JP2006115788A - Packaged green tea beverage - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide packaged green tea beverage containing catechins with high biological functionality at high concentration and at the same time sustaining lucidness, having excellent flavor and quality from a point of palatability and suitable especially for sales by warming. <P>SOLUTION: The packaged green tea beverage contains green tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves, and 380 mg/L-1,500 mg/L of the total amount of epigallocatechin gallate and gallocatechin gallate, and 20 mg/L-120 mg/L of glutamic acid. The tea beverage has a diffuse transmission factor of 1.0% or below, a temperature of goods of 50°C-70°C and pH5-7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a packaged green tea beverage containing catechins at a high concentration, and in particular, has an effect of suppressing the occurrence of odor during long-term storage at the time of warm sales, and further has the taste palatability given by catechins The present invention relates to an improved containerized green tea beverage.

  Green tea beverages are loved as tea-based beverages with balanced tastes such as astringency, umami, and bitterness. In addition, recently, along with lifestyle changes, container-packed green tea beverages containing high concentrations of catechins have been developed due to the demands for palatability that emphasizes the catechins' contribution to health and the taste of catechins. It was.

  Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose a method for producing a container-packed beverage and a container-packed beverage in which the blending ratio and concentration of non-epi-catechins and epi-catechins are defined. For the purpose of preventing the occurrence, a packaged beverage containing a cyclic dextrin or a water-soluble polymer is disclosed in a packaged beverage containing non-epimeric catechins and epicatechins.

Japanese Patent No. 3329799 Japanese Patent No. 3338705 Japanese Patent No. 3342698 Japanese Patent No. 3360073

  In general green tea beverages, “primary orientation” begins to precipitate immediately after the beverage is produced. Therefore, the “primary orientation” is completely removed in the production process, and then filled into a container. However, it is distinguished from “secondary orientation” (“primary orientation”) in the form of suspended matter, white turbidity, floc (cotton) or precipitate over time during storage after filling the container. In the present invention, this “secondary orientation” is often referred to as “ori”. In particular, when selling PET bottled green tea beverages with warming, it becomes easy for the orientation to occur due to heating, and the occurrence of the orientation in the container not only impairs the flavor and taste of the green tea beverage, but also increases the product value. It was an important issue to lose. Further, even in a packaged green tea beverage containing catechins at a high concentration, there has been a problem that the odor easily occurs. Furthermore, the container-packed green tea beverage containing catechins at a high concentration causes a bad balance between astringency and other tastes, and there is also a problem that it feels unpleasant and even uncomfortable.

  The object of the present invention is to contain catechins with high biofunctionality in a high concentration, yet maintain clarity, and packaged green tea beverages that have good flavor and quality from the viewpoint of palatability, especially heated sales The object is to provide a container-packed green tea beverage suitable for use.

  As a result of studying in view of the above-described problems in a container-packed green tea beverage containing catechins at a high concentration, the present inventor found that occurrence of orientation in a container-packed green tea beverage in a container-packed green tea beverage containing a high concentration of catechins Has been found to be related to the glutamic acid concentration and the diffusion transmittance, and the present invention has been completed.

That is, the present invention is a container-packed green tea beverage containing a green tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves, containing epigallocatechin gallate and gallocatechin gallate in a total value of 380 mg / L to 1500 mg / L. And a packed green tea beverage containing 20 mg / L to 120 mg / L of glutamic acid and having a diffusion transmittance of 1.0% or less.
Moreover, it is the said packaged green tea drink, Comprising: The packaged green tea drink whose product temperature of a packaged green tea drink is 50 to 70 degreeC is provided.
Moreover, it is the said packaged green tea drink, Comprising: The packaged green tea drink whose pH is 5-7 is provided.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it is a packaged green tea drink containing catechins in high concentration with high added value that can ingest a large amount of EGCg and GCg effective for physiological function among catechins, In this case, the occurrence of orientation can be prevented and the flavor and taste inherent in the green tea beverage can be maintained and improved. Therefore, it is possible to provide a packaged green tea beverage containing catechins at a high concentration that can support not only cold storage sales to room temperature sales but also warm sales.

  In the present invention, “green tea beverage” means a beverage containing a green tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves, preferably a beverage containing 50% or more. “Contained green tea beverage” is a green tea beverage that can be drunk without dilution, and in the same way as a general beverage, a molded container (so-called PET bottle) mainly composed of polyethylene terephthalate, a metal can, a metal foil, A green tea beverage that can be provided in the form of a normal container such as a paper container or a bottle combined with a plastic film.

  Further, in the present invention, warming (and warming sales) means warming the packaged green tea beverage to a temperature that can be provided to consumers and the like in a warm state, and keeping the temperature at that temperature. For example, a packaged green tea beverage is heated from a heat source of 50 ° C. to 120 ° C. by direct irradiation, conduction or radiation, or microwave, and the temperature of the packaged green tea beverage is 40 ° C. to 100 ° C., preferably 50 ° C. to 70 ° C. It is to keep at a temperature of 55 ° C. to 60 ° C., particularly preferably 55 ° C. to 60 ° C.

  Embodiments of the beverage of the present invention will be described below. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

  The packaged green tea beverage according to the present embodiment is a packaged green tea beverage containing a green tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves, and epigallocatechin gallate and gallocatechin gallate in a total value of 380 mg / L to It is a packaged green tea beverage containing 1500 mg / L, containing 20 mg / L to 120 mg / L of glutamic acid, and having a diffusion transmittance of 1.0% or less.

  Epigallocatechin gallate (hereinafter referred to as EGCg) and gallocatechin gallate (hereinafter referred to as GCg) are known as useful components having extremely strong bitterness and high physiological activity, and are detected at an ultraviolet wavelength. It can be qualitatively and quantitatively determined by a method using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

  Here, EGCg which is epimeric catechin is a compound in which a catechin skeleton and gallic acid are ester-bonded, and can be obtained by a conventionally known method or a method which will be known in the future. Specifically, since EGCg exists in natural plants including tea leaves, it can be obtained by extracting from natural plants with water or a water-soluble organic solvent such as hot water or ethanol, or a mixture thereof. Further, in order to increase the EGCg content, it is preferable to concentrate, separate or purify.

In addition, GCg, which is a non-epimeric catechin, hardly exists in natural plants including tea leaves. However, it can be obtained, for example, by heat treating EGCg at about 80 ° C. or higher to promote thermal isomerization (epimerization).
That is, purified EGCg, a mixture containing EGCg, or a catechin composition containing EGCg such as tea extract or leachate is heated at about 80 ° C. or more to promote thermal isomerization of EGCg. In this way, GCg can be obtained. Furthermore, it can concentrate, isolate | separate and refine | purify in order to make GCg or the composition containing GCg high concentration from this heat-processed material.

  Moreover, in order to contain EGCg and GCg, the catechin composition containing EGCg and GCg, such as a tea extract, can be contained, or a commercially available tea extract can be contained. Further, one or more kinds of purified EGCg and GCg can be added and blended so that EGCg and GCg have a desired composition.

  The glutamic acid used in the present embodiment includes L-glutamic acid or a salt thereof, and it is preferable to use L-glutamic acid and L-glutamic acid sodium salt. In addition, glutamic acid can be used in any grade for food additives, pharmaceuticals, and reagents. In addition, a material containing glutamic acid derived from a natural product can also be used, and among these, a tea-derived material is preferable from the viewpoint of flavor, for example, high concentration green tea extract, or catechins from green tea extract, An extract having a glutamic acid concentration increased by removing polysaccharides and the like can be used. The glutamic acid contained in the green tea beverage can be quantified using an HPLC method and an amino acid analyzer.

By the way, it is known that amino acids other than catechins contribute to green tea beverages as components related to the taste (sweetness, umami) of general green tea beverages. Amino acids contained in green tea beverages are theanine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, arginine, serine and the like, and these are said to account for 90% or more of all amino acids contained in green tea beverages (Shin Tea Industry 8th edition, ( Company) edited by Shizuoka Prefectural Tea Chamber, 1988).
Of these, glutamic acid and salts thereof are known as seasonings and food additives as umami ingredients, and are also known as additives for reducing the bitterness and astringency of foods and medicines (for example, JP 2000-2000A). No. 20,04036, JP-A 2001-69691, and JP-A 2003-160484). Nakagawa has also reported changes in taste structure and palatability when glutamic acid and sucrose are added simultaneously to the taste of green tea (Nakagawa Toshiyuki, Green Tea Taste and Chemical Composition, Tea Industry Research Report, 40, 1-9, 1973). According to this, when the addition concentration of glutamic acid and sucrose is increased, the strength tends to increase for bitterness and astringency when the concentration of glutamic acid is 1%, and the addition of 2 to 4% decreases the strength. However, it has been reported that palatability decreases with the addition of glutamic acid and sucrose, resulting in an unpleasant taste that cannot be said to be green tea.

In the container-packed green tea beverage according to the present embodiment, it is important that the diffuse transmittance is 1.0% or less, and it is important that it becomes 0.1% to 1.0% in consideration of the measurement limit. . If it is 1.0% or less, even if it is a case where a packaged green tea drink is used for heating sales, generation | occurrence | production of an orientation can be eliminated.
The adjustment of the diffuse transmittance can be prepared by subjecting the green tea extract, which is the raw material of the packaged green tea beverage, to the microfiltration process, and the green tea extract immediately after the microfiltration process or before and after the heat sterilization process, or manufacturing In any of the packaged green tea beverages immediately after being done, a part is sampled for each lot, and the diffusion transmittance is measured and managed based on being 1.0% or less. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that once the diffuse transmittance adjusted, the container-packed green tea beverage hardly changes even when heated (60 ° C., 2 weeks).
The diffuse transmittance includes a range that is rounded off to 1.0% or less as long as it is a value that can prevent the occurrence of orientation.

  Here, the diffuse transmittance is measured in accordance with JIS K7105. The diffuse transmittance has the following relationship between the total light transmittance and haze.

(Formula 1)
_{Haze (%) = (diffuse transmittance / total light transmittance) × 100}

  The diffuse transmittance can be obtained by putting a sample into a glass cell having a known optical path length and directly measuring the transmitted scattered light using a commercially available haze meter.

(Method for producing container-packed green tea beverage)
The container-packed green tea beverage according to this embodiment is, for example, extracting green tea leaves with water or hot water, then mixing a catechin composition containing predetermined catechins to adjust the amount of EGCg and GCg, and further adding glutamic acid. In addition, while adjusting this amount, fine filtration is carried out so that the diffuse transmittance in the product is 1.0% or less, and the others can be produced by the same method as that for a normal green tea beverage. According to such a production method, it is more preferable because a natural tea scent can be extracted. Hereinafter, although one form of the manufacturing method of the container-packed green tea drink which concerns on this embodiment is demonstrated, it is not limited to this embodiment.

(Raw tea leaves)
The tea leaves used as a raw material are not limited to cultivar, production area, picking time, picking method, cultivation method, etc., as long as they are picked from tea trees (scientific name: Camellia sinensis), and any tea type may be targeted. it can. Raw tea leaves (including leaves and stems) can be used as raw tea leaves. Furthermore, if the raw tea leaves are processed by rough steaming or roasted tea that stops enzyme activity by means such as steaming or roasting the raw tea leaves, etc. Any kind of tea, gyokuro, tencha, matcha, bancha, roasted tea, steamed ball green tea, kettle roasted ball green tea, Ureshino tea, Aoyagi tea and the like can be used as the raw tea leaves. Two or more kinds of these rough teas or finished teas may be combined, or may be prepared by adding a fragrance.

(Extraction process)
The green tea leaf may be extracted within a range where the green tea component can be extracted in consideration of the flavor, and the extraction method, extraction conditions, and the like are not particularly limited. For example, the extraction temperature zone can be from cold water to hot water. Moreover, the extract extracted with cold water and the extract extracted with hot water can be used in combination. The extraction water amount and extraction time can be arbitrarily set according to the extraction temperature zone and the required extraction efficiency. The extraction device only needs to have a structure capable of sufficiently performing the extraction operation. For example, a kneader can be used. What is necessary is just to perform the stirring at the time of extraction, and pressure adjustment (pressurization extraction) as needed. Examples of the extraction water used for extraction include pure water, hard water, soft water, ion-exchanged water, ascorbic acid-containing aqueous solution, pH-adjusted water, and the like.

  The green tea extract obtained by extraction is cooled to about 5 to 40 ° C. as needed, and at the same time or before and after that, ascorbic acid or sodium ascorbate is added to the green tea extract as needed to make it acidic ( It may be adjusted to pH 4-5). By cooling the green tea extract or adjusting the acidity, or both, it is possible to prevent the oxidation of the extracted components, and it is possible to increase the filtration efficiency in the subsequent step by precipitating primary causative components.

(Microfiltration process)
Next, the green tea extract extracted as described above is subjected to microfiltration. While maintaining the original flavor of green tea by microfiltration, the diffusion transmittance can be reduced to 1.0% or less, and as a result, the occurrence of orientation when the green tea extract is used as a packaged green tea beverage is suitably suppressed. Can do.
In the present embodiment, the fine filtration refers to filtration (separation) for removing a substance of approximately 1 μm or more, and examples thereof include diatomaceous earth filtration, filter filtration, MF membrane separation, and UF membrane separation, and diatomaceous earth filtration is particularly preferable. Further, two or more of these filtration methods may be used in combination.

Here, diatomaceous earth filtration is filter cake filtration using diatomaceous earth as a filter aid. Diatomaceous earth is a soil in which phytoplankton, called diatoms, accumulates on the seabed and lake bottom for fossilization and fossilizes, and fine diatom shells accumulate. The diameter is several to several tens of μm, and there are innumerable fine holes of 0.1 to 1.0 μm on the surface. Therefore, by forming a dense filter aid cake layer on the wire mesh and filter cloth, A clear liquid is obtained. The main component of diatomaceous earth is silica (SiO ₂ ), especially amorphous silica, and it is common to use a filter aid that has been purified by firing.

Diatomaceous earth can be used as long as it is used as a filter aid, such as pulverized / dried diatomite or crushed / dried baked or melt-baked diatomaceous earth. Among them, it is preferable to use a diatomaceous earth filter aid of Darcy 0.05 to 0.1. By using a diatomaceous earth filter aid of Darcy 0.05 to 0.1, a clearer container-packed green tea beverage can be produced.
The “Dalcy 0.05 to 0.1 diatomaceous earth filter aid” means a diatomaceous earth filter aid having a Darcy permeability K in the range of 0.05 to 0.1. “Darky's permeability K” is one of the indexes indicating the permeability of the filter aid, and can be determined by a water permeation method or an air permeation method.
Moreover, it is preferable to use the diatomaceous earth from which iron was eluted and removed by the acid treatment for the diatomaceous earth used in this embodiment. This is because iron not only affects the taste in green tea beverages but also causes browning. Furthermore, you may mix and use other filter aids, such as a silica gel, a pearlite, and a cellulose, in diatomaceous earth.

The diatomite filtration method includes adding a desired amount of diatomaceous earth to the green tea extract, performing appropriate stirring and self-circulation with a pump, bringing the green tea extract and diatomaceous earth into contact for a predetermined time, and then separating and removing the diatomaceous earth with a filter. do it. At this time, a batch type or a semi-continuous type can be selected according to the processing amount of the green tea extract. As an example of a semi-continuous type, pre-coated diatomaceous earth on the carrier surface of the filter membrane, and injecting the diatomaceous earth filter agent into the green tea extract as a stock solution (body feed) as necessary, to a filter pre-coated with the stock solution What is necessary is just to send liquid. At this time, it is preferable to prepare two or more filters and remove the cake and backwash the other during one filtration because it is efficient.
The amount of diatomaceous earth used and the contact time may be adjusted depending on the amount and concentration of the green tea extract that is the original solution. For example, the green tea extract using 20 to 100 times the amount of extracted water relative to the raw tea. When 0.1 to 5% by mass per green tea extract is brought into contact with the total amount of the precoat and body feed for 5 to 120 minutes, the diffuse transmittance can be suitably adjusted to 1.0% or less. .

  In addition, before a fine filtration process, in order to remove the primary orientation which generate | occur | produced at the time of extraction, a rough filtration process can also be introduce | transduced separately. Here, the coarse filtration step is a step of removing extraction residues such as tea leaves and large fine powders. For example, a general filtration method can be appropriately employed in order to remove a stainless steel filter, flannel cloth, strainer, centrifugal separation, and other extraction residues. Moreover, you may remove a temporary orientation simultaneously with a microfiltration process.

(Combination)
Next, a predetermined catechin composition is added to the green tea extract prepared as described above so that the total concentration of EGCg and GCg is 380 mg / L to 1500 mg / L, preferably 590 to 1000 mg / L. And adjusting the amount of GCg.
When the total concentration of EGCg and GCg is 380 mg / L to 1500 mg / L, it is possible to efficiently consume EGCg and GCg, which are useful components, and to provide deliciousness as a green tea beverage. is there.
Green tea extract containing a total concentration of EGCg and GCg of 380 mg / L to 1500 mg / L can efficiently drink EGCg and GCg effective for physiological functions among catechins, and taste preference A container-packed green tea beverage having properties can be provided.

  The catechin composition to be added here may be adjusted to the amount of EGCg or GCg by adding one or more kinds of purified EGCg or GCg. In addition, a tea extract obtained by extracting tea leaves of non-fermented tea, semi-fermented tea, and fermented tea with water or hot water or a water-soluble organic solvent and then performing a predetermined purification, or a concentrate of a commercially available tea extract Can also be used. For example, Theafranc 30E, Theafranc 30A, Theafranc W, Theafranc 90S (all manufactured by ITO EN), Sun Flavon HG (Taiyo Chemical Co., Ltd.), Polyphenon 70A, Polyphenon E (Mitsui Norin Co., Ltd.), Teaalon 90S ( Tokiwa Phytochemical Laboratories Co., Ltd.), CTP-95 (Citimex Corporation), Green Select (Indina Corporation), Tea Fresh 80S (Nippon Chlorophyll Co., Ltd.), TEAVIGO (DSM Nutritional Products Corporation), and the like can be used.

  Here, as an adjustment of the ratio of EGCg and GCg, by adding only purified EGCg or tea extract containing a large amount of EGCg, and heat-isomerizing to GCg by heat treatment in the subsequent step, Adjustments that increase the ratio can also be made. In particular, it is preferable that EGCg is thermally isomerized simultaneously with heat sterilization of the packaged green tea beverage to contain EGCg and GCg. In addition, although the ratio of EGCg and GCg changes by thermal isomerization, the amount of catechins will hardly change if it is near neutrality or less.

In addition, an intermediate in which a part or all of catechins contained in the green tea extract immediately after extraction, preferably 50% to 100%, more preferably 70% to 100% are once removed, is obtained, and then the tea extract is obtained. It is also possible to produce a container-packed green tea beverage according to this embodiment by adding a catechin composition such as.
As a method for removing catechins, the green tea extract can be removed by resin adsorption using a synthetic adsorption resin or the like, membrane separation using an ultrafiltration membrane or reverse osmosis membrane, gel filtration chromatography method, solvent extraction method and the like. . Among these, resin adsorption using PVPP, which is a synthetic adsorption resin, is preferable as a method for removing catechins because it can selectively adsorb catechins. Furthermore, the method for removing catechins, which is the invention of the present applicant (Japanese Patent No. 3315304), is particularly suitable. At this time, the amount of PVPP, which is a synthetic adsorption resin, may be appropriately selected depending on the amount and concentration of the catechin composition contained in the green tea extract.

Next, glutamic acid is added to the green tea extract to adjust the glutamic acid concentration to 20 mg / L to 120 mg / L, preferably 24 mg / L to 113 mg / L, more preferably 38 mg / L to 113 mg / L. .
Usually, glutamic acid contained in green tea leaves is extracted from the green tea extract, so the glutamic acid concentration contained in the green tea extract depends on the extracted concentration of green tea leaves. Therefore, what is necessary is just to adjust the addition amount of glutamic acid to a green tea extract according to the extraction conditions of a green tea leaf. Glutamic acid may be added and dissolved until the green tea extract extracted in the extraction step is packed, and preferably a step for adding and dissolving glutamic acid after adjusting the amount of EGCg and GCg is set. Good. In addition, a material containing a high concentration of glutamic acid may be added.

In addition, the container-packed green tea beverage according to this embodiment includes additives such as an antioxidant, an emulsifier, a preservative, a pH adjuster, a fragrance, a seasoning, a sweetener, a sour agent, and a quality stabilizer, either alone or in combination. And may be blended.
For example, vitamin C (ascorbic acid or a salt of ascorbic acid), vitamin E, cysteine or the like can be used as an antioxidant, and it is particularly preferable to contain 0.005 to 0.2% by mass of vitamin C. Furthermore, using sodium bicarbonate, potassium carbonate or the like as a pH adjuster and adjusting the pH to 5 to 7, especially 5.5 to 6.5, the flavor of green tea beverage and the stability during storage can be maintained, which is preferable.
For example, glucose, fructose, isomerized liquid sugar, fructooligosaccharide, emulsified oligosaccharide, soybean oligosaccharide, cyclodextrin, aspartame, rakanka extract, and the like can be used as sweeteners. It is good to contain 0.0 mass%. By blending these additives alone or in combination, a more suitable beverage can be provided. Moreover, it can also dilute with water suitably and can also adjust a density | concentration so that catechins and a compound may become a drinking concentration.

(Packed)
The container-packed green tea beverage according to this embodiment is a molded container (so-called PET bottle) mainly composed of polyethylene terephthalate, a metal can, a paper container combined with a metal foil or a plastic film, a bottle, etc. It can be provided in the form of a normal container, and the green tea beverage prepared as described above is filled into these containers and manufactured. At the time of filling, replacing the environment filled with an inert gas such as nitrogen gas or the inside of the container is suitable for preventing oxidation of the containered green tea beverage.

  Furthermore, if filling a metal can, after filling the container, it is heat sterilized under the conditions defined in the Food Sanitation Law. For PET bottles and paper containers that cannot be sterilized by retort, sterilization conditions equivalent to the above, for example, after heat sterilization with a plate heat exchanger or the like, cooling to a certain temperature and filling the container, etc. Adopted. Moreover, you may mix | blend another component with the filled container under aseptic conditions. Furthermore, after sterilization by heating under acidic conditions, it is possible to return the pH to neutrality under aseptic conditions, or after sterilization by heating under neutral conditions and adjusting the pH under aseptic conditions.

(Evaluation of diffuse transmittance)
The diffuse transmittance of the green tea beverage is managed on the basis of 1.0% or less as measured using a haze meter.
The measurement of the diffuse transmittance may be managed either in the green tea extract immediately after the microfiltration process or before and after the heat sterilization process, or in the packaged green tea drink immediately after being manufactured, and in particular, the metal can is filled. If necessary, for green tea beverages just before filling, or when filling into containers that cannot be retort sterilized, such as PET bottles and paper containers, for green tea beverages after heat sterilization, a part is sampled for each lot and diffused as described above. It is preferable to measure the transmittance and manage that it is 1.0% or less.
Usually, if the green tea beverage is subjected to microfiltration under the above conditions, the diffuse transmittance is 1.0% or less, but if the diffuse transmittance is measured, it is a value exceeding 1.0%. In that case, it may be subjected to microfiltration again.

  Examples of the present invention are shown below, but the scope of the claims is not limited to the examples.

(Quantitative determination of catechins)
The HPLC gradient method was used for component analysis of catechins. The analysis conditions are as follows.
Column: YMC J'sphere ODS-H80 φ4.6 × 250mm
Moving layer: Liquid A acetonitrile: water: phosphoric acid = 5: 94.9: 0.1
Liquid B acetonitrile: water: phosphoric acid = 50: 49.9: 0.1
(The gradient program is shown in Table 1.)
Injection volume: 10 μL
Flow rate: 1.0 mL / min.
Detection: UV230nm
Column temperature: 40 ° C

  Calibration curve preparation method: Each catechin standard product (manufactured by Kurita Kogyo Co., Ltd.) was diluted with distilled water so as to have three concentrations within a range of about 10 ppm to 100 ppm, and a standard solution was prepared. Standard solutions of each concentration were respectively injected into the HPLC, and 3 inspection standard curves were prepared in advance from the obtained peak area values and concentrations.

  Sample preparation method: Accurately weigh 5 mL of the sample to be quantified and qualitatively, put it in a 50 mL volumetric flask, measure with distilled water, filter with a 0.45 μm membrane filter, inject into HPLC, Quantified. In addition, when the value which exceeded the calibration curve was shown, the dilution factor was further increased and reanalysis was performed so that it could be quantified within the range.

(Separation / quantification of glutamic acid and theanine)
Glutamic acid and theanine were quantified by a fluorescence detection HPLC method using an orthophthalaldehyde reaction solution. The analysis conditions are as follows.
Column: Wakosil-II 5C18HG φ4.6 × 250mm
Mobile phase: Solution A 50 mM sodium acetate (adjusted with acetic acid to pH 6.0)
B liquid 100% acetonitrile
(The gradient program is shown in Table 2.)
Coloring reagent: o-phthalaldehyde reagent (OPA)
246 mg of o-phthalaldehyde is dissolved in 20 mL of 0.1 M borate buffer (adjusted with 1 M NaOH so that the pH is 10.0), and 200 μL of 2-mercaptoethanol is added.
Injection amount: OPA, sample and OPA each 5 μm, total 15 μm
Flow rate: 1.0 mL / min.
Detection: Fluorescence detector, excitation wavelength 340 nm, detection wavelength 455 nm
Column temperature: 40 ° C

  Calibration curve preparation method: Standard products are prepared by diluting standard products glutamic acid (manufactured by Wako Pure Chemical Industries) and theanine (manufactured by Tokyo Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) with distilled water so that each concentration is within the range of about 1 ppm to 30 ppm. did. Standard test solutions of each concentration were respectively injected into the HPLC, and three inspection standard curves were created from the obtained peak area values and concentrations.

  Sample preparation method: 5 mL of a sample was accurately weighed, placed in a 25 mL volumetric flask, adjusted to volume with distilled water, filtered through a 0.45 μm membrane filter, injected into HPLC, and quantified by a three-inspection calibration method using a standard test solution. In addition, when the value which exceeded the calibration curve was shown, the dilution factor was further increased and reanalysis was performed so that it could be quantified within the range.

(Measurement of diffuse transmittance)
Diffusion transmittance is measured according to the method described in JIS K7105 for canned beverages immediately after production and canned beverages stored at 60 ° C. for 2 weeks after production. Analysis was performed at a product temperature of 25 ° C. using HM-150.

(Evaluation of occurrence of orientation)
The green tea beverage packed in the heat-resistant bottle was stored at 4 ° C. or 60 ° C. for 2 weeks, and then the occurrence of orientation was visually evaluated.
-: None +: Slight (with fine powder)
++ Low orientation ++++: Medium orientation ++++: Slightly high ++++++: Extremely high

(sensory evaluation)
The sensory characteristics are specific to green tea drinks according to the evaluation sheet shown in Table 3, with beverages stored for 2 weeks at 25 ° C. by 5 skilled judges and beverages heated to 60 ° C. immediately before sensory evaluation of samples stored at 25 ° C. Each of “stimulation of mouthfeel”, “astringency” and “richness” was scored on a 7-point scale. Furthermore, the overall “taste” as a green tea beverage was also evaluated taking into consideration the balance of “feel of mouthfeel”, “astringency”, “richness” and other tastes.

(Comprehensive evaluation)
The product value as a packaged green tea beverage was judged by integrating the evaluation of the occurrence of orientation and the results of sensory evaluation.
◎: Extremely preferable as warmed, room temperature, refrigerated container-packed green tea beverage 〇: Suitable as warmed, normal temperature, refrigerated container-packed green tea beverage △: Suitable as room temperature, refrigerated container-packed green tea beverage, but suitable for heating No ×: Not suitable as a packaged green tea beverage

(Example)
The extract obtained by extracting 60.0 g of green tea with 2500 mL of ion exchange water at 60 ° C. for 5 minutes was roughly filtered with a mesh, and then cooled to 25 ° C. or lower. Subsequently, 3.0 g of ascorbic acid was added, and centrifugation (using a SA1 continuous centrifuge manufactured by Westphalia, flow rate 300 L / h, rotation speed 10,000 rpm, centrifugal sedimentation area 1000 m ² ) was performed, and then diatomaceous earth filtration ( Contact time: 30 minutes, 100 g of acid-treated diatomaceous earth with a Darcy value of 0.1 was used, and filtration was carried out at a pressure of 0.15 g / cm ² per filtration area. Next, 4.0 g of ascorbic acid and various kinds of sodium glutamate (manufactured by Hayashi Junyaku Kogyo Co., Ltd., food additive) and epigallocatechin gallate TEAVIGO (DSM Nutritional Products) as shown in Table 4 were added to the diatomaceous earth filtered green tea extract. After adding so that it might become a density | concentration, ion-exchange water was hydrated, and also it adjusted to pH 6.0-6.1 using sodium bicarbonate, and adjusted to 10 kg. After the adjustment, the liquid temperature was raised to 90 ° C. and filled into a steel can to obtain a can. Next, the filled beverage was heat sterilized (123 ° C., 10 minutes) to prepare a container-packed green tea beverage. One of the prepared green tea beverages was opened, a part of the green tea beverage in the container was sampled, and the concentration of each component and the diffuse transmittance immediately after production were measured. In addition, for observation of orientation, a transparent heat-resistant bottle was separately filled and sterilized by heating in the same manner as described above to prepare a packaged green tea beverage.
It shows in Table 4 about each component density | concentration of Examples 1-6, and the said evaluation result.

(Comparative example)
In Comparative Examples 1, 3, and 5, container-packed green tea beverages were prepared in the same manner as in the procedures of Examples, except that diatomaceous earth filtration after centrifugation was not performed.
In Comparative Examples 2 and 4, container-packed green tea beverages were prepared in the same manner as in the Examples except that glutamic acid was not added (Comparative Example 2) or the glutamic acid content was 14.1 mg.
In Comparative Example 3, a container-packed green tea beverage was prepared in the same manner as in the example except that diatomaceous earth filtration after centrifugation was not performed and glutamic acid was not added.
It shows in Table 5 about each component density | concentration of Comparative Examples 1-5, and the said evaluation result.

(Discussion)
Table 4 shows the evaluation results of Examples 1 to 6. Examples 1-4 in which the total concentration of EGCg and GCg was about 1000 mg / L (total amount of eight catechins was about 1200 mg / L to 1300 mg / L) and various glutamic acid concentrations (about 25 mg / L to 110 mg / L) Then, generation | occurrence | production of orientation was able to be suppressed in any Example. In sensory evaluation, the balance of “feel of mouthfeel”, “astringency” and “richness” is achieved at both 25 ° C. and 60 ° C., and “taste” is improved with the content of glutamic acid. I understood.
In addition, Examples 5 and 6 in which the total concentration of EGCg and GCg was about 400 mg / L to 600 mg / L (total amount of eight catechins was about 600 mg / L to 800 mg / L) and various glutamic acid concentrations were about 25 mg / L. As in Examples 1 to 4, the occurrence of orientation can be suppressed, and in sensory evaluation, “feel of mouthfeel”, “astringency” and “richness” are observed at both 25 ° C. and 60 ° C. The balance and “taste” were even better.
Therefore, the overall score of the containered green tea beverages of Examples 1 to 6 is suitable for containered green tea beverages because it is excellent in storage stability at low temperature and warming, and sensuality at normal temperature and warming. It was found that ˜6 was extremely excellent.

On the other hand, Table 5 shows the evaluation results of Comparative Examples 1-5. In Comparative Examples 1, 3, and 5 in which diatomaceous earth filtration after centrifugal filtration was not performed, occurrence of orientation was noticeably observed after storage at 60 ° C. Moreover, although the diatomaceous earth filtration was performed, generation | occurrence | production of the orientation after 60 degreeC preservation | save was recognized also in the comparative examples 2 and 4 with little glutamic acid content compared with an Example.
In sensory evaluation, the total concentration of EGCg and GCg was about 1000 mg / L (total amount of 8 catechins was about 1200 mg / L to 1300 mg / L), and the glutamic acid concentration (about 6 mg / L to 14 mg / L) was compared. In Examples 1, 2, and 4, “stimulation on the mouth”, “astringency” and “concentration” are emphasized as compared with Examples 1 to 4 having similar catechin concentrations, and comprehensive “ “Taste” was found to be equivalent or less.
Next, in Comparative Example 9 in which the total concentration of EGCg and GCg was about 1000 mg / L (total amount of 8 catechins was about 1300 mg / L) and the glutamic acid concentration was about 455 mg / L, the effect of giving taste of glutamic acid Although the balance of “irritant”, “astringency” and “thickness” can be balanced, the taste of glutamic acid is too emphasized, and the overall “taste” was unacceptable.

  Table 6 shows the composition data of commercially available canned tea-based beverages (trade name: Helcia Green Tea, Kao, cold-only product, purchased in August 2004) containing catechins at a high concentration, and unopened products are heated at 60 ° C. The results when stored for 2 weeks are shown. The diffusion transmittance before heating at 60 ° C. was as high as 5.2%, and the occurrence of orientation after storage at 60 ° C. was also remarkable.

Claims (3)

A packaged green tea beverage containing a green tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves, comprising epigallocatechin gallate and gallocatechin gallate in a total value of 380 mg / L to 1500 mg / L, and glutamic acid at 20 mg / A packaged green tea beverage containing L to 120 mg / L and having a diffusion transmittance of 1.0% or less. The container-packed green tea beverage according to claim 1, which is used for warming sales in which the product temperature of the container-packed green tea beverage is maintained at 50C to 70C. The container-packed green tea beverage according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pH is 5-7.