may be any beverage that has a citrus-like flavor. The citrus-flavored beverage may be, for example, a beverage containing at least one of citrus juice, citrus flavor, and citrus extract. The citrus-flavored flavor may be, for example, the flavor of fruits such as lemon, mandarin orange, grapefruit, orange, lime, yuzu, kabosu, sudachi, and shikwasa. When the non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment is a citrus-flavored beverage, it is preferably a lemon-flavored beverage, grapefruit-flavored beverage, orange-flavored beverage, lime-flavored beverage, or shikwasa-flavored beverage, with a lemon-flavored beverage being particularly preferred.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may also be, for example, a chuhai-flavored beverage, a fruit liquor-flavored beverage, or a distilled liquor-flavored beverage. In this specification, a chuhai-flavored beverage refers to a chuhai or a beverage with a chuhai-like flavor. In this specification, a fruit liquor-flavored beverage refers to a fruit liquor (e.g., wine, plum wine, cider) or a beverage with a fruit liquor-like flavor. In addition, in this specification, a distilled liquor-flavored beverage refers to a distilled liquor (e.g., shochu, whiskey, brandy, rum, gin) or a beverage with a distilled liquor-like flavor.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment can be served in a container. Any container that can be sealed can be used, and metal (such as aluminum or steel) cans and barrels can be used. Glass containers, PET bottles, paper containers, pouches, etc. can also be used. There are no particular restrictions on the capacity of the container, and any currently available containers can be used. It is preferable to use a metal container, as this completely blocks gas, moisture, and light, and allows the product to maintain stable quality at room temperature for an extended period of time.

The non-alcoholic beverage of this embodiment can be produced according to conventional methods, except for adjusting the quasin and nerol contents to within the above-mentioned ranges. A method for producing a non-alcoholic beverage according to one embodiment includes adjusting the quasin content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more, and adjusting the nerol content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more. The quasin and nerol contents can be adjusted, for example, by adding quasin and nerol to the raw material liquid.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment can be obtained, for example, by a production method that includes a blending step in which quassin and nerol, and, if necessary, octanal, water, and various additives, are blended in an ingredient tank.

The non-alcoholic beverage according to this embodiment may further include a filtration step in which the mixed liquid obtained by mixing the ingredients in the blending step is filtered; a first sterilization step in which the filtrate obtained in the filtration step is sterilized; a filling step in which the sterilized filtrate obtained in the first sterilization step is filled into a container such as a bottle, can, glass bottle, or plastic bottle; and a second sterilization step in which the filtrate filled into the container in the filling step is sterilized together with the container.

The blending process may involve mixing while stirring using a stirrer or similar device to ensure that the ingredients are thoroughly mixed. The filtration process may be carried out using a standard filter or strainer. The first sterilization process may be carried out by plate sterilization in terms of processing speed, etc., and is not limited to this method as long as a similar process can be performed. The filling process may be carried out in a clean room maintained at a level of cleanliness typically achieved in beverage production. The second sterilization process may be carried out by heating the filtrate together with the container at a predetermined temperature for a predetermined time. Non-sterilization filling, which does not involve the second sterilization process, is also possible.

[Method for maintaining or improving the alcoholic taste of a non-alcoholic beverage containing quasin, while reducing the lingering bitterness and improving the complex aroma of alcohol]
The method for maintaining or improving the alcoholic flavor of a non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin according to the present embodiment, while reducing the lingering bitterness and enhancing the complex aroma of alcohol, includes adjusting the quassin content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more and adjusting the nerol content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more. Specific aspects of the method according to the present embodiment can be applied without limitation to the specific aspects of the beverage described above.

The present invention will be explained in more detail below based on examples. However, the present invention is not limited to the following examples.

[Reference test example: Non-alcoholic beverage containing quasin]
(Production of non-alcoholic beverages)
Liquid sugar (5.1 w/v%), citric acid (0.6 w/v%), and trisodium citrate (0.2 w/v%) were added to water, and the gas pressure was adjusted to 2.2 kg/ ^cm² with carbonated water to obtain the non-alcoholic beverage of Reference Example 1. Kwashiorkor (150 μg/L) was added to the non-alcoholic beverage of Reference Example 1 to obtain the non-alcoholic beverage of Reference Example 2. The alcohol content of the non-alcoholic beverages of Reference Examples 1 and 2 was 0.00 v/v% and the Brix value was 4.6.

(Sensory evaluation)
The non-alcoholic beverages of Reference Examples 1 and 2 were subjected to a sensory evaluation for the evaluation items of "alcoholic taste,""lingeringbitterness," and "complex alcohol aroma." Note that "alcoholic taste" refers to the taste of an alcoholic beverage. The sensory evaluation was carried out by five selected panelists with discriminatory ability. Each evaluation item was rated on a five-point scale from 1 (not felt at all) to 5 (strongly felt), and the average score was used as the evaluation score.

For "alcohol taste," the higher the score, the stronger the perceived alcohol-like taste. For "lingering bitterness," the higher the score, the stronger the perceived lingering bitterness. In other words, for the evaluation item of "lingering bitterness," the lower the score, the more preferable it is. For "complex alcohol aroma," the higher the score, the stronger the perceived complex alcohol aroma. The results are shown in Table 1.

As shown in Table 1, when quasin was added to a beverage, the alcoholic flavor was enhanced compared to a beverage without quasin, but the lingering bitterness was felt to be strong and the complex aroma of the alcohol was not sufficient.

Test Example 1: Effect of Nerol Incorporation
(Production of non-alcoholic beverages)
Liquid sugar (5.1 w/v%), citric acid (0.6 w/v%), trisodium citrate (0.2 w/v%), and quassin (150 μg/L) were added to water, and the gas pressure was adjusted to 2.2 kg/ ^cm² with carbonated water to obtain the non-alcoholic beverage of Comparative Example 1. Next, nerol was added to the non-alcoholic beverage of Comparative Example 1 to obtain the beverages of Examples 1 to 5 in the amounts shown in Table 2. The alcohol content of the non-alcoholic beverages of Comparative Example 1 and Examples 1 to 5 was 0.00 v/v%, and the Brix value was 4.6.

(Sensory evaluation)
The non-alcoholic beverages of Comparative Example 1 and Examples 1 to 5 were subjected to a sensory evaluation for the evaluation items of "alcohol taste,""lingeringbitterness,""complex alcohol aroma,""drinkability," and "overall evaluation as a beverage." The "overall evaluation as a beverage" is an item that evaluates the balance of flavors and aromas. The sensory evaluation was carried out by five selected panelists with discriminatory abilities. The evaluation items of "alcohol taste,""lingeringbitterness,""complex alcohol aroma," and "drinkability" were rated on a five-point scale from 1 (not at all perceived) to 5 (strongly perceived), and the evaluation item of "overall evaluation as a beverage" was rated on a five-point scale from 1 (bad) to 5 (good), with the average of the scores from each panel being used as the evaluation score.

For "alcohol taste," a higher score indicates a stronger alcohol-like taste. For "lingering bitterness," a higher score indicates a stronger lingering bitterness. That is, for the evaluation item "lingering bitterness," a lower score is preferable. For "complex alcohol aroma," a higher score indicates a stronger complex alcohol aroma. For "drinkability," a higher score indicates a stronger drinkability. For "overall evaluation as a beverage," a higher score indicates a better balance of flavors. The scores for "alcohol taste," "lingering bitterness," "complex alcohol aroma," and "drinkability" for the non-alcoholic beverage of Comparative Example 1 were fixed at 3, 5, 1, and 1, respectively, and other non-alcoholic beverages were evaluated using these as the basis. The results are shown in Table 2.

As shown in Table 2, compared to a non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin but not nerol (Comparative Example 1), the non-alcoholic beverages containing quassin and nerol (Examples 1 to 5) maintained or improved the alcoholic flavor, reduced the lingering bitterness, enhanced the complex alcohol aroma, improved the drinkability, and also had an excellent overall evaluation as beverages. Among these, the non-alcoholic beverages of Examples 3 and 4 had the highest scores in the overall evaluation as beverages and an excellent balance of flavor and aroma.

Test Example 2: Effect of Octanal
(Production of non-alcoholic beverages)
The non-alcoholic beverages of Examples 6 to 8 were obtained by further adding octanal to the non-alcoholic beverage of Example 3 to the contents shown in Table 3. The alcohol content of the non-alcoholic beverages of Examples 6 to 8 was 0.00 v/v% and the Brix was 4.6.

(Sensory evaluation)
Sensory evaluation was carried out on the non-alcoholic beverages of Examples 3 and 6 to 8 in the same manner as in Test Example 1, except that the evaluation item of "fruit juice flavor" was added. "Fruit juice flavor" refers to a citrus fruit juice-like aroma and flavor. The evaluation item of "fruit juice flavor" was rated on a 5-point scale from 1 (not perceived at all) to 5 (strongly perceived), and the average score was used as the evaluation score.

The meanings of the scores for "alcohol taste," "lingering bitterness," "complex alcohol aroma," "drinkability," and "overall evaluation as a beverage" are the same as in Test Example 1 above. For "fruit juice taste," a higher score indicates a stronger perception of lemon or other citrus juice-like aroma. As in Test Example 1, the scores for "alcohol taste," "lingering bitterness," "complex alcohol aroma," and "drinkability" for the non-alcoholic beverage of Comparative Example 1 were fixed at 3 points, 5 points, 1 point, and 1 point, respectively, and these were used as the basis for evaluation. For "fruit juice taste," the score for the non-alcoholic beverage of Example 3 was fixed at 1 point, and other non-alcoholic beverages were evaluated using this as the basis. The results are shown in Table 3.

As shown in Table 3, the non-alcoholic beverages containing quassin, nerol, and octanal (Examples 6 to 8) maintained or improved the alcoholic sensation, reduced the lingering bitterness, improved the complex alcoholic aroma and satisfying taste, and were also excellent in overall evaluation as beverages, compared to a non-alcoholic beverage containing quassin but not nerol (Comparative Example 1). Furthermore, the alcoholic beverages of Examples 6 to 8 further reduced the lingering bitterness, further improved the complex alcoholic aroma and satisfying taste, improved the fruity taste, and were also excellent in overall evaluation as beverages. Among them, the non-alcoholic beverage of Example 7 had the highest score in the overall evaluation as a beverage and had an excellent balance of flavor and taste.

Claims (8)

Contains quasin and nerol,
The content of quassin is 100 μg/L or more and 1000 μg/L or less ,
A non-alcoholic beverage having a nerol content of 100 μg/L or more and 2000 μg/L or less . The non-alcoholic beverage according to claim 1 , wherein the nerol content is 300 μg/L or more and 2000 μg/L or less. The non-alcoholic beverage according to claim 1 or 2 , further comprising octanal. The non-alcoholic beverage according to claim 3 , wherein the octanal content is 10 μg/L or more and 1500 μg/L or less. The non-alcoholic beverage according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , which is an alcohol-flavored beverage. The non-alcoholic beverage according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , which is a citrus-flavored beverage. A method for maintaining or improving the alcoholic feel of a non-alcoholic beverage containing quasin, while reducing the lingering bitterness and improving the complex aroma of alcohol, comprising:
A method comprising adjusting the quassin content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more and 1000 μg/L or less , and adjusting the nerol content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more and 2000 μg/L or less . A method for producing a non-alcoholic beverage,
A manufacturing method comprising adjusting the quassin content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more and 1000 μg/L or less , and adjusting the nerol content of the non-alcoholic beverage to 100 μg/L or more and 2000 μg/L or less .