JP6985332B2 - Masking agent for unpleasant taste of food and drink containing dodecene acid as an active ingredient - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a masking agent. More specifically, a masking agent for foods and drinks containing at least one selected from 7-dodecene acid, 8-dodecene acid, 9-dodecene acid or 10-dodecene acid as an active ingredient, particularly masking of acidity, bitterness and astringency. The present invention relates to an agent and a method for masking food and drink using the masking agent.

The tastes are mainly sweet, salty, sour, umami, and bitter, as well as astringent, harsh, and pungent. When these tastes are present in a moderate amount, they give a good flavor to the food and drink, but when they are present in excess, they bring an unpleasant taste to the food and drink.

Foods and drinks with a bitter taste include, for example, fruits such as grapefruit containing the bitter taste substance naringin, vegetables such as bitter melon, roasted extracts such as coffee, and chemical substances such as flavor substances and peptides. It is known that protein hydrolysates and the like have a bitter taste. The reduction of bitterness in the case of grapefruit juice-containing beverages and coffee is usually dealt with by adding various sweeteners.

In addition, foods and drinks containing astringent components such as tannins, for example, tea beverages, contain a large amount of polyphenols, and the polyphenols have antioxidant ability and active oxygen scavenging ability, so that they are healthy foods and drinks. Is attracting attention as. However, if a large amount of polyphenols is to be contained, the astringency may increase and the astringency may not be satisfied, and there is a demand for improvement in astringency that can alleviate or remove the astringency.

In foods and drinks, a refreshing sour taste may be a preferred taste, but a sour taste with a peculiar stimulus such as piercing the tongue is not always preferable. For example, foods and drinks containing vinegar such as dressings, mayonnaise, and Vermont drinks are characterized by their acidity, but the unique irritation caused by vinegar is not always preferred by everyone, and some people dislike it. Not a few. In addition, fermented foods and drinks such as yogurt, fermented milk, and lactic acid bacteria beverages may be preferred to have a certain degree of acidity, but if the acidity or sour odor is excessively increased, the taste of consumers is reduced. Further, the acidulant is not intended to impart acidity, but may be used as a pH adjuster for the purpose of improving shelf life, in which case the acidity and acid odor are not desirable for food and drink.

Fragrance compounds are compounds that stimulate the sense of smell, and it is said that there are tens of thousands of them. On the other hand, the flavor of food is considered to be a sensation in which olfactory stimuli and taste stimuli are integrated in the brain. That is, the sensory stimulus is combined with a compound that stimulates the taste (salt, sugar, monosodium glutamate, etc.) to form the flavor of the whole food. Therefore, in recent years, among the compounds having aroma, the search for compounds that stimulate the sense of taste as well as the sense of smell has become active, and it is used to improve the overall flavor of foods and drinks.

As an example of using a fragrance as the above-mentioned unpleasant taste masking method, a method of adding mint essential oil, coconut essential oil and eucalyptus essential oil as a bittersweet taste masking method of high cocoa chocolate (Patent Document 1), citrus fruits, coffee, tea and cocoa. As a method for suppressing bitterness derived from hops, a method for adding isobutyl angelate (Patent Document 2), an acid taste and / or acid odor suppressant consisting of isothiocyanates (Patent Document 3), 4, 7- Bitter and / or astringent taste inhibitor consisting of tridecazienal and / or 2,4,7-tridecatrienal (Patent Document 4), 4,7-tridecagenal and / or 2,4,7-tride There are acid taste and / or acid odor suppressors made of catrienal (Patent Document 5) and the like.

Dodecenoic acid is useful for fragrance applications, and in particular, 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10-dodecenoic acid can improve the aroma and flavor such as milky feeling and oily feeling. By adding a perfume composition containing 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10-dodecenoic acid to foods and drinks to enhance the persistence of the fragrance, milky feeling, oily feeling, etc. It is possible to improve the aroma and flavor of the fragrance and enhance the sustainability of the fragrance (Patent Document 6). However, although these dodecene acids are known to be used as flavors, the effect of masking the unpleasant taste of foods and drinks by adding them to foods and drinks has not been known at all.

Japanese Patent No. 6230141 Japanese Patent No. 6296473 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2012-34603 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-143930 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-21926 Japanese Patent No. 6315529

An object of the present invention is to reduce the unpleasant tastes of foods and drinks when they are unpleasant in product design, and to reduce the unpleasant tastes of the foods and drinks, and to reduce the unpleasant tastes of the foods and drinks. It is to provide a masking agent that can be improved.

Furthermore, since it is difficult to feel the aroma and flavor at the concentration actually added to food and drink, it is highly versatile and can be used for various food and drink, high safety backed by abundant eating experience, and easy on a daily basis. It is to provide a masking agent that combines many advantages of high cost performance achievable with inexpensive raw materials available.

As a result of diligent research to solve the above problems, the present inventors have added 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10-dodecenoic acid to foods and drinks. It was found that the unpleasant taste of foods and drinks, especially the unpleasant tastes derived from acidity, bitterness and astringency, can be reduced and the flavor of foods and drinks can be improved without imparting unnecessary aromas and flavors to these foods and drinks. The present invention has been completed.

Thus, the present invention provides the following:
(1) A masking agent for unpleasant taste of food or drink, which comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of 7-dodecene acid, 8-dodecene acid, 9-dodecene acid and 10-dodecene acid.
(2) The masking agent according to (1), wherein the unpleasant taste is sour.
(3) The masking agent according to (1), which has a bitter taste as an unpleasant taste.
(4) The masking agent according to (1), wherein the unpleasant taste is astringent.
(5) A masking composition containing 0.01 ppm to 1.0% of the masking agent according to any one of (1) to (4) to improve the unpleasant taste of food and drink.
(6) A method for masking the unpleasant taste of foods and drinks, wherein the masking agent according to any one of (1) to (4) is contained in foods and drinks at 0.1 ppb to 10 ppm.

According to the present invention, although it is a flavor possessed by a food or drink, when there is an unpleasant unpleasant taste in the product design, those unpleasant tastes are reduced, and the overall preferable flavor originally possessed by the food or drink is obtained. Can be improved. In addition, it has many advantages such as high versatility that can be used for various foods and drinks, high safety backed by abundant eating experience, and high cost performance that can be achieved with inexpensive raw materials that can be easily obtained on a daily basis. A masking agent can be provided.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail.

In the present invention, the values of%, ppm, and ppb indicate the values of mass to mass, respectively, unless otherwise specified.

The food or drink having a sour taste in the present invention means a food or drink having a sour taste when taken orally, and a food or drink having a sour taste because an acidulant or the like is added for the purpose of preservation or the like, although the sour taste is not originally required. Including goods. When ingested or used, it may be in the form of liquid, solid or semi-solid. Such foods and drinks contain natural materials such as various natural fruits, or natural or synthetic acidulants such as citric acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, lactic acid, acetic acid, adipic acid, succinic acid and phosphoric acid. Examples include beverages, yogurt, dressings, mayonnaise, sauces, pickles, seasonings, instant foods, bread, malic acid, tofu and the like.

The food or drink having a bitter taste in the present invention means a food or drink having a bitter taste when taken orally, and although the bitter taste is not originally required in this food or drink, the food or drink having a bitter taste as a result of being added for other purposes or the like. Includes food and drink that has become. In addition, when ingested or used, it may be in any form of liquid, solid or semi-solid. Examples of the bitterness substance include potassium chloride, bitterness peptide, naringin, caffeine, nicotine, phenylthiourea, picric acid, magnesium sulfate, brucine, urea, quinine and the like. Final products containing substances with a bitter taste include foods and drinks such as tea, coffee, cocoa, grapefruit, and beer, compound feeds for broiler fattening, pet foods, bitter stomach medicines, medicines such as energy drinks, and mouth refreshers. Quasi-drugs can be mentioned. Further, the unpleasant taste of protein, the unpleasant taste of peptide, the unpleasant taste of gelatin, and the unpleasant taste of amino acid can be mentioned.

The food or drink having astringency in the present invention means a food or drink having astringency for oral ingestion or the like, and although astringency is not originally required in this food or drink, it is added for other purposes and the like, resulting in astringency. Includes food and drink that you will have. In addition, when ingested or used, it may be in any form of liquid, solid or semi-solid. Beverages such as tea (green tea, matcha, roasted tea, etc.), black tea, coffee, cacao, etc .; fruits such as persimmon, chestnut, grape, ginkgo nuts; products containing fruit juice or flesh of these fruits; wine, wine Alcohols such as; Confectionery such as chocolate can be mentioned. In addition to these, foods and drinks containing astringent ingredients such as tannins, catechins, chlorogenic acid, and trichloroacetic acid, and products containing the above ingredients, such as apples, cocoa beans, gobos, wipes, and sweet potatoes. , Potatoes, eggplants, apples, pears, etc. or processed products thereof.

The compound of the present invention, 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10-dodecenoic acid, may be a mixture of (E) -form and (Z) -form, and may be (E) -form or (Z) -form. ) The body alone has the effect of the present invention.

The compound of the present invention, 7-dodecene acid, 8-dodecene acid, 9-dodecene acid or 10-dodecene acid, can be produced according to the reaction route shown below, for example, described in Patent Document 6.

In the above reaction step, an unsaturated fatty acid having a double bond at the terminal is esterified using an arbitrary alcohol and an acid catalyst such as p-toluenesulfonic acid as a raw material, and is converted into an aldehyde by ozonolysis. The Wittig reaction between the obtained aldehyde and the phosphorus iris obtained from the phosphonium salt was carried out, and the obtained dodecenoic acid ester was alkaline-hydrolyzed to 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10 -Dodecenoic acid can be produced.

For foods and drinks, for example, foods and drinks having an unpleasant taste derived from acidity, bitterness and astringency, the compounds of the present invention, 7-dodecene acid, 8-dodecene acid, 9-dodecene acid or 10-dodecene acid, are used. By blending it into foods and drinks as it is, it is possible to mask the unpleasant taste of foods and drinks and improve the flavor of foods and drinks without imparting unnecessary aromas and flavors to these foods and drinks. Further, 7-dodecene acid, 8-dodecene acid, 9-dodecene acid or 10-dodecene acid of the present invention can be mixed and used in any ratio of two or more.

The content of the masking agent consisting of 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10-dodecenoic acid, or two or more of these in the masking composition of foods and drinks of the present invention is the purpose or the content thereof. Although it depends on the type of masking composition, it is 0.01 ppm to 1.0%, preferably 0.05 ppm to 0.5%, more preferably 0.1 ppm to 0, based on the total mass of the masking composition for food and drink. The range of 1%, more preferably 0.5 ppm to 500 ppm, and particularly preferably 1 ppm to 100 ppm can be exemplified. Within these ranges, it has an excellent effect of masking on the unpleasant taste of food and drink.

The masking agent of the present invention can be added to foods and drinks alone, but can also be used as a masking composition for foods and drinks in combination with a flavor component. Examples of other fragrance components that can be contained together with the masking agent of the present invention include various synthetic fragrances, natural fragrances, natural essential oils, and plant extracts. For example, natural essential oils, natural fragrances, and synthetic fragrances described in "Patent Office, Well-known Conventional Technology Collection (Fragrances) Part II Food Fragrances" or "Synthetic Fragrances, Chemistry and Product Knowledge, Augmented New Edition, The Chemical Daily". Can be mentioned.

As these components, as materials for food fragrances, for example, hydrocarbons such as limonene, milsen, α-pinene, β-pinene, α-terpinene, γ-terpinene, cariophyllene; hexanol, heptanol, octanol, nonanol, decanol. , Cis-3-hexenol, cis-6-nonenor, cis-3,6-nonazienol, citronellol, geraniol, nerol, linalol, α-terpineol, γ-terpineol, terpinene-4-ol, menthol, timol, eugenol, etc. Alcohols; aldehydes such as hexanal, cis-3-hexenal, trans-2-hexenal, heptanal, octanal, nonanal, decanal, undecanal, 10-undecanal, 2,6-nonazienal, citral, terpinene, vanillin, ethyl vanillin, etc. And their acetals; Carvone, Pregon, Menton, Kamfer, Nutocaton, Acetin, Diacetyl, 2-Heptanone, 2-Octanone, 2-Nonanone, 2-Undecanone, p-Methylacetophenone, p-methoxyacetophenone, Raspberry Ketone, Anisyl Ketones such as acetone, zingeron, acetylfuran, maltor, ethylmaltor, cycloten, dimethylhydroxyfuranone and their ketals; ethyl acetate, propyl acetate, butyl acetate, isoamyl acetate, hexyl acetate, heptyl acetate, geranyl acetate, linalyl acetate. , Ethylpropionate, Isoamylpropionate, Hexylpropionate, Geranylpropionate, Citronerylpropionate, Ethylbutyrate, Isoamylbutyrate, Geranylbutyrate, Butylpentanoate, Methylbutyrate, Methylanthra Esters such as nilate; fatty acids such as acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, isobutyric acid, valeric acid, isovaleric acid, caproic acid; ethers such as mentoflan, terpinene, cineol, rose oxide, anetol, methoxypyrazines, etc. Examples thereof include sulfur-containing compounds such as thiazole, propyl mercaptan, allyl mercaptan, flufuryl mercaptan, dimethyl sulfide, dimethyl disulfide, diallyl sulfide, diallyl disulfide, methional, and flufuryl disulfide.

These synthetic fragrances are readily available on the market and can be easily synthesized as needed.

In addition, various extracts include herbs / spice extracts, coffee / green tea / black tea / oolong tea extracts, milk or processed dairy products, and enzymatic decomposition products such as lipases / proteases thereof.

The masking agent or masking agent composition of the present invention can be added to foods and drinks as it is, but it can also be added to foods and drinks as a solution, an emulsified preparation, a powdered preparation or the like dissolved in a water-miscible organic solvent. can.

Examples of the water-miscible organic solvent for dissolving the masking agent or the masking agent composition of the present invention include ethanol, methanol, acetone, tetrahydrofuran, acetonitrile, methyl ethyl ketone, 2-propanol, glycerin, propylene glycol and the like. Can be done. Of these, ethanol, glycerin or propylene glycol is particularly preferable from the viewpoint of use in foods and drinks.

Further, in order to obtain an emulsified preparation, the masking agent or masking agent composition of the present invention can be obtained by emulsifying with an emulsifier. For example, one or more emulsifiers or stabilizers such as Kiraya extract, enzyme-treated lecithin, sucrose fatty acid ester, polyglycerin fatty acid ester, glycerin fatty acid ester, and arabic gum may be blended, for example, homomixer, colloid mill, high pressure. It can also be in the form of an emulsified fragrance preparation by emulsifying with a homogenizer or the like. The amount of the emulsifier or stabilizer used varies depending on the type of emulsifier or stabilizer, and is, for example, in the range of 0.1 to 25% by mass, preferably in the range of 5 to 20% by mass, based on the mass of the emulsified fragrance preparation. Can be mentioned.

Further, for example, sugar, lactose, glucose, trehalose, cellobiose, water candy, reduced water candy and other sugars; sugar alcohols; various starch decomposition products such as dextrin and starch derivatives, starch, gelatin, Arabic gum and the like are added to the emulsified fragrance preparation. An excipient such as natural gum may be appropriately blended and then dried by an appropriate drying means such as spray drying or vacuum drying to form a powdered fragrance preparation. The blending amount of these excipients can be appropriately selected depending on the characteristics desired for the powdered fragrance preparation and the like.

The masking agent of the present invention can mask the unpleasant taste of food and drink by adding it to the food and drink having an unpleasant taste.

Examples of foods and drinks having such an unpleasant taste include beverages (coffee, acidic beverages, etc.), vinegars (acetic acid, black vinegar, apple vinegar, brewed vinegar, etc.), yogurt, dressings, mayonnaises, sauces, etc. Examples include dried plums, pickles, seasonings, instant foods, bread, vinegar, tofu, and citrus fruits. Foods and drinks with a bitter taste include foods and drinks such as tea, coffee, cocoa, grapefruit, beer, protein drinks, amino acid drinks, and vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, celery, uri, niggauri, carrots, potatoes, alparagus, warabi, and zenmai. Examples thereof include vegetable-based beverages containing these vegetables, feeds, pet foods, bitter stomachic medicines, medicines such as energy drinks, and non-medicinal products such as mouth refreshers. Beverages such as tea (green tea, matcha, roasted tea, etc.), black tea, coffee, cacao, etc.; fruits such as persimmon, chestnut, grape, ginkgo nuts; products containing fruit juice or meat of these fruits; Alcohols such as wine and wine; Confectionery such as chocolate; Yamaimo, cacao beans, gobo, wipes, sweet potatoes, potatoes, eggplants, apples, pears, etc., or processed products thereof.

Further, the masking agent of the present invention may be used in combination with various other known and commercially available additives.

The blending amount of the 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid or 10-dodecenoic acid of the present invention, or a mixture of two or more thereof varies depending on the purpose or the type of food or drink, for example. The range of 0.1 ppb to 10 ppm, preferably 0.5 ppb to 5 ppm, more preferably 1 ppb to 1 ppm, more preferably 2 ppb to 0.5 ppm, and particularly preferably 5 ppb to 0.2 ppm with respect to the total weight of the food or drink is exemplified. can do. Within these ranges, it has an excellent effect of masking unpleasant taste for food and drink.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to Examples. The present invention is not limited to these.

Patent documents for 7-dodecenoic acid (product 1 of the present invention), 8-dodecenoic acid (product 2 of the present invention), 9-dodecenoic acid (product 3 of the present invention), and 10-dodecenoic acid (product 4 of the present invention) in the present invention. It was prepared according to the synthetic reaction described in 6.

Example 1: Masking effect of acidity The base materials were mixed at the ratios shown in the formulations shown in Table 1, and candies were prepared by a conventional method (Comparative Product 1).

Products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added to the formulations shown in Table 1 at the concentrations shown in Table 2, and candies were prepared in the same manner as in Comparative Product 1. Each candy was tasted by 10 well-trained panelists to perform a sensory evaluation of acidity masking.

The score of the acidity masking is 0: no difference from the control, 1: the acidity is slightly suppressed compared to the control, 2: the acidity is suppressed compared to the control, 3: the control is used as the control. Compared to the above, the acidity was suppressed and the sourness of citric acid was not felt. 4: The taste was imbalanced. Table 2 shows the average score of the 10 panelists.

As shown in Table 2, when the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added alone to the candy formulation, the candy had a masked acidity as compared with the comparative product 1. Further, it was confirmed that the acidity was masked in the range of 0.1 ppb to 10 ppm with respect to the concentration based on the mass. In particular, it was found that masking was performed well in the range of 1 ppb to 1 ppm. Further, at an added concentration of 50 ppm, the acidity was masked, but the aroma characteristics such as uri-like and green-like possessed by the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were exhibited, and the taste balance was lost.

Reference Example 1: Preparation of Lemon Essence 1991.6 g of commercially available lemon essential oil was subjected to a thin film distillation treatment using a molecular distillation apparatus to obtain 1857.3 g of a distillate and 122.5 g of a residue. The residue was again subjected to thin film distillation under the same conditions to obtain 64.7 g of distillate and 58.4 g of residue. A total of 1922.0 g of the distillate obtained by the thin film distillation treatment is precisely distilled using a sluzer packing-filled distillation column to distill terpene hydrocarbons, whereby 190.1 g of refined lemon essential oil is obtained. Was done. Further, in order to distill the terpene hydrocarbon, precision distillation was performed again using a slewer packing-filled distillation column to distill the terpene hydrocarbon, whereby 106.2 g (reference product 1) of refined lemon essential oil was obtained. rice field. The above reference product 1 was dissolved in 1% in an aqueous solution of 80% ethanol to obtain lemon essence (reference product 2).

Example 2: Masking effect of acidity by masking composition In reference product 2, 0.01 ppm, 0.1 ppm, 1 ppm, 10 ppm, 100 ppm, 0.1%, 1.0%, 5 of the present invention products 1 to 4 are added. A masking composition was prepared by adding the mixture so as to be 0.0%. These were diluted with a 0.5% aqueous solution of citric acid to 0.1%, and a sensory evaluation of the acidity masking of each masking composition was carried out using the 0.5% aqueous solution of citric acid as a control product. .. The scores for the sensory evaluation were scored by the same method as in Example 1. Table 3 shows the average score of 10 panelists.

As shown in Table 3, when the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added alone to the reference product 2, the solution masked the acidity as compared with the control product. Further, as the concentration of the products 1 to 4 of the present invention with respect to the reference product 2, it was found that the acidity was masked within the range of 0.01 ppm to 1.0% based on the mass of the reference product 2. In particular, it was found that masking was performed well in the range of 0.1 ppm to 0.1%. Further, at an added concentration of 5.0%, the acidity was masked, but the aroma characteristics such as uri-like and green-like possessed by the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were exhibited, and the result was that the taste balance was lost. ..

Example 3: Masking effect of unpleasant taste of protein drink 21 g of commercially available plain protein powder was dissolved in water to make 300 g (Comparative Product 2). Products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added to the concentrations shown in Table 4 to prepare a protein beverage. By tasting each protein beverage by 10 well-trained panelists, a sensory evaluation was performed on the masking of the unpleasant taste derived from the bitter taste produced by the protein beverage.

The score of masking the unpleasant taste derived from protein is 0: no difference from the control, 1: the unpleasant taste is slightly suppressed as compared with the control, and 2: the unpleasant taste is suppressed as compared with the control. It was scored as 3: the unpleasant taste was suppressed as compared with the control, the bitterness derived from the protein was well masked, and 4: the taste was not balanced. Table 4 shows the average score of the 10 panelists.

As shown in Table 4, when the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added alone to the protein beverage, the protein beverage was masked from the unpleasant taste derived from the protein as compared with the comparative product 2. Further, it was confirmed that the concentration was masked within the range of 0.1 ppb to 10 ppm based on the mass. In particular, it was found that masking was performed well in the range of 1 ppb to 1 ppm. Further, at an added concentration of 50 ppm, the unpleasant taste was masked, but the aroma characteristics such as uri-like and green-like possessed by the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were exhibited, and the taste balance was lost.

Example 4: Masking effect by adding lemon essence to a protein beverage 100 ppm of each of the products 1 to 4 of the present invention was independently added to the lemon essence of Reference Product 2. Lemon essence, in which the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added independently to the reference product 2 and the reference product 2, was added in an amount of 0.1% to the protein beverage (comparative product 2) described in Example 3.

When these protein beverages were evaluated by 10 well-trained panelists, all panelists compared the protein-in beverages supplemented with lemon essence of Reference 2, each of the products 1 to 4 of the present invention independently. It was evaluated that the protein drink to which the added lemon essence was added had less protein-derived bitterness and suppressed unpleasant taste.

Example 5: Masking bitter chocolate bitterness and astringency Commercially available bitter chocolate (comparative product 3) was melted at 55 ° C., and products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added thereto to the concentrations shown in Table 5. I got a chocolate dough. This was cooled to room temperature to obtain bitter chocolate to which the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added by a conventional method. Each bitter chocolate was tasted by 10 well-trained panelists to perform a sensory evaluation of bitter and astringent masking.

The score of the masking of bitterness is 0: no difference from the control, 1: the bitterness is slightly suppressed compared to the control, 2: the bitterness is suppressed compared to the control, 3: control, with the comparative product 3 as the control. Compared with, the bitterness was suppressed, the bitterness derived from chocolate was well masked, and 4: the balance of taste was lacking. Table 5 shows the average score of the 10 panelists.

The score of masking of astringency is 0: no difference from the control, 1: the astringency is slightly suppressed compared to the control, 2: the astringency is suppressed compared to the control, with the comparative product 3 as the control. 3: The astringency was suppressed and the flavor was mellow compared to the control, and 4: the taste was not balanced. Table 5 shows the average score of the 10 panelists.

As shown in Table 5, when the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added alone to the bitter chocolate, the bitter chocolate was masked with the bitterness and astringency derived from the bitter chocolate as compared with the comparative product 3. Further, it was confirmed that the concentration was masked within the range of 0.1 ppb to 10 ppm based on the mass. In particular, it was found that masking was performed well in the range of 1 ppb to 1 ppm. Further, at the addition concentration of 50 ppm, the bitterness and astringency are masked, but the aroma characteristics such as uri-like and green-like possessed by the products 1 to 4 of the present invention are obtained.

Example 6: Astringency masking effect of green tea beverage A green tea beverage was obtained by injecting boiling hot water into 10 g of green tea leaves divided into small portions in a commercially available tea pack to make 1000 mL, extracting for 5 minutes, and cooling to 60 ° C. To this, 0.1 mg each of the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added, for a total of 0.4 mg. A sensory evaluation of astringency was performed by tasting 10 well-trained panelists. As a result, 9 out of 10 people evaluated that the green tea beverage to which the products 1 to 4 of the present invention were added in a total of 0.4 mg had less astringency than the green tea beverage to which the product of the present invention was not added.

Claims (3)

An unpleasant taste masking agent for foods and drinks consisting of one or more selected from the group consisting of 7-dodecenoic acid, 8-dodecenoic acid, 9-dodecenoic acid and 10-dodecenoic acid. A masking agent for the unpleasant taste of food and drink, wherein the taste is one or more selected from acidity, bitterness, astringency and unpleasant taste derived from protein. A masking composition containing 0.01 ppm to 1.0% of the masking agent according to claim 1 for improving the unpleasant taste of food and drink, wherein the unpleasant taste to be masked is acidity, bitterness, astringency and astringency. A masking composition for food and drink unpleasant taste, which is one or more selected from protein-derived unpleasant taste. A method for masking an unpleasant taste of a food or drink in which the masking agent according to claim 1 is contained in the food or drink at 0.1 ppb to 10 ppm, and the unpleasant taste to be masked is derived from acidity, bitterness, astringency and protein. A method of masking the unpleasant taste of food and drink, which is one or more selected from the unpleasant taste.