JP7134899B2 - Beverage with reduced bitterness derived from caffeine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to reducing bitterness resulting from caffeine present in beverages.

Caffeine is a component contained in coffee, green tea, and the like, and is known to give a pleasant stimulus when it is present in a beverage at a certain concentration. In addition, caffeine is known to have an awakening effect as a main action, and to have effects such as reducing daytime sleepiness and improving concentration. Many caffeine-containing beverages have been reported so far (Patent Documents 1 to 3), but techniques for effectively suppressing the bitterness of caffeine in beverages with a pH of 5 or higher and less sour components have been disclosed so far. On the other hand, flavor components may also improve the flavor of the beverage. Geraniol is a component contained in essential oils such as geranium and lemon, and is known to have a rose-like fragrance. As a method for improving the flavor of a beverage using geraniol, Patent Document 4 discloses a method for improving the flavor of a beer-flavored beverage by adjusting the content of geranic acid to geraniol at a specific ratio. .

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-55 Japanese Patent No. 5313320 Japanese Patent No. 3082920 JP 2006-206915 A

The present inventors have found that when caffeine is added to a beverage with a pH of 5.0 or higher, the bitterness derived from the caffeine is perceived more strongly than in a beverage with a pH of less than 5.0. An object of the present invention is to reduce the stimulating bitterness derived from caffeine felt when drinking a caffeine-containing beverage having a pH of 5.0 or higher.

In view of the above circumstances, the present inventor searched for a component effective in reducing the bitterness derived from caffeine in beverages. As a result of intensive studies, it was found that geraniol can contribute to reducing the bitterness. Based on such knowledge, the present invention was completed.

The present invention provides the following. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to this.
(1) A beverage containing (a) 1 to 150 ppm of caffeine, (b) 40 ppm or more of geraniol, and (c) a pH of 5.0 to 8.0.
(2) The beverage according to (1), which has a Brix of 1 or less.
(3) The beverage according to (1) or (2), containing a tea extract.

The beverages of the present invention and related methods are described below.
Unless otherwise specified, "ppb" as used herein means ppb by weight/volume (w/v). Further, in this specification, the numerical range represented by the lower limit and the upper limit, that is, "lower limit to upper limit" includes the lower limit and the upper limit. For example, a range represented by "1-2" includes 1 and 2.

(caffeine)
The beverage of the present invention contains caffeine. Caffeine used in the present invention is not particularly limited, but may be commercially available reagents, pure products (purified products with a caffeine content of 98% or more), crude products (caffeine content of 50 to less than 98%), Furthermore, it may be in the form of extracts of caffeine-containing plants (coffee beans, tea leaves, cola seeds, etc.) or concentrates thereof. When caffeine is used in the form of a plant extract or its concentrate, raw materials to be extracted include tea leaves belonging to Camellia sinensis, such as green tea, black tea, oolong tea, and pu-erh tea; Coffee beans belonging to the same class can be used.

The concentration of caffeine in the beverage of the present invention is 1-150 ppm, preferably 1-100 ppm, more preferably 1-80 ppm, even more preferably 1-50 ppm. When the concentration of caffeine in the beverage is 1 ppm or more, the bitterness of the beverage is perceived strongly, which is preferable for obtaining the bitterness-reducing effect of the present invention. Further, when the caffeine concentration in the beverage exceeds 150 ppm, although the effect of reducing bitterness according to the present invention is obtained, the bitterness may not be reduced sufficiently.

Regarding the concentration of caffeine in a beverage, if caffeine is in the form of a hydrate or the like, the content shall be calculated after converting it to the free form. The concentration of caffeine can be measured by a method using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

(geraniol)
The beverage of the present invention contains geraniol in a specific amount. Thereby, the bitterness derived from caffeine can be reduced. The content of geraniol in the beverage of the present invention is 40 ppm or more, preferably 40 to 800 ppm, preferably 50 to 700 ppm, more preferably 60 to 600 ppm, still more preferably 70 to 500 ppm. If the content of geraniol in the beverage is less than 40 ppm, the effect of reducing bitterness derived from caffeine may be insufficient. On the other hand, if the content of geraniol in the beverage exceeds 800 ppm, the flavor of geraniol becomes too strong, which may impair the taste of the beverage itself.

In the beverage of the present invention, the ratio of geraniol content to caffeine content (geraniol content/caffeine content) is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, 8 or more, preferably 14 or more.

The content of geraniol in the beverage of the present invention can be measured by a known GC-MS method. However, in the present invention, the column is a high-polarity column (Agilent Technologies, DB-WaxUI), the extraction method is a solid-phase microextraction method (CTC Analytics, SPME-ArrowCarbon WR/PDMS), and the detector is high resolution. A mass spectrometer (Q Exactive GC Orbitrap manufactured by Thermo Fisher Scientific) is preferably used.

Geraniol used in the present invention is not particularly limited, but may be a purified product or a crude product. For example, it may be a natural product containing geraniol or a processed product thereof (plant extract, essential oil, fermented plant product, concentrate thereof, etc.). More specific examples include flavorings containing geraniol, fruit juices and extracts. Flavoring agents are a preferred example because they can be added to beverages in small amounts.

(pH)
The pH of the beverage of the present invention is 5.0-8.0, preferably 5.5-7.5. If the pH of the beverage is less than 5.0, bitterness may be masked by sour components in the beverage. However, when the pH of the beverage is 5.0 or higher, bitterness can be perceived remarkably due to the small amount of the sour component acting as a masking component, which is preferable for obtaining the effect of reducing bitterness according to the present invention. The pH adjustment of the beverage can be appropriately carried out using a pH adjuster such as sodium citrate, sodium hydroxide, sodium bicarbonate and the like. Beverage pH can be easily measured using a commercially available pH meter.

(Brix)
Although the Brix of the beverage of the present invention is not particularly limited, it is preferably 1 or less. Although not bound by theory, when the Brix is 1 or less, it is thought that the bitterness of caffeine is felt remarkably because the soluble solid content that acts as a bitterness masking component is small, so that the bitterness of the present invention is reduced. It is preferable to obtain the effect. Brix can be evaluated by a Brix value obtained using a saccharimeter, a refractometer, or the like. The Brix value is a value obtained by converting the refractive index measured at 20° C. into mass/mass percent of the sucrose solution based on the conversion table of ICUMSA (International Commission for the Analysis of Sugar). The unit is "°Bx", "%" or "degree".

(Other raw materials)
In addition to the various components shown above, the beverage of the present invention can contain ingredients commonly used in beverages. For example, but not limited to, flavorings, sugars, acidulants, nutritional enhancers, antioxidants, emulsifiers, preservatives, extracts, dietary fibers, quality stabilizers, etc. can be added within a range that does not impair the effects of the present invention. can be done.

(drink)
The beverage of the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is a soft drink. For example, nutritional beverages, functional beverages, flavored water (near water) beverages, tea beverages (black tea, oolong tea, green tea, etc.), coffee beverages, carbonated beverages, and the like may be used. The beverage of the present invention is preferably a tea beverage in one embodiment. Here, "tea beverage" is a beverage containing tea leaf extract or cereal extract as a main component, and specifically includes green tea, roasted tea, blended tea, barley tea, mate tea, jasmine tea, black tea, Examples include oolong tea and Tochu tea. A particularly preferred tea beverage in the present invention is a black tea beverage.

The beverage of the present invention is preferably a packaged beverage that has been heat sterilized and packed in a container. This is because the bitterness of caffeine may become stronger when the beverage is heated. The means of heat sterilization is not particularly limited, but any known means such as UHT sterilization and retort sterilization can be used. A container for filling the beverage is not particularly limited, and for example, a PET bottle, an aluminum can, a steel can, a paper pack, a chilled cup, a bottle, or the like can be used. From the standpoint of convenience or ease of use, containers that are lightweight, easy to carry, and reclosable, such as PET bottles, are preferred.

(Effect of the invention)
According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a beverage with reduced bitterness derived from caffeine and a pH of 5.0 or higher. As used herein, the term “bitterness” means a stimulating bitterness that stings the tongue and is instantly felt upon drinking.

EXAMPLES The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to experimental examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Also, in this specification, unless otherwise stated, numerical ranges are described as including their endpoints.

[Example 1] Effect of pH on bitterness A beverage was prepared by adding a caffeine formulation (manufactured by Maruzen Yakuhin Sangyo Co., Ltd.) (purity: >99%) to water so that the caffeine concentration in the beverage was 5 ppm. Citric acid or sodium hydroxide was used to adjust the pH of the beverages as shown in Table 1 (Samples 1-5). A drink was also prepared by adding 40 ppm of geraniol to the drink thus prepared. Brix was 1 or less for all beverages.

Each beverage was evaluated for bitterness. After each of the three expert panels evaluated the bitterness according to the following criteria, the final evaluation was determined through discussion among the panel members.
○: Little bitterness sensed △: Slightly bitterness sensed ×: Strong bitterness sensed Table 1 shows the results. From the evaluation results of beverages to which no geraniol was added, it was found that an unpleasant bitterness derived from caffeine was perceived when the pH of the beverage was 5.0 or higher. Addition of geraniol to these beverages was shown to reduce the unpleasant bitterness.

On the other hand, it was found that unpleasant bitterness derived from caffeine is not much of a problem in beverages with a pH of 3.5. It was also found that adding geraniol to this beverage did not change the strength of the bitterness.

[Example 2] Effect of caffeine and geraniol content on bitterness Tea extract and geraniol were added to water, and the concentrations of caffeine and geraniol were adjusted to the concentrations shown in Table 2 to prepare each beverage. . The prepared beverage was filled in a 500 ml PET container. The pH of the prepared beverage was 5.9. Brix was 1 or less for all beverages.

A sensory evaluation was performed on the intensity of bitterness of the prepared beverages. A panel of three experts evaluated the beverage according to the following criteria, using a beverage containing 1 ppm of caffeine and no geraniol as a control (sample 1). The average score of the three expert panels was calculated, and a score of 3.0 or less was regarded as a pass. Table 2 shows the sensory evaluation results.
5 points: Stronger bitterness than the control.
4 points: Bitter taste equivalent to control.
3 points: Less bitterness than the control.
2 points: Much less bitterness compared to the control.
1 point: No bitterness is felt.

When 40 ppm or more and 40 to 800 ppm of geraniol was added to a beverage containing 1 to 150 ppm of caffeine, the unpleasant bitterness derived from caffeine was reduced, making it easier to drink.
[Example 3]
Black tea beverages were prepared by adding geraniol to the black tea extract so that the concentrations in the beverage were 20 ppm and 200 ppm. After heat sterilization, it was filled in a 500 ml PET container. The black tea beverage obtained had a caffeine concentration of 5 ppm, a geraniol concentration of 20 ppm or 200 ppm, a pH of 6.0 and a Brix of 0.3.

The bitterness of these beverages was evaluated sensory according to the method described in Example 2. The beverage with a geraniol concentration of 20 ppm had an evaluation of 4.3 points (average of the expert panel) and was bitter and difficult to drink. On the other hand, the beverage with a geraniol concentration of 200 ppm was shown to be easy to drink with almost no bitterness.

Claims (3)

(a) contains 1 to 150 ppm of caffeine,
(b) contains 40 ppm or more of geraniol,
(c) pH is 5.0 to 8.0;
Beverage. 2. The beverage of claim 1, having a Brix of 1 or less. 3. Beverage according to claim 1 or 2, containing a tea extract.