JP2007282607A - Method for producing tea extract processed product improved in flavor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for efficiently producing from a tea extract, a tea extract processed product having excellent flavor without having uncomfortable taste such as bitter taste/astringent taste and acid taste/harsh taste even in high concentration nonpolymerized catechin-containing beverage. <P>SOLUTION: This method for producing the tea extract processed product comprises tannase-treating tea extracted solution and concentrating the treated solution followed by cooling so as to extract gallic acid separated by tannase treatment, and separate and remove the gallic acid. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for producing a tea extraction processed product that has reduced bitter astringency and astringent taste peculiar to catechins and has an improved flavor that does not have a sour taste or a gummy taste.

Tea has long been popular as a favorite beverage, but it has recently been offered as a canned beverage that can be drunk more easily than a decade ago, or as a container-packed beverage filled in a plastic bottle. And with high support, its production is constantly increasing. On the other hand, tea has recently attracted attention in terms of its functionality and has been actively studied, and physiological effects such as suppression of human body fat accumulation by catechins (Non-patent Document 1) have been reported. However, when a large amount of catechins were added as a container-packed beverage, the bitter astringency and astringent taste became strong, and the disadvantage of being very difficult to take in flavor was observed.
The main components of non-polymer catechins in tea are free catechin (epicatechin, epigallocatechin, catechin, gallocatechin) and ester catechin (epicatechin gallate, epigallocatechin gallate, catechin gallate, gallocatechin gallate) Among them, it is reported that free catechins have high astringency and astringency taste thresholds, and ester catechins have low astringency and astringency taste thresholds (Patent Document 1).

  On the other hand, it is known that tannase can be used for clarifying tea beverages, but it is an enzyme that acts on an ester bond between catechin and gallic acid to hydrolyze it into catechin and gallic acid. Cream-down (precipitation) in tea beverages is known to occur when gallate-type catechin (synonymous with ester-type catechin) and caffeine form a complex. A method has been reported in which gallate-type catechins are decomposed into non-gallate-type catechins (synonymous with free-type catechins) to make complex formation with caffeine difficult (Non-patent Document 2).

  In addition, by applying the tannase treatment to the tea-making process of green tea and treating epicatechin gallate and epigallocatechin gallate with strong bitter taste contained in tea leaves with tannase, epicatechin having refreshing bitterness with gallic acid And a method for decomposing it into epigallocatechin is disclosed (Patent Document 2).

  On the other hand, as described above, attention is paid to the functionality of catechins in container-packed beverages, and it is required to add a large amount of catechins. However, a tea beverage containing a high concentration of catechins should be treated with tannase. Discloses a method for reducing the bitter and astringent taste of catechins (Patent Document 3).

  However, in the method of Patent Document 3, ester catechin is decomposed into free catechin and gallic acid by treating catechins with tannase, and the astringency and astringent taste derived from ester catechins are reduced. The sour and savory tastes that originate from it occur, and it cannot be said that the flavor is still satisfactory.

  On the other hand, by controlling the degradation of non-polymer catechins by tannase and controlling the gallate content in catechins within the range of 40 to 60% by weight, the astringency and astringency derived from ester-type catechins A method for reducing the taste and improving the flavor (Patent Document 4) is disclosed.

JP-A-6-343389 JP-A-5-308901 JP 2005-130809 A JP 2004-321105 A Journal of Oleo Science Vol. 50 (2001), no. 9 p717-728 "Food and Development" 32 (12), 1997, p14-16

  Patent Document 4 discloses a green tea extract with an improved flavor in which the percentage of gallate body in non-polymer catechins is 40 to 60% by weight, but also in this method, free gallic is also obtained by tannase treatment. The problem of acid generation and the sour taste associated with the gallic acid-derived taste remained unresolved. In addition, the tannase treatment of tea extract reported so far is carried out in an aqueous solution having a non-polymer catechin concentration of less than 1% by weight, which is considered to be problematic in terms of production cost and production efficiency. .

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to have an excellent flavor that does not have a taste that makes a bitter astringent taste, astringent taste, sour taste, gummy taste, etc. even in a high concentration non-polymer catechin-containing beverage from a tea extract. It is providing the method of manufacturing a tea extract efficiently.

  When the present inventors diligently studied to improve the flavor of the green tea extract, the content of gallate-type catechins with respect to the total amount of non-polymer catechins is adjusted to 0 to 40% by treating the tea extract with tannase. By reducing the astringent taste and astringent taste derived from ester-type catechins, and further concentrating and cooling the tannase-treated tea extract, free gallic acid was precipitated by tannase treatment and the free gallic acid was separated. As a result of the removal, it was found that a tea extract that does not have the sourness and gummy taste peculiar to gallic acid was obtained, and the present invention was completed.

  Moreover, the non-polymer catechins-containing aqueous solution with reduced bitterness, astringency and taste can be efficiently produced even in mass production by performing tannase treatment in a state of containing 1 to 10% by weight as the concentration of non-polymer catechins. It was found that can be manufactured.

Thus, the present invention provides a tea extract processed product characterized in that after the tea extract is tannase-treated, the treated solution is concentrated and cooled to precipitate gallic acid released by the tannase treatment and separate and remove it. A manufacturing method is provided.
Further, in the present invention, (a) the gallate content in the non-polymer catechins in the tea extraction processed product is 0 to 40% by weight, and (b) gallic acid / (non-polymer catechins + gallic acid) ) Is 0 to 0.3 (weight ratio). The method for producing the tea extraction processed product described above is provided.
Furthermore, in this invention, the manufacturing method of the tea extraction processed material as described above whose density | concentration of the non-polymer catechins in the said tea extract is 1 to 10 weight% is also provided.
Moreover, this invention provides the tea extraction processed material obtained by the method in any one of the said.
The present invention also includes foods and drinks containing the tea extraction processed product.

  According to the present invention, the bitter and astringent taste is reduced by reducing the content of gallate-type catechins in the non-polymerized catechin by tannase treatment, and the sourness and gummy taste is reduced by reducing the content of gallic acid released by tannase treatment. Can be removed, and a method for producing a tea extract with good flavor can be provided. In addition, performing tannase treatment at a higher concentration than conventional methods is advantageous from the viewpoint of production efficiency and manufacturing cost.

  Non-polymer catechins in the present invention are non-epimeric catechins such as catechin, gallocatechin, catechin gallate and gallocatechin gallate and epi-catechins such as epicatechin, epigallocatechin, epicatechin gallate and epigallocatechin gallate Is a collective term for eight types. The gallate-type catechins (synonymous with ester-type catechins) of the present invention are generic names of gallate-type catechins such as catechin gallate, gallocatechin gallate, epigallocatechin gallate, and epicatechin gallate among the above catechins. Means. The gallate body ratio in the present invention is a 100 fraction of the weight sum of the four gallate catechins to the weight sum of the eight non-polymer catechins.

  The tea leaves used in the present invention include sencha, bancha, gyokuro, tencha, tea in a pot, etc. made from tea leaves obtained from tea (Camellia sinensis (L) O. Kuntze), which is an evergreen tree of the camellia family. Examples include green tea that is non-fermented tea; oolong tea, black tea, black tea, and the like that are made from the tea leaves through a semi-fermentation or fermentation process.

  Examples of the tea extract of the present invention include the tea leaf extract described above or a concentrate thereof. As an extract of tea leaves, the above-mentioned tea leaves are stirred with water or a water-soluble organic solvent, for example, at 10 to 100 ° C. for 3 minutes to 2 hours, or subjected to appropriate separation means such as centrifugation. The extract obtained by separating the extract liquid can be exemplified, and the concentrate of the tea leaf extract can be exemplified by a concentrate obtained by concentrating the tea leaf extract with an organic solvent, vacuum concentration, membrane concentration or the like. In addition, commercially available “Polyphenone” (Mitsui Norin Co., Ltd.), “Theafranc” (Itoen Co., Ltd.), “Sanphenon” (Taiyo Kagaku Co., Ltd.), “Sun Oolong” (Suntory Ltd.), “PF-” Catechin powders such as “TP” (Pharma Foods Co., Ltd.) and “Polyphenone HG” (Tokyo Food Techno Co., Ltd.) can be dissolved in water or a water-soluble organic solvent to obtain a tea extract. The concentration of non-polymer catechins in the tea extract is 1 to 10%, preferably 1 to 5%, more preferably 1 to 3%. If the concentration of non-polymer catechins exceeds 10%, the tannase activity decreases due to the osmotic pressure of the non-polymer catechins, and it is necessary to increase the amount of tannase used in order to obtain the same gallate content, resulting in poor efficiency. Further, when the concentration of non-polymer catechins is less than 1%, the amount of liquid to be processed increases, resulting in a decrease in production efficiency and an increase in manufacturing cost. By performing tannase treatment within this non-polymer catechin concentration range, work can be efficiently performed on an industrial scale.

  Any tannase used in the present invention can be used as long as it has an activity of decomposing gallate ester bonds of non-polymer catechins, and specifically, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Rhizopus, etc. A tannase obtained by culturing a tannase-producing bacterium can be used. Of these, those derived from Aspergillus oryzae are particularly preferred.

  The amount of tannase added to the tea extract is about 0.02 to about 2.0 Units, preferably about 0.05 to about 0.4 Units, per 1 mg of non-polymer catechins. Here, 1 Unit is defined as the amount of enzyme that hydrolyzes the ester bond contained in tannic acid 1 micromole per minute in 30 ° C. water. As tannase treatment conditions, the pH of the aqueous solution is suitably 4.0 to 6.0, preferably 4.5 to 5.5, and the temperature of the aqueous solution is 30 to 45 ° C., preferably 35 to It is appropriate to carry out at 40 ° C. After the tannase treatment, the temperature is raised to 70 to 90 ° C. as soon as possible to deactivate the tannase and stop the reaction.

  The ester type catechin content relative to the total amount of non-polymer catechins can be adjusted to the target by controlling the tannase treatment time, treatment temperature, treatment concentration, and the reaction behavior depends on the pH change of the reaction solution. Judgment can be made.

By the above method, the ester type catechin content with respect to the total amount of non-polymer catechin in the tea extract is adjusted to 0 to 40% by weight. By adjusting the ester-type catechin content to 0 to 40% by weight relative to the total amount of non-polymer catechins, bitterness and astringency can be reduced. When the ester type catechin content exceeds 40% by weight, the bitter and astringent taste and the astringent taste are strongly felt, which is not preferable.
By tannase treatment, ester-type catechin is decomposed and gallic acid is released. This gallic acid has a sour taste. The present invention is characterized in that the catechins-containing aqueous solution after the tannase treatment is concentrated and cooled, so that gallic acid liberated by the tannase treatment is precipitated and separated and removed. The solubility of gallic acid is 33.3% in boiling water, while it is 1.15% in normal temperature water (THE MERCK INDEX 13THEDITION 2001, p. 772 MERCK & CO., INC.), Which varies greatly depending on the temperature. The tea extract, which is a multi-component system, is slightly different from the solubility in water, but crystallizes and precipitates when it exceeds about 1.5-2% as gallic acid at room temperature.

The preferred pH of the tea extract after the tannase treatment for precipitating gallic acid is 2.8 to 5.2, more preferably 3.2 to 4.8. If the pH is higher than this, gallic acid is difficult to precipitate, and if the pH is low, the flavor of a tea beverage becomes worse.
In order to precipitate gallic acid, the gallic acid concentration in the tea extract after tannase treatment is concentrated so as to exceed about 1.5 to 2%. The amount exceeding about 1.5 to 2% as the gallic acid concentration is precipitated by the subsequent cooling and standing steps. The concentration of the tannase treatment liquid for that purpose is Bx10-70 °, preferably Bx15-60 °, more preferably Bx20-50 ° in terms of refractive sugar. When Bx is less than 10 °, the concentration of gallic acid is low, and precipitation of gallic acid hardly occurs even when cooled. When Bx exceeds 70 °, the system becomes a uniform emulsified state due to the emulsifying power of saponin or the like in the tea extract component, and the viscosity increases and gallic acid is hardly separated. Any method can be used as the concentration method, and examples thereof include batch-type, rotating thin-film type, or centrifugal type vacuum concentration, freeze concentration, UF membrane concentration, and the like.

The resulting concentrate is then lowered in temperature to reduce the solubility of gallic acid. Since the solubility of gallic acid becomes lower as the temperature is lower, the cooling temperature is preferably lower within a range where it does not freeze, and it should be 0 to 20 ° C, preferably 3 to 15 ° C, more preferably 5 to 10 ° C. Can do. Subsequently, in order to fully precipitate gallic acid, it is allowed to stand at the same temperature for 1 to 96 hours, preferably 2 to 72 hours, more preferably 5 to 48 hours. If the standing time is short, gallic acid does not precipitate sufficiently, the amount of gallic acid in the separated liquid increases, and if the standing time is too long, the non-polymer catechins that are target components may be precipitated. .
The precipitated gallic acid is then separated and removed by appropriate means such as filtration and centrifugation.
Thus, a tea extraction processed product in which gallic acid / (non-polymer catechins + gallic acid) is 0 to 0.3 (weight ratio) can be obtained.

The tea extraction product of the present invention obtained by the above-described method can be used as it is in the form of an aqueous solution as it is, but if desired, an appropriate concentration means can be adopted to form a concentrate. Further, if desired, the aqueous solution may be dried by adding appropriate drying means such as spray drying, vacuum drying, freeze drying or the like without adding or adding excipients such as dextrin, modified starch, cyclodextrin, gum arabic and the like. It can also be made into a powder form.

Thus, according to the present invention, food / beverage products, cosmetics, health / hygiene / pharmaceuticals, etc. containing non-polymer catechins that have a bitter and astringent taste and have no sourness / sour taste are provided. Can do. Examples of these include, for example, beverages such as tea beverages, sports beverages, carbonated beverages, fruit juice beverages, milk beverages, alcoholic beverages; frozen confections such as ice creams, sorbets, and ice candy; Japanese / Western confectionery, chewing gum , Chocolate, bread, coffee, tea and other favorite products; foods and drinks with various functionalities by adding non-polymer catechins obtained by the production method of the present invention to various snacks Goods can be provided.
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples and comparative examples.

Example 1
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechins content 84 wt%, gallate body ratio 81.6%) 1.43% aqueous solution 6000 g was prepared (Bx2.22 °, pH 5.4, non- After heating to 35 ° C. with a polymer catechin content of 1.2% and a gallic acid content of 0.01%, 2.16 g of tannase (5000 Unit / g, manufactured by Kikkoman Co., Ltd.) was added in an amount of 0.006 per 1 mg of non-polymer catechins. 15 Unit). After maintaining at the same temperature for 120 minutes, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C. to deactivate tannase and stop the reaction (pH 3.2, non-polymer catechins 1.00%, gallate body ratio 0.34). %, Gallic acid content 0.45%). Subsequently, the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure using a rotary evaporator to obtain a concentrated solution of Bx20.1 ° (non-polymer catechins 8.24%, gallate content 0.43%, gallic acid content 3.98%). The obtained concentrated liquid was cooled to 5 ° C. and allowed to stand for 40 hours. The deposited precipitate was removed by decantation and filtration with filter paper, and adjusted to pH 5.4 with sodium bicarbonate to obtain a catechins-containing aqueous solution (Invention product 1: pH 5.4, non-polymer catechins 8.20). %, Gallate body ratio 0.55%, gallic acid content 1.96%, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins) = 0.193).

Method for measuring catechins After diluting a sample with distilled water, the sample is filtered through a filter (0.45 μm), and then subjected to octadecyl group-introduced liquid chromatography using Waters high-performance liquid chromatography (Waters 2695 separation module, Waters 2996 photodiode array module). Packed column for graph L-column TM ODS (4.6 mmφ × 250 mm: manufactured by Chemical Substances Evaluation and Research Institute) was installed, and the gradient was carried out at a column temperature of 35 ° C. The aqueous solution containing mol / liter and the liquid B were acetonitrile solutions containing acetic acid at 0.1 mol / liter, the sample injection volume was 10 μL, and the UV detection wavelength was 280 nm.

Comparative Example 1
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechins content 84 wt%, gallate body ratio 81.6%) 1.43% aqueous solution 6000 g was prepared (Bx 2.22 °, pH 5.4, non- Polymer catechin content 1.2%, gallic acid content 0.01%), heated to 80 ° C. and then cooled to 30 ° C. to obtain an aqueous solution containing catechins (Comparative product 1: pH 5.4, non-polymer) Catechins 1.20%, gallate body ratio 81.6%, gallic acid content 0.01%, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins) = 0.008).

Comparative Example 2
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechins content 84 wt%, gallate body ratio 81.6%) 1.43% aqueous solution 6000 g was prepared (Bx2.22 °, pH 5.4, non-heavy After heating to 35 ° C. with a combined catechin content of 1.2% and gallic acid content of 0.01%, 2.16 g of tannase (5000 Unit / g, manufactured by Kikkoman Co., Ltd., 0.15 Unit for 1 mg of non-polymer catechins) ) Added. After standing still at the same temperature for 120 minutes, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C. to deactivate tannase and stop the reaction, cooled to 30 ° C., and adjusted to pH 5.4 with sodium bicarbonate (comparative product). 2, pH 5.4, non-polymer catechins 1.00%, gallate body ratio 0.34%, gallic acid content 0.45%, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins) = 0.310) .

Example 2
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechin content: 84% by weight, gallate content: 81.6%) 1.43% aqueous solution (6000 g) was prepared (pH 5.4, non-polymer catechin content) After heating to 35 ° C. (1.2%, gallic acid content 0.01%), 2.16 g of tannase (5000 Unit / g, manufactured by Kikkoman) was added (0.15 Unit for 1 mg of non-polymer catechins). After standing at the same temperature for 30 minutes, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C. to deactivate tannase and stop the reaction (pH 4.2, non-polymer catechins 1.05%, gallate body ratio 22.5 %, Gallic acid content 0.32%). Subsequently, the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure using a rotary evaporator to obtain a concentrated solution of Bx 20.0 ° (non-polymer catechins 8.66%, gallate content 22.5%, gallic acid content 2.85%). The obtained concentrated liquid was cooled to 5 ° C. and allowed to stand for 40 hours. The deposited precipitate was removed by decantation and filtration with filter paper, and adjusted to pH 5.4 with sodium bicarbonate to obtain an aqueous solution containing catechins (Invention product 2: pH 5.4, non-polymer catechins 8.60). %, Gallate body ratio 23.5%, gallic acid content 1.94%, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins) = 0.184).

Comparative Example 3
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechins content 84 wt%, gallate body ratio 81.6%) 1.43% aqueous solution 6000 g was prepared (Bx2.22 °, pH 5.4, non- After heating to 35 ° C. with a polymer catechin content of 1.2% and a gallic acid content of 0.01%, 0.72 g of tannase (5000 Unit / g manufactured by Kikkoman Co., Ltd.) with respect to 1 mg of the non-polymer catechins was added. 05Unit). After standing at the same temperature for 30 minutes, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C. to deactivate tannase and stop the reaction (pH 4.7, non-polymer catechins 1.12%, gallate body ratio 41.5 %, Gallic acid content 0.20%). Subsequently, the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure using a rotary evaporator to obtain a concentrated solution of Bx 30.0 ° (non-polymer catechins 14.05%, gallate content 41.5%, gallic acid content 2.55%). The obtained concentrated liquid was cooled to 5 ° C. and allowed to stand for 40 hours. The deposited precipitate was removed by decantation and filter paper filtration, and adjusted to pH 5.4 with sodium bicarbonate to obtain an aqueous solution containing catechins (Comparative product 3: pH 5.4, non-polymer catechins 13.85%). Gallate ratio 42.4%, gallic acid content 1.87%, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins) = 0.119).

Example 3
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechins content: 84 wt%, gallate body ratio: 81.6%) 9.53% aqueous solution 500 g was prepared (Bx 14.8 °, non-polymer catechins 8.0%, gallate body ratio 81.6%, pH 5.0), heated to 35 ° C., and then tannase (5000 Unit / g, manufactured by Kikkoman Corporation) was 2.4 g (0.3 unit for 1 mg of non-polymer catechins). ) Added. After standing at the same temperature for 180 minutes, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C. to deactivate tannase and stop the reaction (pH 4.6, non-polymer catechins 7.3%, gallate body ratio 35.5. %, 1.43% gallic acid). In Example 3, tannase was used twice as much as Example 1 with respect to non-polymer catechins, and the reaction time was also extended to 1.5 times, but the gallate content of the tannase treatment solution was 35.5%. It only went down. The tannase-treated solution was subsequently concentrated under reduced pressure using a rotary evaporator to obtain a Bx30.0 ° concentrated solution (non-polymer catechins 13.9%, gallate content 35.5%, gallic acid content 2.69). %). The obtained concentrated liquid was cooled to 5 ° C. and allowed to stand for 40 hours. The deposited precipitate was removed by decantation and filter paper filtration, and adjusted to pH 5.4 with sodium bicarbonate to obtain an aqueous solution containing catechins (Inventive product 3: 13.6% non-polymer catechins, gallate body) 37.8%, gallic acid content 1.94%, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins) = 0.125).

  Inventive products 1 to 3 and comparative products 1 to 3 (a) gallate content in non-polymer catechins and (b) gallic acid / (non-polymer catechins + gallic acid) Table 1 shows.

Example 4 (example blended in green tea beverage)
After adding 2000 g of 60 ° C. ion exchange water to 100 g of sencha and leaving it to stand for 10 minutes with occasional stirring, the tea leaves were separated with a 40 mesh wire mesh. The tea leaf residue was washed with 1000 g of ion-exchanged water. After suction filtration using 2 filter papers, 4 g of sodium L-ascorbate and 0.2 g of sodium bicarbonate were added to the filtrate, and the concentration was adjusted to 500 ppm as a non-polymer catechin concentration in ion-exchanged water (total amount of about 10 kg). The green tea beverages of the present invention products 1 to 3 and comparative products 1 to 3 were blended in this green tea beverage so that the concentration of non-polymer catechins would be 1000 ppm, sterilized at 138 ° C. for 30 seconds, and 88 ° C. The bottle was cooled to 30 ° C and cooled to 30 ° C. Each plastic bottle drink was stored at room temperature for 2 weeks and then subjected to sensory evaluation by 20 well-trained panelists. The sensory evaluation results are bitter astringent / astringent taste, sour / egu taste, and comprehensive evaluation, each with a perfect score of 20 points, very preferable: 17 to 20 points, slightly good: 14 to 17 points, normal: 11 to 14 points Slightly inferior: 8 to 11 points, inferior: Scored on an evaluation standard of 8 points or less, and the average score of 20 panelists is shown in Table 2.

  As shown in Table 2, the green tea beverage to which the product of the present invention is added contains non-polymer catechins at a high concentration of 1000 ppm. It was not felt and had a natural green tea flavor.

  On the other hand, green tea beverages to which comparative product 1 (untreated tannase treatment: gallate body rate 81.6%) and comparative product 3 (tanase treated but gallate body rate 42.4%) are bitter and astringent taste Was strong and felt remarkable. Moreover, the green tea drink which added the comparative product 2 which made the gallate rate 40% or less by the tannase process, but has not performed the removal process of gallic acid, felt strong acidity and gummy taste.

Example 5
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechin content: 84% by weight, gallate body ratio: 81.6%) 14.3% 500 g aqueous solution (Bx22.2 °, non-polymer catechins) 12.0%, gallate body ratio 81.6%, pH 5.0), heated to 35 ° C., and then tannase (5000 Unit / g, manufactured by Kikkoman Co.) was 3.6 g (0.3 unit for 1 mg of non-polymer catechins). ) Added. The gallate body ratio at the time of standing still for 180 minutes at the same temperature was 45.6%. Therefore, the gallate content was further reduced to 42.3% when the temperature was maintained at the same temperature for 60 minutes. When the concentration of non-polymer catechins in the aqueous solution exceeded 10%, tannase It was shown that the effect was not fully exerted.

Example 6
PF-TP90 (manufactured by Pharma Foods Co., Ltd .: non-polymer catechins content 84 wt%, gallate body ratio 81.6%) 1.43% aqueous solution 6000 g was prepared (Bx2.22 °, pH 5.4, non- After heating to 35 ° C. with a polymer catechin content of 1.2% and a gallic acid content of 0.01%, 2.16 g of tannase (5000 Unit / g, manufactured by Kikkoman Co., Ltd.) was added in an amount of 0.006 per 1 mg of non-polymer catechins. 15 Unit). After maintaining at the same temperature for 120 minutes, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C. to deactivate tannase and stop the reaction (pH 3.2, non-polymer catechins 1.00%, gallate body ratio 0.34). %, Gallic acid content 0.45%). Then, it concentrated under reduced pressure to the density | concentration shown in Table 3 with a rotary evaporator, and obtained the concentrate. The obtained concentrated liquid was cooled to 5 ° C. and allowed to stand for 40 hours. The deposited precipitate was removed by decantation and filter paper filtration to obtain an aqueous solution containing catechins. Table 3 shows the concentration of the concentrated liquid and the composition of the liquid before and after the removal of the precipitate (non-polymer catechins, gallate body ratio, gallic acid content, gallic acid / (gallic acid + non-polymer catechins)).

As shown in Table 3, it can be seen that when the gallic acid concentration exceeds about 1.5 to 2%, gallic acid is precipitated and removed by cooling and standing. Further, gallic acid is efficiently precipitated and removed from the time when the concentration of the concentrated liquid exceeds about Bx10 °.

Claims (5)

  A method for producing a tea extract-treated product, comprising: treating a tea extract with tannase; and concentrating and cooling the treated solution to precipitate and separate and remove gallic acid liberated by the tannase treatment. The gallate content in (a) non-polymer catechins in the tea extraction product is 0 to 40% by weight, and (b) gallic acid / (non-polymer catechins + gallic acid) is 0 to 0.00. It is 3 (weight ratio), The manufacturing method of the tea extraction processed material of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The method for producing a tea extraction processed product according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the concentration of the non-polymer catechins in the tea extract is 1 to 10% by weight.   The tea extraction processed material obtained by the method in any one of Claims 1-3.   Food / beverage products containing the tea extraction processed material of Claim 4.