JP5818784B2 - Production method of tea extract - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for producing a tea extract and a tea beverage that are high in transparency, excellent in taste and aroma, and that do not generate an odor even after long-term storage.

  In recent years, many bottled tea beverages filled in containers such as cans and plastic bottles have been developed and marketed. Container-packed tea beverages are generally produced by removing tea particles from a tea leaf extract extracted from tea leaves with hot water or the like by solid-liquid separation means such as centrifugal separation, filling the containers and heat-sterilizing them. .

  Container-packed tea beverages manufactured in this way can be suspended, cloudy, flocked (cotton-like) or sediment-like oli (starch) (hereinafter referred to simply as “collected”). The occurrence of orientation is an important problem that lowers the commercial value of tea beverages filled in transparent containers.

  There are two kinds of ori (also referred to as “primary ori”) that begin to precipitate immediately after beverage production, and ori (also referred to as “secondary ori”) that occur over time during storage after beverage production. It has been known. It has been confirmed that the former can be prevented by strengthening the solid-liquid separation means in the production process of tea beverages, but the mechanism of its occurrence is unknown for the latter, and various prevention methods have been proposed. Has been. For example, there is a method of forcibly removing in advance the substances causing the secondary orientation, after adding ascorbic acid to the tea extract from which green tea has been extracted to make it acidic, it is rapidly cooled and centrifuged. Next, a method of clarifying by filtering through diatomaceous earth (Patent Document 1), adding chitosan to the tea extract of water-soluble tea components obtained by extracting green tea with water or hot water to adsorb the polymer component polyphenols After that, it is treated with a centrifuge and further filtered through diatomaceous earth to eliminate crystallization of the precipitate (Patent Document 2). After concentrating the tea extract obtained by hot water extraction of oolong tea leaves to Brix 21-40 A method for producing oolong tea drinks that are centrifuged to remove solids (Patent Document 3), a liquid obtained by cooling a liquid extracted from low-temperature tannin black tea and centrifuging to remove turbid components, and black tea with high tannins High temperature extraction from Concentrate the effluent to Brix 15-30, cool and centrifuge to remove the turbid components. There is a manufacturing method (Patent Document 4).

  In addition, there is a method of solubilizing or stabilizing oli by adding an enzyme. For example, a secondary precipitation of a green tea beverage is performed by centrifuging a hot water tea extract of green tea and adding an enzyme having hemicellulase activity. Method to effectively suppress the occurrence of water (Patent Document 5), method to suppress the occurrence of floc in beverage by adding α-amylase to the green tea extract (Patent Document 6), and enzyme-treated lecithin to the green tea extract There exists a manufacturing method (patent document 7) etc. of the green tea drink which the production | generation of turbidity or precipitation suppresses by mix | blending.

  On the other hand, in green tea beverages, it has been proposed to enhance aroma components by enzyme treatment as a countermeasure against aroma change or disappearance (reduction) in heat sterilization treatment or storage. For example, the method of releasing β-primeverosidase on the precursor of tea-based aroma components present in the form of disaccharide glycosides in tea leaves (Patent Document 8), and glycosylation in green tea extract Tea with enhanced flavor or improved flavor, including a method of increasing good aroma components by adding β-glycosidase, a body-degrading enzyme (Patent Document 9), and an enzyme treatment step that acts on a microorganism-derived diglycosidase Beverage production method (Patent Document 10), teas with reduced bitterness and umami / sweetness, characterized by being decomposed using a saccharide-degrading enzyme during and / or after extraction of tea ingredients An extract production method (Patent Document 11) and the like are disclosed.

Japanese Patent Publication No.7-97965 JP-A-6-311847 Patent No. 4272944 Japanese Patent Publication 1-171435 JP-A-8-228684 JP 2001-45973 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-204386 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-1460475 Patent No. 3782390 International Publication WO03 / 056930 JP 2008-86280 A

  In recent years, there has been a demand for tea beverages of a type that has higher transparency, excellent aftertaste, and abundant aromas. However, when trying to completely remove the substances that cause turbidity and precipitation contained in tea beverages in order to increase the transparency, a large amount of components that are not involved in the formation of orientation will also be removed. There was a problem that the flavor is weak. In addition, the method of stabilizing the orientation using an enzyme has a problem that the original flavor of tea changes due to the addition of the enzyme.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing a tea extract and a tea beverage that are highly transparent, excellent in taste and aroma, and that do not generate odor even after long-term storage.

  As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventors have surprisingly performed centrifugation after allowing a glycoside-degrading enzyme to act on a tea concentrate obtained by concentrating a tea extract to a specific brix. It has been found that the enzyme or the enzyme-treated product entrains the tea component that causes the secondary orientation and produces an aggregated precipitate. The tea extract obtained by removing this agglomerated precipitate has a richer aroma and richer flavor than conventional tea extracts when diluted to make a beverage, and is extremely high in transparency and stored for a long time. As a result, the present invention was completed.

That is, the present invention relates to the following.
1) A method for producing a tea extract comprising the following steps 1 to 4:
Extracting tea leaves with a water-based solvent acceptable as a food to obtain a tea extract 1,
Step 2 of concentrating the extract to Brix 2-30 to obtain a concentrate,
Step 3 of adding a glycoside-degrading enzyme to the concentrated solution to obtain an enzyme-treated solution, and Step 4 of removing solids from the enzyme-treated solution by solid-liquid separation to obtain a tea extract.
2) The method according to 1), wherein the glycoside degrading enzyme is β-glucosidase.
3) A method for producing a tea beverage, comprising the steps 1 to 4 defined in 1) or 2) and further comprising a step of blending the obtained tea extract.
4) Use of glycoside-degrading enzymes to suppress the occurrence of oli (floating matters, cloudy matters, flock-like (cotton-like) matters, precipitate-like matters) in the production of tea extracts or tea beverages .

  In the production method of the present invention, tea components that cause oli and miscellaneous taste can be selectively precipitated and removed, so that it has high transparency and storage stability, and maximizes the original flavor and aroma of tea. And a tea extract with a high aftertaste, and a fragrant and refreshing tea beverage using the same, can be produced. The production method of the present invention is a simple method of concentrating a tea extract and performing an enzyme treatment and a solid-liquid separation treatment, and has an advantage that no complicated treatment or special equipment is required.

FIG. 1 is a graph showing the relationship between Brix of tea extract (concentrate) during enzyme treatment and turbidity after centrifugation. FIG. 2 is a graph showing the relationship between the amount of enzyme added and the turbidity after centrifugation.

  The tea extract as used in the present invention refers to a concentrate of a tea extract obtained by concentrating a tea extract extracted from tea leaves with an aqueous solvent such as warm water. Refers to the material.

  The tea extract of the present invention is a step 1 for extracting tea leaves to obtain a tea extract, a step 2 for concentrating the extract to Brix 2 to 30 to obtain a concentrate, and adding a glycoside-degrading enzyme to the concentrate To obtain an enzyme-treated solution, and a method comprising a step 4 of removing solids from the enzyme-treated solution by solid-liquid separation treatment. Hereinafter, each process is explained in full detail.

(Step 1: Obtaining tea extract)
The tea leaves used as the raw material for the tea extract can be used without particular limitation as long as they are generally distributed. Specifically, non-fermented teas such as sencha, roasted tea, gyokuro, kabusecha, tencha, made from tea leaves obtained from Camellia spp. Examples thereof include one or more tea leaves selected from (green tea), semi-fermented tea (Toryu tea), fermented tea (black tea), and the like. In particular, non-fermented tea and semi-fermented tea rich in glycosides are suitable.

  In the method for producing a tea extract of the present invention, a glycoside-degrading enzyme is allowed to act on a tea extract concentrated to a specific concentration, that is, a liquid containing a certain concentration of tea components, whereby the enzyme-derived components and tea It is characterized in that the components interact and coprecipitate. The tea component that reacts with the component derived from glycoside degrading enzyme is unknown, but the present inventors have confirmed that a large amount of coprecipitation occurs specifically when oolong tea is used as the tea leaf. Oolong tea is one of the preferred examples of tea leaves that can make the most of the effects of the present invention that have high transparency and good flavor.

  The method for extracting tea leaves is not particularly limited, and can be performed by a conventionally known method. The extraction device only needs to be of a type that can hold tea leaves in contact with an aqueous solvent such as warm water, and any extraction device such as a column type extractor, a kneader type extractor, or a countercurrent extractor may be used. Good. The extraction solvent is not particularly limited as long as it is an aqueous solvent that can be used as a food. Distilled water, desalted water, tap water, alkaline ionized water, deep sea water, ion-exchanged water, deoxygenated water, hydrous alcohol (10 to 90 v / v% alcohol), water containing inorganic salts, and the like can be used, but it is particularly preferable to use pure water or ion-exchanged water. This is because, when ions are dissolved in a large amount in water, the extraction efficiency may decrease, react with the components in the extract to produce an insoluble matter, or a color change may occur.

  The amount of extraction solvent used varies depending on the type of tea leaf, type of extraction solvent, extraction temperature, desired palatability, etc., but usually 1 to 200 parts by weight, preferably 5 to 150 parts by weight, based on the weight of tea leaves Part, more preferably about 10 to 100 parts by weight. The temperature of the extract varies depending on the type of tea leaves and the desired palatability, but is usually 10 to 100 ° C (preferably 40 to 98 ° C) for green tea, 40 to 100 ° C (preferably 60 to 98 ° C) for oolong tea ), About 40 to 100 ° C. (preferably 60 to 98 ° C.) for black tea. The extraction time is usually about 1 to 120 minutes, preferably about 3 to 60 minutes.

  Note that an extraction aid such as an antioxidant or a pH adjuster may be added during or after extraction.

  In step 1, a tea extract with a Brix (soluble solid weight (g) per 100 g of solution) of about 0.2 to 1 is usually obtained. When numerical values are indicated as “Brix” in the present invention, unless otherwise indicated, based on the value measured with a Brix meter, ie, the refractive index of the solution, the soluble solid content weight (g) per 100 g of the solution is expressed as sucrose. A value converted as grams of sucrose contained in 100 g of a liquid.

(Step 2: Step of obtaining concentrated solution)
The tea extract obtained in step 1 is concentrated to obtain a tea concentrate. The concentration method is not particularly limited, and is a conventionally known method such as an evaporation concentration method or a membrane concentration method. For example, an atmospheric pressure concentration device, a vacuum concentration device, a centrifugal thin film type concentration device, and other general concentration devices are used. Can be done using.

  Concentration is performed such that the Brix is 2 to 30, preferably 3 to 25, more preferably 5 to 20. The temperature at the time of concentration is preferably 80 ° C. or lower in order to suppress the change of the aroma component.

(Step 3: Obtaining enzyme treatment solution)
A glycoside-degrading enzyme is added to the concentrate of the tea extract adjusted to the above range. Any glycoside-degrading enzyme may be used as long as it has an activity of cleaving the glycosidic bond of the aroma component bound to the sugar contained in the tea concentrate. Specific examples include glucosidase, primeverosidase, and xylosidase. it can. Among them, glucosidase can be preferably used, and β-glucosidase is particularly preferable. β-glucosidase is not particularly limited, but includes Penicillium genus such as Penicillium multicolor , Aspergillus genus, Pseudomonas genus, Rhizomucor genus, Cryptococcus genus, microbacterium An enzyme derived from a microorganism such as (Microbacterium) is used and sold on the market, for example, β-glucosidase preparation “Amano” (manufactured by Amano Enzyme Inc.).

  The amount of glycoside degrading enzyme added can be appropriately set depending on the titer, and is not particularly limited. Usually, 0.01 to 10% by weight, based on the solid content of the tea extract (concentrated liquid) (measured as a Brix value; hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, the same applies to “solid content”) Is 0.1 to 5.0% by weight, more preferably 0.2 to 1.0% by weight, particularly preferably about 0.3 to 0.5% by weight. For example, β-glucosidase preparation “Amano” (manufactured by Amano Enzyme Co., Ltd.) as a glycoside degrading enzyme (Β-glucosidase: 13%, excipient: 87% combination. Origin: Penicillium Multicolor, titer: β-glucosidase power 800U / g or more) When using the solid content of tea extract (concentrated liquid) 0.1 to 10% by weight, preferably 0.5 to 10% by weight, more preferably 2.0 to 5.0% by weight, and particularly preferably about 3.0 to 5.0% by weight. When this is converted into a force value, it is about 0.08 to 80 U, preferably 0.8 to 40 U, more preferably 1.6 to 8.0 U, and particularly preferably about 2.4 to 4.0 U with respect to 1 g of the solid content. Here, the titer of β-glucosidase is a value measured by the following method using an automatic chemical analyzer (TBA-30R, manufactured by Toshiba Corporation). 10 μl of enzyme sample and 200 μl of paranitrophenyl (pNP) glucoside (Merck) dissolved in 20 mM acetate buffer (pH 5.5) as 2 mM are mixed at 40 ° C. and cycle time 22.5 sec. After reacting in step 2, 250 μl of sodium carbonate solution (reaction stop solution) is added, and the absorbance at 412 nm is measured. The blank derived from the sample is measured in the same manner using 20 mM acetate buffer (pH 5.5) instead of the substrate solution, and the amount of enzyme that increases the absorbance by 1 under these conditions is 1 U.

  The addition of glycoside-degrading enzyme interacts with and co-precipitates components that cause odor and taste of tea beverages. As the amount of precipitation increases, a fresh tea extract with high transparency and good aftertaste and a tea beverage containing the same can be produced. If the amount of glycoside-degrading enzyme added to the solid content of the tea extract (concentrated liquid) is less than 0.01% by weight, not only is the tea aroma component liberated, but co-precipitation with the expected tea component is not possible. It may not occur, and if it is 10% by weight or more, the taste of the enzyme preparation may be felt and the tea flavor may be impaired.

  The conditions for the enzyme treatment can be appropriately set according to the type, properties (titer), extract concentration and the like of the enzyme used. For example, when β-glucosidase (for example, the above “Amano” (manufactured by Amano Enzyme Co., Ltd.)) is used, the reaction is performed at 40 to 60 ° C. for about 1 to 5 hours.

  After the enzyme reaction is performed, the enzyme reaction is stopped by inactivating the enzyme by a conventionally known method, for example, heating and holding at 90 ° C. for about 30 minutes.

(Process 4: Solid-liquid separation process)
As described above, in the enzyme treatment liquid, a precipitate is generated due to a reaction between the component (protein substance) in the enzyme and the component of the tea beverage. In the solid-liquid separation step of step 4, this precipitate is removed. The solid-liquid separation means is not particularly limited as long as it can be separated into a precipitate (solid content) and a water-soluble part (liquid part). Filtration using a filter made of metal such as filter paper or stainless steel, or centrifugal separation Etc. can be adopted. In particular, the centrifugal separation is preferable in that the precipitate can be more reliably removed and generation of secondary orientation can be suppressed. Centrifugation can be performed using a general apparatus such as a separation plate type, a cylindrical type, or a decanter type, and the treatment temperature is preferably 30 ° C. or less, particularly preferably 25 ° C. or less. Centrifugation conditions (number of rotations and time) vary depending on the apparatus and processing capacity, but are, for example, about 1000 to 3000 rpm for about 5 to 30 minutes with a centrifuge (Kokusan H-26F).

  In the solid-liquid separation, when the tea extract obtained by separation is diluted so that the Brix is 0.5, the turbidity of the aqueous solution is 35 NTU or less, preferably 20 or less, more preferably 10 or less, still more preferably 5 In the following, it is particularly preferably carried out so as to be 1 or less. When the turbidity of the aqueous solution is 35 NTU or less, it becomes a tea extract that does not generate secondary soil while producing a good flavor over a long period of time. Here, turbidity refers to turbidimeter (Nephelometric Turbidity Units) using a turbidimeter (90 ° scattered light / transmission detection method). Specific measurement equipment includes a ratio optical system, etc. It can be illustrated.

  In the tea extract of the present invention, the preferred fragrance is enhanced by the enzyme treatment in step 3, and the components that inhibit the preferred fragrance are precipitated and removed by steps 2, 3, and 4, so that the preferred fragrance is perceived more strongly. can do. The aroma of tea is very delicate and has a property that it is very easy to disappear in the process of producing a tea beverage. However, the tea extract of the present invention has an original aroma due to its enhanced aroma component. It becomes the property that it is easy to maintain the flavor.

  In the production method of the present invention, for example, when oolong tea is used as a raw tea leaf, aldehydes and alcohols having a floral and green fragrance (for example, cis-3-Hexen-1-ol, Linalool oxide, Benzaldhyde, 1-Nonanol, Methyl salicylate, Geraniol, Benzyl alcohol, Phenylethyl alcohol, Benzyl salicylate, Hexadecanoic acid, Methyl-11,14,17-Eicosatrienoate, and wood creosote-like aroma (2-Methoxy-4-vinyl) phenol) increases. Moreover, indole known as an aroma component that causes a heated odor is reduced.

  The present inventors have focused on Oolong tea beverages that do not perceive sufficient wilt incense (Hana incense) even though they contain abundant aroma components in Oolong tea beverages, and the relationship between the perception of incense and Oolong tea beverage components As a result of various studies, it has been found that when there is a certain amount or more of Ionone compounds contained in oolong tea beverages, the fragrance of the floral incense component is inhibited, making it difficult to perceive. According to the production method of the present invention, β-ionone can be efficiently removed, so that β-ionone is reduced to an amount sufficiently smaller than that normally contained in the incense component, and perfume is perceived with an excellent balance. Can produce oolong tea extract and oolong tea beverage. Specifically, according to the production method of the present invention, (A) floral incense component: (A1) floral component containing at least (A1) linalool and (A2) geraniol, (B) β-ionone content (A) floral component Novel oolong tea with a ratio ((A1 + A2) / (B)) to the total amount (A1 + A2) of 500 or more, preferably 600 or more, more preferably 700 or more, more preferably 800 or more, particularly preferably 900 or more An extract is obtained. Here, ((A1 + A2) / (B)) of a general oolong tea extract (or oolong tea beverage) in which the β-ionone content is not reduced is less than about 100. About measurement of aromatic components, such as a linalool, geraniol, and beta-ionone, it can measure using GC / MS (Yokogawa Analytical Systems Co., Ltd.) etc.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example demonstrates this invention further in detail, this invention is not limited to these.

Example 1: Oolong tea extract (1)
(1) Production of oolong tea extract 100 g of oolong tea (Fuhe Province, color type) was extracted with 6000 mL of ion-exchanged water at 90 ° C. for 15 minutes. The resulting extract was roughly filtered with a 150 mesh metal filter, cooled to 30 ° C or lower, and oolong tea extract (Brix 0.5, measured with ATAGO's digital refractometer RX-5000α. It was measured using this. This extract was concentrated using a vacuum evaporation concentrator until the Brix was 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 5.0, 7.0, 10.0 to obtain a concentrated solution. Glycoside-degrading enzyme (β-glucosidase) formulation “Amano” (manufactured by Amano Enzyme Co., Ltd.) (β-glucosidase 13% 87% in the form of formulation.Origin: Penicillium Multicolor, titer: β-glucosidase power 800U / g or more) was added, and the enzyme treatment was performed in a constant temperature room at 45 ° C for 3 hours. After the enzyme treatment, the enzyme was inactivated by heating at 90 ° C. for 30 minutes, and cooled to 30 ° C. or lower to obtain an enzyme treatment solution. This was shaken well, and 20 mL each was dispensed into a glass tube for precipitation evaluation, and the precipitation was evaluated at 25 ° C. For the sedimentation evaluation, the enzyme-treated solution dispensed into the glass tube is subjected to solid-liquid separation treatment at 3000 rpm for 10 minutes with a centrifuge (H-26F type manufactured by Kokusan Co., Ltd.), and the amount of precipitation (mL) is calculated. It went by.

  Further, 10 mL of an aqueous solution portion (supernatant liquid) was sampled and filtered through a 500 mesh filter, followed by turbidity analysis. In the turbidity analysis, each sample was diluted with ion-exchanged water until Brix 0.5, and then measured with a turbidimeter (turbidimeter model 2100P manufactured by HACH) (20 ° C.).

  The results of measurement of the precipitation amount of the enzyme-treated solution and the turbidity of the aqueous solution after centrifugation are shown in Table 1 (the measured value of Brix in Table 1 represents the measured value of Brix of the supernatant after centrifugation). As is clear from Table 1, when the tea extract (concentrated liquid) has a Brix of 1.0 or higher, preferably 2.0 or higher, the precipitate is generated due to the interaction between the enzyme-derived component and the tea component. confirmed. Precipitation occurred more as the Brix was higher. When the Brix was 5.0 or more, not only the aggregated precipitate but also white floc-like aggregates were confirmed.

  In addition, Fig. 1 shows the relationship between Brix of tea extract (concentrate) during enzyme treatment and turbidity after centrifugation. Transparency of the diluted solution of the enzyme-treated solution to Brix 0.5 is clearly different, and the higher the Brix during enzyme treatment, where more precipitation was observed, the higher the transparency. . In particular, the improvement in transparency was observed at Brix 2.0 or higher, and when Brix was 5.0 or higher, the tea extract was very highly transparent.

(2) Sensory evaluation Various oolong tea extracts (No.1 to No.8) obtained in (1) were diluted with ion-exchanged water until Brix 0.25, adjusted for tea drinks, and subjected to sensory evaluation by a specialized panelist. It was. Comparing the product without enzyme addition (No. 1) and the product with enzyme treatment (No. 2), it was a tea beverage with enhanced aroma and a rich floral scent. Moreover, when comparing between samples having different Brix at the time of enzyme treatment (No. 2 to No. 8), the sample having a higher Brix had a reduced miscellaneous taste, giving a clean impression of aftertaste. In addition, as the miscellaneous taste was reduced, the higher the Brix sample, the stronger the perfume was perceived and the higher the palatability.

(3) Aroma analysis Of the oolong tea extracts obtained in (1), those with Brix 1.0 (No. 3), Brix 3.0 (No. 5), and Brix 5.0 (No. 6) during enzyme treatment The tea beverage was prepared by using Brix 10.0 (No. 8) and diluting with ion-exchanged water to give Brix 0.25 in the same manner as (2). The aromas of these four tea beverages were measured for the contents of (A1) linalool, (A2) geraniol, and (B) β-ionone. For aroma analysis, Twister was added to 50 mL of each sample, and the mixture was stirred for 2 hours to extract volatile components, followed by thermal extraction (TDU) and GC-MS analysis. The measurement conditions are as follows.

<GC-MS measurement conditions>
・ Analyzer: Agilent Technologies 6890N
・ Detector: Agilent Technologies 5975B
・ Column: Agilent Technologies 121-7012L TM (DB-WAX 10m × 0.18mm × 0.18μm)
Detection: SIM mode Determination: linalool: m / z = 71, geraniol: m / z = 93, β-ionone: m / z = 177.

  The results are shown in Table 2. When the Brix at the time of enzyme treatment was 3.0 or more, β-ionone, which is an inhibitory component of flower perfume, could be effectively reduced. Since the sensory threshold of β-ionone is said to be 0.007 ppb (Introduction to Fragrance, Fragrance Journal, 2003), it can be said that the reduction of β-ionone at the 0.01 level is very effective. This result is considered to correlate with the sensory evaluation result.

(4) Preservation test Various oolong tea extracts (No.1 to No.8) obtained in (1) are diluted with ion-exchanged water to Brix 0.25 to prepare tea drinks, and each 500 mL is filled into a PET bottle. The storage test was conducted at 40 ° C. On the 0th day of storage, none of the samples were found to have any tea component particles or orientation when exposed to natural light, and only a small amount of extremely fine particles were observed when exposed to light from the projector. After confirming the state after 3 days, 5 days, 7 days, 10 days, 13 days, and 19 days of storage, sample Nos. 1 to 3 were sandy to ultrafine particles (0.5% when exposed to natural light on the 13th day of storage). (less than mm) was observed, and on the 19th day, it was a level that could be confirmed visually. On the other hand, sample Nos. 4 to 8 did not change after 20 days storage. From these results, it was suggested that when the Brix at the time of enzyme treatment is 2.0 or more, substances that cause precipitation during long-term storage can be removed.

Example 2: Oolong tea extract (2)
As the Brix 5.0 of tea extract (concentrate) during enzyme treatment, the enzyme addition amount was changed to 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 per solid content, and the enzyme treatment was performed at 50 ° C. for 2 hours under stirring with a stirrer. Oolong tea extract was produced in the same manner as in No. 6 of Example 1. In the same manner as in Example 1, the precipitation amount of the enzyme-treated solution was measured, and the turbidity of a solution obtained by diluting the supernatant after centrifugation in Brix 0.5 was measured.

  The results are shown in Table 3. As apparent from Table 3, there was no correlation between the amount of enzyme added and the amount of precipitation, but as the amount of enzyme added increased, the transparency of the resulting tea extract improved. In particular, it was found that when the enzyme preparation was added at 2% or more, preferably 3% or more per solid content, the tea extract was very highly transparent (FIG. 2).

Example 3: Green tea extract Green tea (Sanbancha, normal fired product) was extracted for 10 minutes with 10 times the amount of hot water. The obtained extract was concentrated to Brix 4.5 using a vacuum evaporation concentrator to obtain a green tea concentrate. To this concentrate, a glycoside-degrading enzyme having a concentration of 3% by weight with respect to the solid content was added, and the enzyme treatment was performed at 50 ° C. for 2 hours. After enzyme treatment, inactivate the enzyme by heating at 90 ° C for 30 minutes, cool to 30 ° C or less to obtain an enzyme treatment solution, and centrifuge at 3000rpm with a centrifuge (Hokusan Co., Ltd. H-26F type) After performing solid-liquid separation treatment for 10 minutes and filtering with a 500 mesh filter, 20 mL of an aqueous solution portion (supernatant liquid) was collected and subjected to turbidity analysis. In addition, as a comparison, a sample that was subjected to centrifugation was manufactured without performing enzyme treatment of the concentrated solution, and turbidity was measured.

  The results are shown in Table 4. In the green tea extract, it was confirmed that the tea extract was concentrated, subjected to enzyme treatment, and further centrifuged to improve transparency and enhance a good aroma component.

Claims (5)

A method for producing a tea extract comprising the following steps 1 to 4:
Extracting tea leaves with a water-based solvent acceptable as a food to obtain a tea extract 1,
Step 2 of concentrating the extract to Brix 2-30 to obtain a concentrate,
Step 3 of adding a glycoside-degrading enzyme to the concentrated solution to obtain an enzyme-treated solution, and Step 4 of removing solids from the enzyme-treated solution by solid-liquid separation to obtain a tea extract.   2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the glycoside degrading enzyme is β-glucosidase. 3. The production method according to claim 1, wherein only a glycoside degrading enzyme is used as an enzyme. A method for producing a tea beverage comprising the steps 1 to 4 defined in any one of claims 1 to 3 and further comprising a step of blending the obtained tea extract. The following steps 1-4:
Extracting tea leaves with a water-based solvent acceptable as a food to obtain a tea extract 1,
Step 2 of concentrating the extract to Brix 2-30 to obtain a concentrate,
Step 3 for obtaining an enzyme-treated solution by adding a glycoside-degrading enzyme to the concentrated solution, and step 4 for obtaining a tea extract by removing solids from the enzyme-treated solution by solid-liquid separation treatment
A method for suppressing the occurrence of orientation in a tea extract or tea beverage.

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