JP2005210952A - Flavor improver for japanese distilled spirit or refined rice wine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain Shouchuu (a Japanese distilled spirit) or refined rice wine having a new blue apple-like flavor, sweet like ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, fruity and nonconventional. <P>SOLUTION: The subject flavor improver for the Japanese distilled spirit or refined rice wine comprises ethyl 2-methylbutyrate as an active ingredient. The Japanese distilled spirit or refined rice wine comprises ethyl 2-methylbutyrate so as to give a product containing an effective amount or more of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. The method for producing the Japanese distilled spirit or refined rice wine comprises a process for adding the flavor improver to Japanese distilled spirit or refined rice wine so as to give the product containing the effective amount or more of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. The flavor improver, a flavoring material, a fruit, a microbial culture, or the like, containing this ester may be cited as an ethyl 2-methylbutyrate source. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a shochu or sake flavor improver containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate as an active ingredient, and a method for producing shochu or sake containing the flavor improver.

Ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is known as a characteristic aroma component of delicious apples [Science of deliciousness, page 127, Asakura Shoten Co., Ltd., published on June 10, 1994] It has a sweet and fruity aroma characteristic.
The presence of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate in alcoholic beverages has been reported for beer, cider, wine, brandy, cognac, and rum [Aroma of Beer, Wine and Distilled Alcoholic Beverages]. Dee. Leidel Publishing Company (D. REIDEL PUBLISHING COMPANY), p. 182, 1983], there is also a report of its content at Brandy [Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 365-372, 1979]. Furthermore, in wine, this ingredient is often found in aged wine [Analysis of Taste and Aroma, Springer, p. 99, 2002]. However, these are merely clarifications of the relationship between the type of alcoholic beverage and the content of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. In each alcoholic beverage, the aroma characteristics of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate are recognized as a characteristic of alcoholic beverages. There is no known evidence for an appropriate concentration that can improve the flavor of.

  On the other hand, a novel flavor improving agent that gives a fresh flavor and a remarkable odor and a food and drink having an improved flavor are known [Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-143859]. This is because at least one compound selected from the group consisting of (S)-(+)-2-methylbutyric acid and its esters has an optical purity of 70% e.e. e. A flavor improving agent characterized by being contained above, and an optical purity of 70% e.e. e. At least one compound selected from the group consisting of the above (S)-(+)-2-methylbutyric acid and its esters is 1 to 150 ppm in terms of 100% optical purity with respect to food and drink. It is a food and drink having an improved flavor characterized by containing it in a proportion, and by adding it to food and drink such as fruit juice drinks and foods, it is possible to improve the flavor quality and smell of the food and drink Yes. However, there is no description about the effect of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate in shochu or sake.

  The presence of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate has not been reported in shochu and sake, and its effects in shochu and sake are not known. In shochu and sake, where the presence of this component has not been recognized, it is unclear what effect 2-ethylbutyrate has on improving flavor, and known evidence about the concentration at which its good sensory properties are manifested. There is no current situation.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-143859 Science of deliciousness, page 127, publisher Asakura Shoten, first published on June 10, 1994 Aroma of Beer, Wine and Distilled Alcoholic Beverages, Dee. Leidel Publishing Company (D. REIDEL PUBLISHING COMPANY), p. 182, 1983 Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 365-372, 1979 Analysis of Taste and Aroma, Springer, p. 99, 2002

  In view of the above-mentioned prior art, the object of the present invention is to make ethyl 2-methylbutyrate sweet to shochu and sake, improve fruity flavor characteristics, and clarify the appropriate concentration in the liquor. An object of the present invention is to provide shochu and sake with a sweet, fruity and unprecedented green apple-like flavor characteristic of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate.

  To summarize the present invention, the first invention of the present invention relates to a flavor improving agent for shochu or sake containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate as an active ingredient, and the second invention of the present invention relates to ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. It is related with the shochu or sake which adds the flavor improving agent of shochu or sake containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate as an active ingredient so that the product containing more than effective amount may be obtained. The third invention of the present invention is a shell shochu having an effective amount of 37.0 μg / L, and the fourth invention of the present invention is an oyster having an effective amount of 30.1 μg / L. It is shochu, and the fifth aspect of the present invention is sake that has an effective amount of 18.7 μg / L. Further, the sixth invention of the present invention is a method for producing shochu or sake, wherein the flavor of the shochu or sake of the first invention is improved so that a product containing an effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is obtained. The present invention relates to a method for producing shochu or sake including a step of adding an agent.

  The present inventors have found that the above-mentioned problems can be solved by adding a specific effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate to shochu or sake, and the present invention has been completed based on this finding.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is an extremely excellent shochu or sake flavor improving agent capable of improving the sweet and fruity flavor characteristics of shochu and sake. Further, in the present invention, by adding a flavor improving agent for shochu or sake that contains ethyl 2-methylbutyrate as an active ingredient, high-quality shochu and sake having a sweet and fruity aroma that has not been used in shochu and sake. Can be recognized as By the method of adding a sample of 2-methylbutyrate, a flavoring agent, and a microorganism culture, the shochu liquor or sake of the present invention can be easily provided.

The present invention will be specifically described below.
The improving agent used in the present invention may be a preparation (single product) of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, and may also be a flavoring agent, fruit, or microbial culture containing the same.

The time when the flavor improving agent of the present invention is added to shochu or sake may be any time during the manufacturing process of shochu or sake. For example, if it is shochu, it is desirable to add it to the koji before distillation, and if it is sake, it is desirable to add it to the koji before the upper tank. A large amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate can be contained. By containing a large amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, a fruity fragrance characteristic recognized as good in sensory evaluation of shochu and sake, that is, aroma, fruit-like, fruit-like, ester, scent of ester ), Refreshing, fresh, soft, flowery, melon-like, citrus-like aroma characteristics can be enhanced, and flavor characteristics indicating sweetness, that is, soft, sweet, swelled, soft, Flavor characteristics such as mild, deep, round and smooth can be enhanced. Furthermore, the obtained shochu and sake have an aroma imparted with a novel green apple-like fruitiness that has never been obtained before, and have improved quality over conventional shochu and sake. The flavoring agent used in the improving agent of the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it contains ethyl 2-methylbutyrate and imparts flavor. For example, a fragrance | flavor, a flavor liquid, etc. are mentioned. The fruits used in the improving agent of the present invention are not particularly limited as long as they contain a large amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. For example, apple, durian and the like can be mentioned. Those extracts can also be used. In addition, the microorganism and culture method of the microorganism culture used in the improving agent of the present invention are not particularly limited, but it is preferable to use yeast, particularly yeast of the genus Dipodascus. For example, the literature [Zeitschiff fur Lebensmittel-Undershuntund-Forschung, Vol. 177, pp. 336-338, 1983]. When the yeast is used for cultivation in a broth medium or the like, a large amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is produced. In addition, it does not require special nutrients, such as a sap medium or a saccharified cereal raw material, and can be cultured in a medium that is easily and universally obtained during the production of alcoholic beverages. Next, when this microbial culture was added to shochu or sake lees, it was distilled or placed in the upper tank, and a new fruity green apple-like fruit was imparted while maintaining the original shochu and sake flavor. Shochu and sake with good flavor can be obtained.
Examples of microorganisms that produce ethyl 2-methylbutyrate include microorganisms of the genus Geotrichum and Neurospora in addition to the yeast described above. The culture solution itself of these microorganisms or the flavor solution recovered from the culture solution can be used as the flavor improving agent of the present invention. In addition, ethyl 2-methylbutyrate can be highly produced by adding isoleucine at the time of culture.

  Examples of the shochu used in the present invention include shochu and spirits. There are no particular limitations on the raw materials for shochu and spirits. The sake as used in the present invention includes sake, synthetic sake and the like. The raw materials for sake and synthetic sake are not particularly limited as long as they are used for rice, rice bran and other ordinary sake. Moreover, there is no limitation in particular also in the fermentation method and the distillation method.

The effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate in the instep shochu of the present invention is 37.0 μg / L. When the content of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is 37.0 μg / L or more, a green apple-like fruity fragrance and a flower-like fragrance become strong and the flavor is good, but when it is less than 37.0 μg / L, the good fragrance is It is not felt, and it becomes only the fragrance of the first class shochu.
The effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate in the oyster shochu of the present invention is 30.1 μg / L. When ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is contained in an amount of 30.1 μg / L or more, it becomes fruity and has a good flavor, but if it is less than 30.1 μg / L, a good aroma is not felt, and it is only an aroma inherent in oyster shochu. End up.
The effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate in the sake of the present invention is 18.7 μg / L. When ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is contained in an amount of 18.7 μg / L or more, a fruity and good aroma is strong and preferable. However, if it is less than 18.7 μg / L, only the aroma inherent in sake is obtained.
There is no problem even if ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is contained in a large amount in shochu and sake, but the upper limit of the sensory value is 10 mg / L, preferably 1 mg / L. If it exceeds 10 mg / L, the reagent-like and artificial fragrance becomes too strong, and the good flavor inherent in shochu and sake is impaired.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples.

Effective Concentration in Class A Shochu In the base known liquors used for the preparation addition of Examples 1 to 3, the content of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was measured by the following method. It was confirmed that the content was 1 μg / L or less obtained by multiplying the lower limit of detection of ethyl butyrate 0.1 μg / L by a dilution factor of 10.
That is, 9 ml of distilled water was added to 1 ml of a sample, and a stirrer bar twister coated with polydimethylsiloxane was added from a 10-fold diluted solution obtained by further adding 1 μl of 0.1% (v / v) cyclohexanol / ethanol solution as an internal standard ( Twister ^™ ) (manufactured by GERSTEL) was used to extract ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. The extraction conditions were stirring (room temperature, 1 hour). Furthermore, after the aromatic component extracted to the stirrer bar was thermally desorbed, it was introduced into Gas Chromatograph Agilent 6890N (manufactured by Yokogawa Analytical Systems Co., Ltd.), separated by a conventional method, and then a mass selective detector Agilent (Agilent) 5973 (manufactured by Yokogawa Analytical Systems Co., Ltd.) was used to obtain a chromatogram. Quantitative calculations were performed using the internal standard method.
On the other hand, a standard product of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was analyzed by the above extraction method and analysis method, and 0.1 μg / L, which had an S / N ratio of 3, was taken as the lower limit of the detection limit.
25% (v / v) Alcohol Class Shochu (Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.) was added with 2-methyl ethyl butyrate preparation (Tokyo Kasei Kogyo Co., Ltd.). Samples prepared so as to have concentrations of 12.0, 33.0, and 66.0 μg / L and those not added were prepared as presented samples. These samples were presented to 11 panelists so that the sample concentration was in an increasing series, and samples added by the three-point identification method were discriminated.
Plot the correct percentage of correct answers Po (p-p) / (1-p) (p uses the chance of correct answers by chance 1/3) as the true percentage of correct answers Pi. The concentration at which the true correct answer rate is 0.5 on the straight line approximated by the least square method was taken as the recognition threshold for the effect of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. The results are shown in Table 1.

  When the true accuracy rate Pi was 0.5, the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was 37.0 μg / L. This concentration is a threshold at which the effect of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is recognized in class A shochu.

  Next, a comparison was made between a shell shochu containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate and one not containing it. That is, ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (manufactured by Tokyo Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) is added to Takara Shochu (Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.), which is a 25% (v / v) alcoholic shell shochu, and 2-methylbutyric acid is added. Samples prepared so as to have an ethyl concentration of 37.0 μg / L (Invention 1) and those not added (Comparative Example 1) were prepared as samples to be presented and evaluated by a 5-point evaluation method (1 : Good, 5: bad). Sensory test scores were expressed as average values. The results are shown in Table 2.

  According to the present invention, the quality of the first-class shochu that does not contain ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is improved, and it has preferable properties described as fruit, sweet, apple, esteri, flower-like, fruit, green apple. It was. In addition, the meaning of green apple (2) in the table indicates that there are two panelists with the same characteristics.

Effective concentration in oyster shochu 25% (v / v) alcohol Authentic shochu "Yokaichi"<wheat> [made by Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.] 2-methylbutyrate ethyl preparation [Tokyo Kasei Made by Kogyo Kogyo Co., Ltd.], and the ones adjusted so that the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is 6.7, 16.6, 22.7, 45.0 μg / L and those not added are presented. Prepared as a sample. These samples were presented to eight panelists so that the sample concentration was in an increasing series, and the added samples were discriminated by the three-point identification method. The method for determining the effect recognition threshold was performed in accordance with Example 1. The results are shown in Table 3.

  When the true accuracy rate Pi was 0.5, the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was 30.1 μg / L. This concentration is a threshold value at which the effect of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is recognized in second-class shochu.

  Next, a comparison was made between the oyster shochu containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate and the one not containing it. In other words, the authentic shochu “Yokaichi” <mug> (made by Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.), a 25% (v / v) alcohol maid shochu, and ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (manufactured by Tokyo Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) Were prepared so that the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was adjusted to 30.1 μg / L (present invention 2) and not added (comparative example 2) as presentation samples. A sensory test was performed by a panel with a five-point evaluation method (1: good, 5: bad). Sensory test scores were expressed as average values. The results are shown in Table 4.

  According to the present invention, the quality of the oyster shochu that does not contain ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is improved, and it has the preferable characteristics described as a fruity, soft and slightly sweet scent. The meaning of fruity (2) in the table indicates that there are two panelists who have the same characteristics.

Effective concentration in sake Sake of Shochiku Ume [manufactured by Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.], a sake of 15% (v / v) alcohol or more and less than 16% (v / v) alcohol [Tokyo Kasei Co., Ltd.] Manufactured by Kogyo Co., Ltd.], and prepared as the sample to be presented was prepared such that the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was 0.6, 11.6, 35.3 μg / L and not added. . These samples were presented to 12 panelists so that the sample concentration was in an increasing series, and samples added by the three-point identification method were discriminated. The method for determining the effect recognition threshold was performed in accordance with Example 1. The results are shown in Table 5.

  When the true accuracy rate Pi was 0.5, the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was 18.7 μg / L. This concentration is a threshold at which the effect of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is recognized in sake.

  Next, a comparison was made between sake containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate and one not containing it. That is, Shochiku Ume Kamijo (manufactured by Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.), a sake of 15% (v / v) alcohol or more and less than 16% (v / v) alcohol, and 2-methylbutyrate ethyl standard [Tokyo Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.] The product prepared in such a manner that the concentration of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was adjusted to 18.7 μg / L (present invention 3) and the one not added (comparative example 3) were prepared as samples to be presented. A sensory test was conducted by a five-point evaluation method (1: good, 5: bad) by a panel of names. The results are shown in Table 6.

  According to the present invention, the quality of sake not containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is improved, and fruity, refreshing, soft, bulging, fresh, refreshing ester scent, green apple, slightly sweet scent, flowery And had the desirable properties described. The meaning of fruity (2) in the table indicates that there are two panelists who have the same characteristics.

Aspergillus shochu prepared by adding flavor solution recovered from a culture of Dipodascus magnusii As a method of containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, flavor solution is recovered from the culture solution of microorganisms producing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate Then, a method of adding this was carried out.
Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain was inoculated into 100 ml of broth medium with a Brix degree of 10 autoclaved at 121 ° C. for 15 minutes and cultured at 25 ° C. for 5 days to obtain a culture solution. Next, 20 ml of 99.5% (v / v) ethanol [manufactured by Nacalai Tesque Co., Ltd.] was added thereto, and distilled under a 40 ° C. hot water bath and a reduced pressure of 0.95 MPa to obtain 30 ml of a distillate. . In addition, a distillate obtained by similarly culturing and distilling shochu association No. 2 yeast [manufactured by Japan Brewing Association] was also prepared. The ethyl 2-methylbutyrate content in these distillates was measured according to the method described in Example 1. The distillate obtained using Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain was 541 μg / L, and the distillate obtained using Shochu Association No. 2 yeast was lower than the lower limit of the detection limit.
These were added at a rate of 10 ml to 90 ml of Takara shochu (manufactured by Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.), which is a 25% (v / v) alcohol shell shochu, and added with a distillate obtained using Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 This is the invention 4, the one obtained by adding the distillate obtained using Shochu Association No. 2 yeast as Comparative Example 4, and the sensory test was conducted by 12 panelists with a five-point evaluation method (1: good, 5: bad). went. Furthermore, it was confirmed whether there was a significant difference by t-test when there was correspondence about the scores of 12 panelists. The results are shown in Tables 7 and 8.

  From Tables 7 and 8, the present invention is a shochu that has been evaluated as sweet, melon-like, pear-like, fruity, sweet, gorgeous, rum-like, cohesive, green apple-like, refreshing, clean, light Further, a significant difference was observed between the present invention 4 and Comparative Example 4 at a 5% level.

Sake prepared by adding flavor solution recovered from Dipodascus magnusii culture solution. The culture solution obtained according to Example 4 was made with a sake not less than 13% (v / v) alcohol and less than 14% (v / v) alcohol. Shochiku Umeten (manufactured by Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd.) is added at a ratio of 10 ml to 90 ml and added with a distillate obtained using Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain. A product obtained by adding a distillate obtained using the Japan Brewing Association was used as Comparative Example 5, and a sensory test was conducted by 13 panelists using a 5-point evaluation method (1: good, 5: bad). Furthermore, it was confirmed whether there was a significant difference by t-test when there was correspondence about the scores of 13 panelists. The results are shown in Tables 9 and 10.

  From Table 9 and Table 10, the present invention 5 which is a sake with good balance, fruit aroma, elegance, weight, sweetness, mellow fragrance, sweet fragrance, soft, refreshing and light, is obtained. A significant difference was observed between the invention 5 and the comparative example 5 at the 5% level.

As a method of adding oyster shochu 2-ethylbutyrate prepared by adding Dipodascus magnusii culture solution, a method of adding a culture solution of a microorganism producing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was carried out.
The cocoons were prepared as follows. A 65% (w / w) white wheat (200 g) was dipped and the water absorption rate of 120% was steamed with a steamer. This was transferred to an Erlenmeyer flask with a 1 L cotton plug that had been sterilized by dry heat, and inoculated with a K-type fungus for shochu (manufactured by Bioc Co., Ltd.), and then cultured at a constant temperature of 30 ° C. for 2 days to obtain a sputum. In addition, Shochu Association No. 2 yeast (manufactured by Japan Brewing Association) was cultured in 10 ml of broth medium with a Brix degree of 10, and cultured at a constant temperature of 30 ° C. for 2 days. Next, 240 ml of water was added to the yeast and yeast that had been cultured for 2 days, and fermented at 30 ° C. for 5 days.
In parallel, inoculate Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain into 121 ml of autoclaved sterilized broth medium of 100 ml at 121 ° C. for 15 minutes, and incubate at 25 ° C. for 5 days to prepare a preculture solution. In addition to the koji fermented for 5 days, 400 g of steamed wheat and 550 ml of water before processing were added to the koji, which was subjected to the same raw material treatment as the koji described above, and further fermented for 14 days to obtain an aged koji.
200 ml of the resulting barley shochu ripened koji was distilled at atmospheric pressure with a 2 L glass distiller to recover 200 ml of distillate, which was diluted to 25% (v / v) alcohol with deionized water. This was named shochu (Invention 6).
On the other hand, in the above-mentioned process, instead of adding the pre-culture solution of Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain, a mash broth was cultivated in the same manner by adding a broth culture medium cultivating shochu association 2 yeast (manufactured by Japan Brewing Association). Then, a distillate obtained by distilling this was diluted to 25% (v / v) alcohol with deionized water to obtain an oyster shochu (Comparative Example 6).
The ethyl 2-methylbutyrate content of Invention 6 and Comparative Example 6 was measured according to the method described in Example 1. Invention 6 was 38.0 μg / L, and Comparative Example 6 was lower than the lower limit of the detection limit.
The obtained otosho shochu was presented to 18 panelists and subjected to a sensory test by a three-point evaluation method (1: good, 3: bad). Furthermore, it was confirmed whether there was a significant difference in the t-test when there was a correspondence regarding the scores of 18 panelists. The results are shown in Tables 11 and 12.

From Table 11 and Table 12, it is gorgeous, round fragrant, light fragrant, slightly smoky, melon-like fragrance, mild, sweet and gorgeous, sweet, soft, refreshing, gorgeous, deep, refreshing, citrus, refreshing, aroma, strong ester fragrance The present invention 6 which is shochu obtained smooth evaluation was obtained, and the present invention 6 and the comparative example 6 showed a significant difference at a 5% level.
In Table 11, the meanings of gorgeous (2) and refreshing (2) indicate that there are two panelists with the same characteristics.

Sake made by adding rice alcohol containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate As a method of containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, an additive alcohol containing ethyl 2-methylbutyrate was prepared and sake was made using the sake. did.
According to Example 6, rice alcohol as an added alcohol was obtained. The cocoons were prepared as follows. A 75% (w / w) polished rice (200 g) was dipped in a water absorption rate of 120% and steamed with a steamer. This was transferred to an Erlenmeyer flask with 1 L cotton stopper that had been sterilized by dry heat, inoculated with a K-type fungus for shochu (manufactured by Bioc Co., Ltd.), and cultured at a constant temperature of 30 ° C. for 2 days to give a sputum. In addition, Shochu Association No. 2 yeast (manufactured by Japan Brewing Association) was cultured in 10 ml of broth medium with a Brix degree of 10, and cultured at a constant temperature of 30 ° C. for 2 days. Next, 240 ml of water was added to the yeast and rice cake cultured for 2 days and fermented at 30 ° C. for 5 days.
In parallel, inoculate Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain into 121 ml of autoclaved sterilized broth medium of 100 ml at 121 ° C. for 15 minutes, and incubate at 25 ° C. for 5 days to prepare a preculture solution. In addition to koji fermented for 5 days, 400 g of steamed rice and 550 ml of water before processing were added to this koji and the same raw material treatment as above koji was added, and further fermented for 14 days to obtain matured koji.
200 ml of distillate was recovered by subjecting 600 ml of the resulting rice shochu ripened koji to atmospheric distillation with a 2 L glass distiller, and this was used as an added alcohol.
On the other hand, in the above-mentioned process, instead of adding the pre-culture solution of Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain, a mash broth was cultivated in the same manner by adding a broth culture medium cultivating shochu association 2 yeast (manufactured by Japan Brewing Association). The distillate obtained by distillation was used as a control added alcohol.
Furthermore, the sake lees with a general charge blend were prepared and divided into two, and the added alcohol obtained by using the above-mentioned Dipodascus magnusii NBRC10808 strain was added to the upper tank, and this invention 7 and the control added alcohol were added. In addition, sake was produced as a comparative example 7 from the upper tank.
The ethyl 2-methylbutyrate content of Invention 7 and Comparative Example 7 was measured according to the method described in Example 1. Invention 7 was 20.0 μg / L, and Comparative Example 7 was lower than the lower limit of the detection limit.
The obtained sake was presented to 18 panelists and subjected to a sensory test by a three-point evaluation method (1: good, 3: bad). Furthermore, it was confirmed whether there was a significant difference in the t-test when there was a correspondence regarding the scores of 18 panelists. The results are shown in Tables 13 and 14.

  From Table 13 and Table 14, the present invention 7 which is a sake with good balance, fruit aroma, elegance, weight, sweetness, mellow fragrance, sweet fragrance, soft, refreshing, and light, is obtained. A significant difference was observed between the present invention 7 and Comparative Example 7 at a 5% level.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a high-quality shochu and sake having a sweet and fruity aroma that has not been used in shochu and sake.

Claims (6)

  A flavor improver for shochu or sake, comprising ethyl 2-methylbutyrate as an active ingredient.   Shochu or sake made by adding the flavor improver according to claim 1 so that a product containing an effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate is obtained.   A shell shochu having an effective amount of 37.0 μg / L in claim 2.   Boiled shochu having an effective amount of 30.1 μg / L in claim 2.   The sake according to claim 2, wherein the effective amount is 18.7 μg / L.   A method for producing shochu or sake, comprising a step of adding a flavor improving agent according to claim 1 so as to obtain a product containing an effective amount of ethyl 2-methylbutyrate. Sake production method.