GB2496265A - Process for forming instant coffee comprising finely ground roasted coffee - Google Patents

Abstract

Processes for forming freeze-dried and spray-dried soluble coffee products comprise the steps of forming a concentrated coffee extract 20; foaming the concentrated coffee extract 21; and drying the ground coffee intermediate 24. Prior to the drying step, a milled and blended coffee intermediate 30 is incorporated into the concentrated coffee extract. The milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 10 to 70% dry weight roasted coffee and 30 to 90% dry weight soluble coffee. The drying step is carried out by either freeze-drying or spray-drying.

Description

Coffee Products and Related Processes The present application relates to coffee products and processes for forming coffee products. In particular, it relates to soluble coffee products incorporating a percentage of roasted ground coffee and processes for forming such products.

Background

Instant soluble coffee products, such as freeze-dried and spray-dried instant coffee, are well known. An example of a freeze-dried instant coffee is Kenco (RTM) Smooth freeze dried coffee. Such instant soluble coffee products are formed by deriving a liquid coffee concentrate intermediate (commonly known as coffee liquor) from coffee beans by the well known processes of roasting and extraction. Optionally, the coffee concentrate may be aromatized by the addition of coffee aromas stripped from an extracted coffee intermediate, again as well known in the art. The coffee concentrate is then subjected to various foaming and drying steps to produce a dry granular end product that can be reconstituted into a coffee beverage by the addition of hot water.

Instant soluble coffee products are popular with consumers as they provide an economical, fast and simple way of preparing a coffee beverage. However, there has been a desire to produce instant soluble coffee products which are more reminiscent of roasted ground coffee products both in the appearance of the product prior to reconstitution and when consumed.

It is known to incorporate in a soluble coffee product a percentage of roasted ground coffee in order to attempt to produce a more appealing instant soluble coffee product. For example, W02010/005604 describes various soluble coffee products blended from soluble and ground coffee components.

A problem that the present applicant has found with S soluble coffee products incorporating a roasted ground coffee component is that it is difficult to adequately disperse the roasted ground coffee particles within the liquid coffee concentrate intermediate. Poor dispersion can lead to clumping of the roasted ground coffee particles on addition to the liquid coffee intermediate leading to non-hydrated regions of roasted ground coffee which never fully wet' Partly in order to try and overcome the problem of poor dispersion it has been known to try and reduce the roast and coffee particle size down to colloidal particle sizes of less than about 30 to 40 microns. For example, U54,594,257 describes an agglomerated instant coffee product comprising spray-dried instant coffee and roasted coffee colloidal particles having a particle size of 5 to 25 microns.

However, in order to produce colloidal sized particles of roasted ground coffee it is necessary to utilise special grinding processes since the coffee oil contained in the roasted ground coffee has a tendency to be released when the particles are ground to such a small size. Cof fee oil release leads to detrimental affects on the grinding process such as clumping of the coffee particles and fouling of the grinding machine surfaces necessitating regular machine cleaning and consequent down time.

In order to overcome this problem it is known to cryogenically pre-freeze the roasted coffee beans prior to them being ground down to colloidal sizes. For example, in w02010/005604 the roasted coffee beans are frozen to a temperature of about -5 °C and then pulverised into particles with a mean or median particle size of about 350 microns or less. In another example, GP2022394 describes a process of quenching roasted coffee beans in liquid nitrogen before being ground to a particle size of less than 45 microns.

The requirement to cryogenically freeze the roasted coffee beans prior to grinding increases the complexity and expense of the manufacturing process.

Another suggested solution to permit colloidal grinding of roasted coffee beans is to add additional oil to the grinding mixture to provide additional lubrication. Whilst this can in some situations overcome the problem of fouling of the grinding machine surfaces it results in a ground coffee product with a high oil content that is not ideal for use as a coffee intermediate for further processing into an instant soluble coffee beverage since only a relatively small amount can be added to products without a detrimental affect on the product composition.

Another suggested solution in EP1631151 is to add an additional component such as cocoa mass or sugar to absorb any coffee oil released by the roasted and ground coffee.

However, this process is unsuitable where the desire is to use the colloidal roasted ground coffee in a pure soluble coffee beverage.

Another known desire is to attempt to make the visual appearance of the instant soluble coffee product more like that of roasted ground coffee. Typically, instant soluble coffee products are lighter in colour than roasted ground coffee. There has therefore been a desire to darken the colour of instant soluble coffee products, in particular freeze-dried soluble coffee. Prior art methods for darkening the colour of soluble coffee include the use of steam darkeners as described in EP0700640 and re-wetting of a freeze-dried intermediate as described in EPOO9O5E1. In addition CO2 gasification has been used to darken soluble coffee products.

However, prior art techniques for darkening the

appearance of a soluble coffee product have certain drawbacks. Re-wetting of the intermediate coffee product by addition of water or use of steam or the use of gases, such as C02, can alter the density and solubility of the end product.

Brief Summary of the Disclosure

In a first aspect, the present disclosure describes a freeze-dried soluble coffee product comprising 5 to 30% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 70 to 95% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee, wherein the roasted ground coffee has a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 100 microns; the freeze-dried soluble coffee product having a colour of 13 to 30 La units on the Lange scale.

Preferably, the freeze-dried soluble coffee product comprises 10 to 20% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and to 90% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee. In one example, the freeze-dried soluble coffee product comprises 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

It will be appreciated that whilst the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has been described as comprising both roasted ground coffee and soluble coffee this does not preclude the possibility of the product also comprising additional components.

Surprisingly, it has been found that the incorporation of roasted ground coffee of small particle size into a freeze-dried soluble coffee product produces a darker end product that is more visually reminiscent of roasted ground coffee.

In this specification unless otherwise required by the context, the term "roasted coffee" means a coffee substance that has been produced by the roasting of green coffee beans. The substance may be in the form of a roasted coffee bean or in some other form produced by onward processing steps such as grinding, decaffeination, pressing, etc. Particular examples of roasted coffee include roasted coffee beans, roasted expeller cake, roasted and flaked coffee.

In this specification unless otherwise required by the context, the term "roasted ground coffee" means a roasted coffee substance that has been subject to a comminution process in order to reduce the particle size of the original roasted coffee substance. Again, unless otherwise required by the context the comminution process may include one or more of grinding, chopping, pounding and crushing.

In this specification, the term "Helos particle size distribution D90", means the 90th percentile figure by volume of the particle size distribution, as obtained from a Helos laser light diffraction particle size analyzer available from Sympatec, Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany. That is, the D90 is a value on the distribution such that 90% by volume of the particles have a characteristic size of this value or less. The figure may be obtained for a dry sample (referred to as "dry Helos") or for a wet sample (referred to as "wet Helos"), e.g. after mixing of the particles with water. Likewise for D50 where the value represents the 50th percentile figure of the particle size distribution.

Helos is a laser diffraction sensor system for which one evaluation method is applied over the whole measuring range from 0.1 /im to 8750 jim. This instrument is designed for particle size analysis of dry and wet samples, i.e. of powders, suspensions, emulsions or sprays.

The beverage is made up to 1.5% concentration (3g solids in 200m1 water) using 100°C water and dripped into cuvette (with magnetic stirrer coated with PTFE running at 1000RPM) to aim for an optical concentration between 20 and 25%. When using ultrasound, an integrated sonication finger made from Titanium can be lowered manually into the cuvette.

There are three options to measure particle size on the Helos system: !fethod name!feasuring range Tipplication Settings used for micro nil led coffee Dry PSD 0.1 -3500 jim Direct Lens: 1W (1.8 -250 jim neasurement for copt 1.5%ref, qith R4) nilled product 20s Dispersion 100% 4mm 3 bar et PSD 0.1 -3500 jim \llows ens: R3 (0.5-175 jim with dissolution of cuvette R3) soluble coffee settings ?roduct and gives roasted ground article size formed in cup by hand stirring _______________ ?let PSD 0.1 -3500 jim hllows Lens: R3 with (0.5-175 jim withdissolution of Cuvette Liltrasound R3) soluble coffee settings and break-up of Jitrasonicatior roasted ground time Eosec clumps giving better indication ________________ of individual _______________ article size Dry Particle Size Distribution is measured using HELOS/KF, R4 Lens, RODOS/M Dispersing System and VIBRI Feeder manufactured by Sympatec GmbH.

Wet Particle Size Distribution is measured using RELOS/KF, R3 Lens, CUVETTE Dispersing System manufactured by Sympatec GmbR.

In this specification, the reference to colour in "La units" means the unit reading measured using visible light reflectance of a sample of the roasted ground or soluble coffee using a Dr. Lange Colour Reflectance Meter Model LX-with an internal 640 nm filter, available from Dr. Lange GmbH, Dusseldorf, Germany.

By comparison, prior art freeze-dried soluble coffee products typically have a colour of greater than 25 La units Even use of the prior art process of gasification was unable to produce an end product with a colour of less than 21 La units.

Further, roasted ground coffee typically has a colour of 6 to 13 La units.

Preferably the roasted ground coffee has a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 50 microns, more preferably less than or equal to 30 microns.

Preferably the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a colour of 16 to 25 La units on the Lange scale. More preferably the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a colour of 17 to 20 La units on the Lange scale.

Preferably the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a density of 185 to 265 g/litre. More preferably the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a density of 205 to 235 g/litre. In one example the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a density of 225 g/litre.

Advantageously, the darkening of the end product by addition of roasted ground coffee particles allows an end product to be produced that achieves consumer-expected density and solubility levels.

Preferably the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a particle size range of 0.3 to 3.5 mm. More preferably the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a particle size range of 0.3 to 2.5 mm. In one example the freeze-dried soluble coffee product has a particle size range of 0.3 to 1.5 mm.

The freeze-dried product is enabled to be ground and sieved to a particle size that is reminiscent of a roasted ground coffee product.

The roasted ground coffee may be obtained by known processes such as cryogenic milling of roasted coffee beans as well knowii in the art and described, by way of example, in GB2022394 noted above. However, preferably the roasted ground coffee is obtained by the novel comminution process of a fourth aspect of the present disclosure as will be described further below.

Preferably, the freeze-dried soluble coffee product is produced by the novel process of a second aspect of the present disclosure which will be described further below.

In a second aspect, the present disclosure describes a process of forming a freeze-dried soluble coffee product, comprising the steps of: i) forming a concentrated coffee extract; ii) foaming and pre-freezing the concentrated coffee extract to form a foamed and pre-frozen coffee intermediate; iii) freezing the foamed and pre-frozen coffee intermediate to form a frozen coffee intermediate; iv) grinding and sieving the frozen coffee intermediate to form a ground coffee intermediate; v) drying the ground coffee intermediate to form the freeze-dried soluble coffee product; wherein prior to step ii) and/or step iii) a milled and blended coffee intermediate is incorporated; wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee.

In a third aspect, the present disclosure describes a process of forming a spray-dried soluble coffee product, comprising the steps of: i) forming a concentrated coffee extract; ii) foaming the concentrated coffee extract to form a foamed coffee intermediate; iii) optionally filtering and homogenizing the foamed coffee intermediate to form a filtered and homogenized coffee intermediate; iv) spray drying the foamed coffee intermediate or the filtered and homogenized coffee intermediate to form the spray-dried soluble coffee product; wherein prior to step ii) and/or step iv) a milled and blended coffee intermediate is incorporated; wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee.

surprisingly, it has been found that incorporating a milled and blended coffee intermediate (formed from roasted ground coffee particles and soluble coffee particles) as -10 -part of the soluble coffee forming process results in very good dispersion of the roasted ground particles throughout the concentrated coffee extract Preferably, the milled and blended coffee intermediate S of the second or third aspects comprises 15 to 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50 to 85% by dry weight soluble coffee. In one example the milled and blended coffee intermediate of the second or third aspects comprises 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50% by dry weight soluble coffee.

It will be appreciated that whilst the milled and blended coffee intermediate of the second or third aspects has been described as comprising both roasted ground coffee and soluble coffee this does not preclude the possibility of the intermediate also comprising additional components.

Preferably, the milled and blended coffee intermediate of the second or third aspects has a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 40 microns. More preferably the milled and blended coffee intermediate of the second or third aspects has a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 30 microns.

Preferably, in the process of the second or third aspects the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product comprises 5 to 30% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 70 to 95% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee. More preferably the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product comprises 10 to 20% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and to 90% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee. In one example the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product comprises 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

-1]--It will be appreciated that whilst the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product has been described as comprising both roasted ground coffee and soluble coffee this does not preclude the possibility of the product also comprising additional components.

The soluble coffee of the milled and blended coffee intermediate may comprise spray-dried instant coffee, freeze-dried instant coffee, or a mixture thereof.

The second and third aspects of the present disclosure extend to a soluble coffee product produced by the above described processes.

In addition, the second and third aspects of the present disclosure extend to a coffee beverage formed using the soluble coffee product described above.

In a fourth aspect, the present disclosure describes a coffee milling process comprising the steps of: a) introducing particles of a roasted coffee precursor into a milling chamber; b) introducing particles of soluble coffee into the milling chamber; c) jetting a gas into the milling chamber to mobilise the particles of the roasted coffee precursor and soluble coffee; d) thereby producing a milled and blended coffee product by comminuting the particles of the roasted coffee precursor by self-collision of the particles of the roasted coffee precursor and by collision of the particles of soluble coffee with the particles of the roasted coffee precursor within the milling chamber.

Advantageously, comminuting the roasted coffee precursor in this manner has been found to provide an -12 -excellent means f or reducing the particle size of the roasted coffee without the deleterious effects previously encountered by release of coffee oil from the roasted coffee precursor. Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is understood that the incorporation of the particles of soluble coffee into the milling chamber results in the soluble coffee absorbing some, and preferably most or all of the coffee oil released during comminution.

Advantageously, the particles of soluble coffee are actively used as a comminuting agent within the milling chamber by impacting the particles of the roasted coffee precursor with the particles of soluble coffee. There will of course be some comminution of the roasted coffee precursor by self-collision -in other words, particles of roasted coffee precursor impacting other particles of roasted coffee precursor. However, it has been found that the additional comminution caused by impacting the roasted coffee precursor with particles of soluble coffee produces an enhanced milling action. This is particularly surprising considering that the particles of soluble coffee are not particularly hard.

If preferred, the mobilised roasted coffee particles can be directed to impact additional surfaces, such as impact plates, of the milling chamber to provide additional comminution effects. However, the use of such impacts is not essential to the process.

The particles of the roasted coffee precursor and the soluble coffee may be mixed together before introduction into the milling chamber. For example, the ingredients may be batch mixed in the dry form and introduced into the milling chamber via a common hopper feed.

-13 -Alternatively the particles of the roasted coffee precursor and the soluble coffee may be introduced separately into the milling chamber. For example separate hoppers for the roasted coffee precursor and the soluble coffee precursor may be provided.

Another possibility is the use of a single feed line which may be used to jet one precursor into the milling chamber which acts to entrain the other precursor into the flow.

Preferably the particles of the roasted coffee precursor in step a) are at a temperature of between 5 and degrees Celsius.

Preferably the milling chamber is not subject to cryogenic cooling during steps b), c) and d).

A particular advantage of the aspects of the present disclosure is that cryogenic cooling of the roasted coffee precursor to prevent coffee oil release is not required, even where the milling is down to colloidal particle sizes.

The coffee precursor may optionally be subject to some pre-chilling before milling, for example by being refrigerated to a temperature as low as 5 degrees Celsius. However, the roasted coffee precursor may also be used at ambient temperature (typically 20 to 25 degrees Celsius) In addition, it is not essential that the physical components of the milling apparatus (chamber walls, feed lines, etc.) are cooled. However, it may be desirable to chill the jetting gas in order to help remove moisture during the milling process. The chilled gas will result in some cooling of the milling apparatus. However, this is significantly less than typically results during cryogenic cooling.

-14 -The absence of active cooling (or the use of minimal cooling as described above) considerably reduces the complexity of the machinery required for the milling process, speeds up the process time and reduces the costs associated with the milling stage of the process.

Preferably the milled and blended coffee product produced in step d) comprises 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 30 to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee. More preferably the milled and blended coffee product produced in step d) comprises 15 to 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50 to 85% by dry weight soluble coffee. In one example the milled and blended coffee product produced in step d) comprises 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50% by dry weight soluble coffee.

It will be appreciated that whilst the milled and blended coffee product has been described as comprising both roasted ground coffee and soluble coffee this does not preclude the possibility of the product also comprising additional components.

Preferably in step d) the comminution results in the milled and blended coffee product having a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 40 microns. More preferably in step d) the comminution results in the milled and blended coffee product having a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 30 microns.

The particles of roasted coffee precursor may be whole roasted coffee beans or coarsely-ground roasted coffee beans. The process finds application with whole roasted coffee beans which provides a simplified process route.

However, if desired, an initial coarse grind of the roasted -15 -coffee beans can be carried out before the roasted coffee is inserted into the milling chamber.

The particles of soluble coffee may be particles of spray-dried instant coffee, particles of freeze-dried instant coffee, or a mixture thereof.

There may be advantages in using a soluble coffee type that matches the type of end product that the milled and blended coffee product is to be utilised in. For example, where ultimately the milled and blended coffee product is to be incorporated in a freeze-dried coffee product then the soluble coffee product used as a comminuting agent in the milling chamber may be chosen also to be freeze-dried soluble coffee. However, the types of soluble coffee used in the process may be mixed and altered as desired.

Preferably the gas jetted into the milling chamber in step b) is nitrogen, air, or a mixture thereof.

The milling chamber may form part of a jet mill.

Examples of such mills include fluid bed opposed jet mills, Jet-O-Mizer mills, vortex mill, spiral mills, etc. The fourth aspect of the present disclosure extends to a milled and blended coffee product produced by the process described above.

The milled and blended coffee product may be used as a milled and blended coffee intermediate in the processes of the second and third aspects of the present disclosure described above. Alternatively, the milled and blended coffee product may be used in the onward production of other coffee-based products. Further, the milled and blended coffee product may be packaged and sold as an end product in its own right.

The present disclosure extends to a container

containing the milled and blended coffee product described -16 -above or the soluble coffee product described above or the freeze-dried soluble coffee product described above.

The container may be a bottle, a jar, a tin, a refill pack, a sachet, a stick pack, a filter bag or a container suitable for use in a beverage preparation machine such as a flexible pad formed at least partly from filtering material, or a rigid, semi-rigid or flexible cartridge formed from substantially air-and water-impermeable materials.

The container may further contain one or more additional beverage components such as natural or artificial sweeteners, dairy or non-dairy based creamers, lactose, vegetable fat, whey proteins, emulsifiers, stabilisers, modified starches, carriers, fillers, flavours, colours, nutrients, preservatives, flow agents or foaming agents.

The present disclosure extends to a beverage

preparation machine in combination with at least one container suitable for use in said beverage preparation machine such as a flexible pad formed at least partly from filtering material, or a rigid, semi-rigid or flexible cartridge formed from substantially air-and water-impermeable materials, said at least one container containing the milled and blended coffee product described above or the soluble coffee product described above or the freeze-dried soluble coffee product described above.

The present disclosure extends to method of making a beverage comprising the step of mixing the milled and blended coffee product described above or the soluble coffee product described above or the freeze-dried soluble coffee product described above with an aqueous liquid, preferably hot water.

-17 -The mixing may be performed by a beverage preparation machine. Alternatively, the mixing may be by hand in a receptacle.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be

described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of the workings of a jet mill; Figure 2 is a graph of particle size in microns against Helos particle size distribution D90;

Figure 3 is a flow diagram illustrating prior art

processes for forming freeze-dried and spray-dried soluble coffee; Figure 4a is a flow diagram illustrating a process for forming a freeze-dried soluble coffee product according to

the present disclosure;

Figure 4b is a flow diagram illustrating a modification of the process of Figure 4a; Figure 5a is a flow diagram illustrating another process for forming a freeze-dried soluble coffee product

according to the present disclosure;

Figure 5b is a flow diagram illustrating a modification of the process of Figure 5a; Figure 6 is a flow diagram illustrating a process for forming a spray-dried soluble coffee product according to

the present disclosure;

Figure 7 is a flow diagram illustrating another process for forming a spray-dried soluble coffee product according

to the present disclosure;

-18 -Figure 8 is a graph of colour reduction in La units for various freeze-dried soluble coffee products; Figure 9 shows a first example of container; Figure 10 shows a second example of container; and Figure 11 shows an example of a beverage preparation machine.

Detailed Description

In one aspect of the present disclosure a milled and blended coffee product may be produced by comminuting a roasted coffee precursor in a milling apparatus such as a jet mill. A suitable jet mill is the Jet-O-Mizer mill available from Fluid Energy Processing and Equipment Company, Telford, PA, USA. Another suitable mill is the Hosokawa Alpine Fluid Bed Opposed Jet Mill -AFG, available from Hosakawa Micron Ltd. Runcorn, Cheshire, United Kingdom.

Other suitable milling apparatus include mills referred to as spiral mills and vortex mills.

A schematic illustration of the working principles of a jet mill is shown in Figure 1. The mill 1 comprises a milling chanter 2 having a feed inlet 3, a series of gas inlets 4, a size classification wheel 8 and a product outlet 5.

The milling chamber 2 of Figure 1 takes the form of a generally cylindrical body having the gas inlets 4 at a lower end and spaced around the periphery and the product outlet 5 located near an upper end.

The feed inlet 3 communicates with the milling chamber 2 to allow ingredient precursor(s), in the form of whole or coarsely-ground roasted coffee beans and soluble coffee particles, to be fed into the milling chamber 2 tangentially at a location at or near the chamber periphery.

-19 -The size classification wheel B is located near the upper end of the milling chamber 2 and is adapted to received comminuted particles from the chamber 2 and pass those under a desired particle size to the product outlet 5.

The roasted coffee precursor and the soluble coffee precursor are dry batch mixed at the required ratio and then deposited in a hopper which communicates with the feed inlet 3 as shown schematically in Figure 1 by arrow A. A feed gas supply may be provided to entrain the precursors from the hopper and convey them to the chamber 2.

compressed gas is supplied in use to the plurality of gas inlets 4. The gas inlets 4 are orientated at an angle to the radial direction of the chamber 2 -preferably tangentially to the chamber 2 -such that flow of gas through the gas inlets 4 sets up a swirling, spiralling gas flow within the chamber 2.

In use, to comminute the roasted coffee precursor, the precursors are fed into the chamber 2 and mobilised in the chamber 2 by the high speed flow of gas entering the chamber 2 through the gas inlets 4 (and also the feed gas (where used) entering with the precursors through the feed inlet 3) Comminution occurs due to the high velocity collisions between the particles of roasted coffee precursor and the soluble coffee resulting in pulverisation of the roasted coffee precursor. As the particle size reduces the smaller particle sizes move up the chamber 2 into the size classification wheel 8. The size classification wheel 8 acts to classify the particles it receives and pass onward to the product outlet 5 those particles less than a desired particle size. The particles exit the mill as shown schematically in Figure 1 by arrow B. The larger particles -20 -are retained in the chamber and are subject to further comminution. Thus, the jet mill also helps to classify the particle size output through the product outlet 5.

Depending on the type of jet mill, the orientation and configuration of the milling chamber 2, gas inlets 4, and product outlet 5 can be altered.

The gas supplied to the gas inlets 4 and the feed gas for conveying the roasted coffee precursor into the chamber 2 may be air, but is preferably an inert gas, such as nitrogen. The feed gas may be dehumidified and/or chilled in order to help remove moisture from the chamber 2 generated during milling. Dehumidification may be, for example, by use of a desiccant-or compressor-based dehumidifier.

The roasted coffee precursor may be whole roasted coffee beans or alternatively may be coffee beans that have been coarsely ground using a conventional milling process to have a particle size of greater than 100 microns.

The soluble coffee may be a spray-dried or freeze-dried instant coffee product. The particle size of the soluble coffee product before jet milling is typically between 100 and 350 microns for spray-dried soluble coffee and 0.1 to 3.5 mm for freeze-dried soluble coffee.

The mill 1 is not subjected to cryogenic cooling prior or during the milling process. Rather, the mill 1 is operated at substantially the ambient temperatures existing at the location where the mill 1 is situated. As noted above, the feed gas may be chilled which may result in a modicum of cooling of the apparatus components.

The roasted coffee precursor is not subjected to cryogenic cooling or any cryogenic pre-treatment prior to milling. Typically, the temperature of the roasted coffee precursor when filled into the hopper 6 will be in the range -21 -to 30 °C. The roasted coffee precursor may be at the ambient room temperature of the milling apparatus.

The milled and blended coffee product obtained from product outlet 5 comprises 30 to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee and 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee.

Preferably the milled and blended coffee product comprises to 85% by dry weight soluble coffee and 15 to S0% by dry weight roasted ground coffee. More preferably the milled and blended coffee product comprises 50% by dry weight soluble coffee and 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee.

After milling, the milled and blended coffee product has a particle size distribution with a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 40 microns, more preferably less than or equal to 30 microns.

Examples

Figure 2 shows results for the dry Helos particle size distribution fl90 (and in addition wet Helos figures) for milled and blended coffee products produced according to the

present disclosure as a function of the dry weight

percentage of roasted ground coffee present. As can be seen, from 10 to 70% of roasted ground coffee the dry Helos particle size distribution D90 is less than or equal to 40 microns. Above 70% roasted ground coffee the dry 1-lelos particle size distribution fl90 increases deleteriously. At or below 50% roasted ground coffee a dry Helos particle size distribution 1J90 of 30 microns or less is achievable.

In a separate example, a blend of Brazilian and Columbian Arabica beans was roasted to a colour of 11.5 La and pre-ground to a D50 of 500 microns. The resulting roasted coffee precursor was dry batch mixed with Arabica -22 -spray-dried coffee at a ratio of 50% roasted coffee precursor to 50% spray-dried coffee precursor. The resultant blend was then milled in a Hosokawa Alpine Fluid Bed Opposed Jet Mill -AFG at a variety of feed rates and classifiers speeds. The following results were obtained: Feed Rate Classifier Run time Dry Helos Dry Helos (kg/hour) Speed (mins.) D50 D90 (RPM) 2350 30 10.5 27.5 2000 38 11.4 28.7 2000 60 11.0 127.2 Advantageously, as can be seen for each example a dry Helos particle size distribution 1390 of less than 30 microns was obtainable at a range of feed rates and classifier speeds.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to processes for producing novel soluble instant coffee products incorporating a milled and blended coffee product containing a percentage of roasted ground coffee.

Prior art processes for forming spray-dried and freeze-dried soluble coffee both start with the steps of producing a coffee concentrate intermediate from coffee beans by the processes of roasting and extraction. Figure 3 illustrates the stages involved. Green coffee beans are roasted and then ground before being added to water to extract the coffee bean constituents. Optionally, coffee aroma may be stripped at this point to produce a liquid aroma product. The extraction liquid is then concentrated, for example in percolation columns to produce a concentrated extract, -23 -commonly known as coffee liquor. Optionally, at this point the previously produced aroma product may be incorporated to produce an aromatised coffee concentrate intermediate. Such processes are well knovm.

S The remainder of the procedure depends on whether the soluble product is to be spray-dried or freeze-dried. For spray-dried soluble coffee the remaining process steps include foaming, filtering and homogenising and spray drying to produce the spray-dried product. For freeze-dried soluble coffee the remaining process steps include foaming and pre-freezing, freezing, grinding & sieving and vacuum drying.

According to the present disclosure these known

processes are adapted by the incorporation of a milled and blended coffee intermediate containing a percentage of roasted ground coffee. In each of the processes described below, the milled and blended coffee intermediate itself may contain 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 30 to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee. Preferably, the milled and blended coffee intermediate contains 15 to 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50 to 85% by dry weight soluble coffee. In one example the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 50% by dry weight soluble coffee and 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee.

The soluble coffee component of the milled and blended coffee intermediate in any of the processes below may be derived from spray-dried instant coffee, freeze-dried instant coffee, or a mixture thereof.

The milled and blended coffee intermediate preferably has a dry Helos particle size distribution iJ9O of less than or equal to 40 microns, more preferably less than or equal to 30 microns.

-24 -In each of the processes described below the end coffee product may comprise 5 to 30% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 70 to 95% by dry weight equivalent of soluble coffee. (For example, a soluble coffee end product containing 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee can be obtained by mixing the liquid coffee concentrate with a dry milled and blended coffee intermediate having 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50% by dry weight soluble coffee in a ratio of 70:30 coffee concentrate intermediate to milled and blended coffee intermediate.

In a preferred option, the milled and blended coffee intermediate is produced using the novel process of the present disclosure described above with reference to Figure 1. However, milled and blended coffee intermediates having the requisite percentages of roasted ground coffee and soluble coffee may be used, even where produced by alternative means.

Figure 4a shows a first freeze-dried process for forming a freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25. A coffee concentrate intermediate 20 (aromatised or non-aromatised) is mixed with a milled and blended coffee intermediate 30 using a high shear mixer 50 prior to the foaming and pre-freezing step 21. Suitable mixers include high shear batch mixers and high shear in-line mixers available from Silverson Machines Ltd, Chesham, United Kingdom. The mixture is then foamed and pre-frozen at step 21 and then fed to a belt freezer 22 for a further freezing step. The frozen intermediate is then ground and sieved at step 23 to produce a particle size range of 0.3 to 3.5mm, preferably 0.3 to 2.5 mm, more preferably 0.3 to 1.5 mm. The intermediate is then vacuum dried at step 24 to produce the freeze-dried soluble -25 -coffee product 25. The product may then be packed in a container.

A modification to the process of Figure 4a is shown in Figure 4b. The process is as described above with reference to Figure 4a up to step 22. At step 23, however, the frozen intermediate is ground and sieved to produce a larger particle size range of 1.0 to 3.5 mm. The intermediate is then vacuum dried at step 24 to produce an intermediate freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25a. At step 26 the intermediate freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25a is subject to a secondary grinding to reduce the particle size range to 0.3 to 1.5mm to produce the freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25. The product may then be packed in a container.

Figure 5a shows a second freeze-dried process for forming a freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25. The process is the same as the first process described above with reference to Figure 4a with the exception that the milled and blended coffee product 30 is incorporated after the foaming and pre-freezing step 21. Again, a high shear mixer 50 of the type described above may be used and in other respects the process is the same as the first process.

A modification to the process of Figure Sa is shown in Figure Sb. The process is as described above with reference to Figure 5a up to step 22. At step 23, however, the frozen intermediate is ground and sieved to produce a larger particle size range of 1.0 to 3.5 mm. The intermediate is then vacuum dried at step 24 to produce an intermediate freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25a. At step 26 the intermediate freeze-dried soluble coffee product 25a is subject to a secondary grinding to reduce the particle size range to 0.3 to 1.5mm to produce the freeze-dried soluble -26 -coffee product 25. The product may then be packed in a container -An advantage of the modified processes of Figures 4b and 5b is that the particle size during vacuum drying is larger than in the processes of Figure 4a and 5a which has been found to lead to less product losses during drying. It has been found that with the processes of Figures 4a and Sa potential product losses occur when vacuum drying very small particle sizes due to the particles being carried off along with the evaporating water content of the intermediate.

A further advantage of the processes of the present disclosure is that it has been found that they allow a higher concentration of soluble solids to be incorporated in the product prior to freeze drying. In known freeze drying processes it is typical for the amount of soluble solids to be contained in the product prior to be a maximum of approximately 45-50%. This is due to the limited solubility of the coffee solids in water. The present applicant has found that the processes of Figures 4a, 4b, 5a and Sb allows soluble solids levels of up to 58% to be achieved whilst still permitting the steps of foaming, pre-freezing and freezing to be carried out. This results in more efficient energy use and higher levels of product throughput. Whilst not wishing to be bound by theory it is believed that incorporation of the milled and blended coffee intermediate results in higher levels of solubility of the coffee solids.

Figure 6 shows a first spray-dried process for forming a spray-dried soluble coffee product 44. A coffee concentrate intermediate 20 (aromatised or non-aromatised) is mixed with a milled and blended coffee intermediate 30 using a high shear mixer 50 prior to the foaming step 41. A -27 -high shear mixer 50 of the type described above may be used.

The mixture is then foamed at step 41 and then filtered and optionally homogenised at step 42. The intermediate is then spray dried at step 43 to produce the spray-dried soluble coffee product 44. The product may then be packed in a container.

Figure 7 shows a second spray-dried process for forming a spray-dried soluble coffee product 44. The process is the same as the first spray-dried process described above with the exception that the milled and blended coffee product 30 is incorporated into a dry mix. In particular, the spray-drying apparatus (as known in the art) comprises a fines collector for recycling coffee powder fines. At step 51, the milled and blended coffee intermediate 30 is fed into the recycling line from the fines collector and is therefore incorporated into the product during the spray-drying stage.

It has been found that the milled and blended coffee intermediate formed by jet milling has very good dispersion characteristics in liquids (such as hot water or concentrated liquid coffee extract)

Examples

To illustrate the beneficial dispersion qualities of the jet milled and blended coffee intermediate, four samples were prepared as follows: sample 1 (comparative) 100% Arabica beans, roasted to colour 8.5 La, then cryogenically ground using prior art techniques. 15% by dry weight of the resultant ground material was then dry mixed by hand with 85% of Arabica-based dried soluble coffee -end -28 -composition 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee, 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

sample 2.

15% Arabica beans roasted to colour 8.5 La, then jet milled with 85% Arabica-based, dried soluble coffee -end composition 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee, 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

io sample 3.

30% Arabica beans roasted to colour 8.5 La, then jet milled with 70% Arabica-based, dried soluble coffee to form blended intermediate. 50% by dry weight of blended intermediate dry mixed by hand with 50% by dry weight of Arabica-based dried soluble coffee -end composition 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee, 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

sample 4.

50% Arabica beans roasted to colour 8.5 La, then jet milled with 50% Arabica-based, dried soluble coffee to form blended intermediate. 30% by dry weight of blended intermediate dry mixed by hand with 70% by dry weight of Arabica-based dried soluble coffee -end composition 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee, 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

Beverages were then prepared from the samples and dry and wet Helos (with and without ultrasound) particle size distributions were measured, with the following results: -29 - Sample Dry Helos Wet Helos -Wet Helos -D90 pm Stirred 1)90 Ultrasound 1)90 ________ Wa pm 1 27.2 69.4 22.1 2 10.5 28.5 17.8 3 17.4 35.6 23.1 4 27.2 60.7 29.8 Wet Helos of the stirred sample represents the particle size when first made up and is higher where there is poor dispersion of the finely ground roasted coffee particles in water, thereby forming "clumps" of material.

That clumps are formed can be determined by comparing to the Wet Helos with ultrasound measurement. The ultrasound acts to break up the clumps (if present) As can be seen from the results, the comparative Sample 1 formed with cryogenically-ground roasted coffee has poor dispersion characteristics and significant clumping -verified by the large difference between the wet Helos figures with and without ultrasound -even though the product has the same total roasted ground coffee content as Samples 2 to 4. By comparison Samples 2 and 3 of the present disclosure have much better dispersion where the milled and blended coffee intermediate has 15 or 30% by dry weight roasted ground coffee. Sample 4 with 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee shows some improvement over the prior art composition but less than Samples 2 and 3.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a novel freeze-dried soluble coffee product having an appearance reminiscent of roasted ground coffee.

It has been surprisingly discovered that the addition of roasted ground coffee of small particle size to a freeze- -30 -dried soluble coffee product can produce a darkening of the end product that results in the freeze-dried product looking more similar to roasted ground coffee than prior art freeze-dried coffee products.

The roasted ground coffee particles are preferably colloidal in size with a dry Helos particle size distribution fl90 of less than or equal to 100 microns, preferably less than or equal to 50 microns, more preferably less than or equal to 30 microns.

The roasted ground coffee may constitute S to 30% by dry weight of the freeze-dried product.

The roasted ground coffee may be derived from cryogenic milling of whole roasted coffee beans. However, preferably, the roasted ground coffee is obtained by the milling process of the present disclosure described above with reference to Figure 1 in which the roasted ground coffee is a component of the milled and blended coffee intermediate.

The roasted ground coffee may be incorporated into the product by high shear mixing. Preferably, where the milled and blended coffee intermediate of the present disclosure is to be used, the roasted ground coffee is incorporated using one of the processes described above with reference to Figures 4 and 5.

The freeze-dried coffee end product has a colour of 13 to 30 La units on the Lange scale, preferably 16 to 25 La units, more preferably 17 to 20 La units.

The density of the soluble coffee product also has an affect on the colour. Typically the denser the product the darker the colour. However, it is undesirable to have a soluble product that is too dense. Hence the present disclosure provides a flexible alternative which can be used -31 -separately from (or in combination with) control of the density of the product to select the desired product colour.

Figure 8 illustrates results for three sample products, A to C having the following characteristics: Sample A (comparative example) Standard Net Robusta concentrated extract was foamed and freeze-dried using known prior art techniques without the inclusion of any roasted ground coffee. The datum colour change of 0 is set for a density of Sample A of 210 gIl. An increased density of 220 gIl results in a colour change of - 1.5 La units. An increased density of 230 gIl results in a colour change of -2.7 La units.

Sample B A freeze-dried product according to the process of Figure 5a with roasted ground coffee added after foaming with the end product comprising 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

Compared to Sample A, Sample B produced a darker product with a colour change of -3.0 La units at a density of 210 gIl; -3.8 La units at a density of 220 gil Sample C A freeze-dried product according to the process of Figure 4a with roasted ground coffee added before foaming with the end product comprising 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 85% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.

Compared to Sample A, Sample C produced a darker product with a colour change of -1.5 La units at a density -32 -of 210 gIl; -2.4 La units at a density of 220 gil and -3.4 La units at a density of 230 gIl.

It has also been found that the freeze-dried product is more reminiscent of roasted ground coffee where it is ground at step 23 to a particle size of 0.3 to 3.5 mm, preferably 0.3 to 2.5 mm, more preferably 0.3 to 1.5 mm.

The milled and blended coffee product described above or the soluble coffee product described above or the freeze-dried soluble coffee product described above may be packaged for sale in a container such as a jar 101 as shown in Figure 9. Alternatively, the milled and blended coffee product or the soluble coffee product or the freeze-dried soluble coffee product may be packaged in a container suitable for us in a beverage preparation machine. For example, Figure 10 shows a suitable container in the form of a cartridge 102 that may be used in a beverage preparation machine 103 as shown in Figure 11.

The product may contain one or more additional beverage components such as natural or artificial sweeteners, dairy or non-dairy based creamers, lactose, vegetable fat, whey proteins, emulsifiers, stabilisers, modified starches, carriers, fillers, flavours, colours, nutrients, preservatives, flow agents or foaming agents.

Claims (1)

1. <claim-text>-33 -Claims: 1. A process of forming a freeze-dried soluble coffee product, comprising the steps of: S i) forming a concentrated coffee extract; ii) foaming and pre-freezing the concentrated coffee extract to form a foamed and pre-frozen coffee intermediate; iii) freezing the foamed and pre-frozen coffee intermediate to form a frozen coffee intermediate; iv) grinding and sieving the frozen coffee intermediate to form a ground coffee intermediate; v) drying the ground coffee intermediate to form the freeze-dried soluble coffee product; wherein prior to step ii) and/or step iii) a milled and blended coffee intermediate is incorporated; wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>2. A process of forming a spray-dried soluble coffee product, comprising the steps of: i) forming a concentrated coffee extract; ii) foaming the concentrated coffee extract to form a foamed coffee intermediate; iii) optionally filtering and homogenizing the foamed coffee intermediate to form a filtered and homogenized coffee intermediate; iv) spray drying the foamed coffee intermediate or the filtered and homogenized coffee intermediate to form the spray-dried soluble coffee product; wherein prior to step ii) and/or step iv) a milled and blended coffee intermediate is incorporated; -34 -wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 10 to 70% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and to 90% by dry weight soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>3. The process of claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 15 to 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50 to 85% by dry weight soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>4. The process of any preceding claim wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises 50% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 50% by dry weight soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>5. The process of any preceding claim wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate has a dry Helos particle size distribution 1J90 of less than or equal to 40 microns.</claim-text> <claim-text>6. The process of any preceding claim wherein the milled and blended coffee intermediate has a dry Helos particle size distribution D90 of less than or equal to 30 microns.</claim-text> <claim-text>7. The process of any preceding claim wherein the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product comprises 5 to 30% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 70 to 95% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>8. The process of any preceding claim wherein the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product comprises 10 to 20% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 80 to 90% by dry weight equivalent soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>-35 - 9. The process of any preceding claim wherein the freeze-dried or spray-dried coffee product comprises 15% by dry weight roasted ground coffee and 85% by dry weight soluble coffee.</claim-text> <claim-text>10. The process of any preceding claim wherein the soluble coffee of the milled and blended coffee intermediate comprises spray-dried instant coffee, freeze-dried instant coffee, or a mixture thereof.</claim-text>