JP7488020B2 - Fermented beer-flavored beverage and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fermented beer-flavored beverage and a method for producing the same.

Hops are used as a raw material to impart bitterness and aroma to beer and beer-flavored beverages such as happoshu. Typically, hops are harvested, dried, and compressed or crushed into pellets before being used. However, processing such as drying inevitably causes the aromatic components contained in fresh hops to deteriorate or disappear.

In response to this, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for producing a fermented malt beverage, which is characterized in that, in producing the fermented malt beverage, ground fresh hops that have been frozen without drying after harvesting are used as a hop raw material or as a fresh hop flavor, with the aim of providing a highly aromatic fermented malt beverage, such as beer or happoshu, that has been imparted with the flavor of fresh raw hops, and a method for producing the same.

JP 2004-81113 A

The present inventors have found that fermented beer-flavored beverages that use ground fresh hops that have been frozen without drying after harvesting as a hop ingredient or fresh hop flavor, as described in Patent Document 1, have the problem of having a harsh or artificial aroma. The present inventors have also found that fermented beer-flavored beverages that use ground fresh hops that have not been dried or frozen (non-frozen ground hops) as a hop ingredient have a fresh (green), mild, and non-harsh aroma.

The present invention is based on this new finding, and aims to provide a fermented beer-flavored beverage that has a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma, and a method for producing the same.

The present invention relates to a fermented beer-flavored beverage having an S-fraction/bitterness value of 0.30 or more.

The fermented beer-flavored beverage of the present invention has the above-mentioned composition, and therefore has a fresh (green), mild, non-spiky aroma, and reduced sharp bitterness when consumed.

In the above fermented beer-taste beverage, the S-fraction/bitterness value may be 0.50 or less.

The present invention also relates to a method for producing a fermented beer-flavored beverage, which includes a step of adding non-frozen ground hops to a raw material liquid, the non-frozen ground hops being fresh hops ground in an undried and unfrozen state.

By using non-frozen ground hops, the production method of the present invention makes it possible to produce a fermented beer-flavored beverage that has a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma and has a reduced harsh bitterness when consumed. The production method of the present invention can be suitably used to produce a fermented beer-flavored beverage in which the above-mentioned S-fraction/bitterness value falls within a specified range.

In the manufacturing method according to the present invention, it is preferable that the non-frozen ground hops are fresh hops that have been pressurized and ground in an undried and unfrozen state. This makes the above-mentioned effects even more pronounced.

The present invention makes it possible to provide a fermented beer-flavored beverage that has a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma, and a method for producing the same. The fermented beer-flavored beverage of the present invention also has a reduced harsh bitterness when consumed.

The following describes in detail the embodiments for implementing the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[Fermented beer-flavored beverage]
The fermented beer-taste beverage according to this embodiment has an S-fraction/bitterness value ratio of 0.30 or greater.

In this specification, a beer-taste beverage refers to a beverage that has a beer-like flavor. Examples of beer-taste beverages include those classified as beer, happoshu, other brewed alcoholic beverages, and liqueurs under the Liquor Tax Act (Act No. 4 of March 31, 2017). A fermented beer-taste beverage is a beer-taste beverage produced through fermentation with yeast.

In this specification, "S-fraction" refers to the sum of the areas of all peaks detected before the iso-α acid peak in reverse phase chromatography, quantified as a relative value when the peak area of 100 ppm of iso-α acid is set to 100. The peak area of iso-α acid is the sum of the areas of all peaks of the homologous components.

The reversed-phase chromatography may be, for example, high-performance liquid chromatography using a reversed-phase column. Specifically, for example, a solid-phase extraction of a fermented beer-taste beverage may be used as an analytical sample, and detection may be performed based on absorbance at a wavelength of 275 nm. For example, an X Bridge C18 (manufactured by Waters, inner diameter 2.1 mm, length 150 mm, particle size 3.5 μm) may be used as the reversed-phase column. Analysis by reversed-phase chromatography may be performed, for example, according to the method described in the Examples below.

Bitterness value can be measured by the method described in "8.15 Bitterness Value" in the Revised BCOJ Beer Analysis Methods (published by the Brewing Society of Japan, edited by the International Technical Committee (Analysis Committee) of the Brewers Association of Japan, revised and expanded in 2013).

The value of S-fraction/bitterness value is the value obtained by dividing the S-fraction by the bitterness value. In the fermented beer-taste beverage according to this embodiment, the value of S-fraction/bitterness value may be 0.30 or greater. This allows the fermented beer-taste beverage to have a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma. The value of S-fraction/bitterness value may be greater than 0.30, may be 0.31 or greater, or may be 0.35 or greater. There is no particular upper limit to the value of S-fraction/bitterness value, but it is usually 0.50 or less.

The fermented beer-flavored beverage according to this embodiment may have a linalool content of 60 μg/L or more, 62.5 μg/L or more, 65 μg/L or more, 67.5 μg/L or more, or 70 μg/L or more. When the linalool content is within the above range, the effects of the present invention are more pronounced.

The linalool content of a fermented beer-flavored beverage can be measured, for example, by the SPME-GC-MS method. It is preferable to use the standard addition method.

The fermented beer-flavored beverage according to this embodiment may be a beer-flavored alcoholic beverage with an alcohol content (concentration) of 1.0 v/v% or more, or a non-alcoholic beer-flavored beverage with an alcohol content (concentration) of less than 1.0 v/v%. In this specification, alcohol means ethanol unless otherwise specified.

The alcohol content of the fermented beer-flavored beverage according to this embodiment is, for example, preferably 1.0 v/v% or more, more preferably 2.0 v/v% or more, even more preferably 3.0 v/v% or more, and even more preferably 4.0% or more. The upper limit of the alcohol content may be, for example, less than 20.0 v/v%, 10.0 v/v% or less, 9.0 v/v% or less, 8.0 v/v% or less, 7.0 v/v% or less, or 6.0 v/v% or less.

The fermented beer-taste beverage according to this embodiment may be either non-sparkling or sparkling. Here, non-sparkling means that the gas pressure at 20° C. is less than 0.049 MPa (0.5 kg/cm ² ), and sparkling means that the gas pressure at 20° C. is 0.049 MPa (0.5 kg/cm ² ) or more. If the beverage is sparkling, the upper limit of the gas pressure may be about 0.294 MPa (3.0 kg/cm ² ).

The fermented beer-taste beverage according to this embodiment may contain malt as an ingredient. Here, the ingredient refers to all ingredients used in the production of the fermented beer-taste beverage other than water and hops. Malt can be obtained by germinating barley. Examples of barley include barley, wheat, rye, oats, oats, and pearl barley, with barley being preferred. Malt contains malt extract. Malt extract is obtained by extracting extract components containing sugar and nitrogen from malt.

The proportion of malt in the raw material is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, 10% by weight or more, 25% by weight or more, 50% by weight or more, 66% by weight or more, or 100% by weight.

The raw material may contain a barley raw material other than malt. Examples of barley raw materials other than malt include barley, wheat, rye, oats, oats, and pearl barley, as well as processed barley products such as barley extract. Barley extract is obtained by extracting barley extract components containing sugar and nitrogen from barley. One type of barley raw material other than malt may be used alone, or two or more types may be used in combination.

Other auxiliary ingredients may be used as ingredients of the fermented beer-flavored beverage. Examples of auxiliary ingredients include starch ingredients such as corn, corn starch, corn grits, rice, and koryan, and carbohydrate ingredients such as liquid sugar and sugar. Furthermore, ingredients of the fermented beer-flavored beverage may include fruits and flavorings specified by government ordinance as described in Article 3, paragraph 12 (b) of the Liquor Tax Act. When these ingredients are included, the content of the above fruits and flavorings is preferably less than 5 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of malt. The ingredients of the fermented beer-flavored beverage may further include, for example, antioxidants, coloring agents, etc.

[Method for producing fermented beer-taste beverage]
The method for producing a fermented beer-taste beverage according to this embodiment includes a step of adding non-frozen ground hops to a raw material liquid. In this specification, the raw material liquid refers to the liquid that is the base of the fermented beer-taste beverage. The raw material liquid includes liquids used or produced in each step (e.g., sugar-containing liquid, boiled liquid, refined liquid, pre-fermentation liquid, and post-fermentation liquid, which are described below).

Non-frozen ground hops are fresh hops that have been ground (ground) in an undried and unfrozen state. The fresh hops used to prepare non-frozen ground hops may be hops (cones) that have not been dried after harvest, or may be hops (cones) that have been frozen for storage and/or transportation after harvest. When using hops that have been frozen after harvest, they should be thawed sufficiently before grinding (for example, by leaving them at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes).

There are no particular limitations on the method for crushing fresh hops, and any method that sufficiently destroys the lupulin contained in the hops (cones) may be used. Specific examples of methods for crushing fresh hops include a method in which fresh hops are crushed by friction, and a method in which fresh hops are sheared (while being extruded as necessary). As a method for crushing fresh hops, a method in which fresh hops are crushed by friction, a method in which fresh hops are sheared while being extruded, or the like, in which fresh hops are crushed under pressure, is preferred.

Grinding of fresh hops can be carried out, for example, by using a grinder (e.g., Supermascolloider, manufactured by Masuko Sangyo Co., Ltd.) to crush the fresh hops while applying pressure.

Fresh hops can be sheared, for example, using a mincer (e.g., Electric Mincer SG-30, Fukuno Sangyo Co., Ltd.) by crushing the fresh hops with the shearing force of a rotating blade while pushing them out.

The prepared non-frozen ground hops may be used as is or may be stored in a sealed state until use. If stored, it is preferable to store it frozen.

The manufacturing method according to this embodiment may include a fermentation step in which the raw material liquid is fermented with yeast. The manufacturing method according to this embodiment may also include a boiling step in which the raw material liquid is boiled before the fermentation step.

In the boiling process, the sugar-containing liquid is boiled to obtain a boiled liquid (sugar-containing liquid after boiling). A sugar-containing liquid is one that contains components that can be fermented into alcohol by yeast. Examples of sugar-containing liquids include wort and syrup. Wort is an unfermented liquid obtained through the saccharification of the above-mentioned barley raw material. Wort can be obtained, for example, through a process of mixing raw materials such as the above-mentioned barley raw material with water, a process of saccharifying the liquid containing the raw materials and water by a conventional method to obtain a saccharified liquid, and a process of filtering the saccharified liquid.

In the boiling process, hops may be added to the raw material liquid. There are no particular limitations on the hops added in the boiling process, and for example, conventionally used dried hops, hop pellets, and hop extracts can be used. The hops may be processed hop products such as low hops, hexa hops, tetra hops, and iso hop extracts.

The manufacturing method according to this embodiment may include a step of obtaining a pre-fermentation liquid after the boiling step and before the fermentation step. Specifically, the manufacturing method according to this embodiment may include, as a step of obtaining a pre-fermentation liquid, a removal step of removing solids from the raw material liquid, and a cooling step of cooling the raw material liquid, for example.

In the removal step, the solids in the boiled liquid are removed to obtain a refined liquid. The removal step can be carried out, for example, by precipitating the insoluble solids contained in the boiled liquid. Examples of the solids include thermal coagulations produced in the boiling step, and hop residues if hops are added in the boiling step. The removal step may be carried out in a whirlpool. The temperature of the raw material liquid in the removal step may be, for example, 99°C or less, 95°C or less, 92°C or less, 90°C or less, or 89°C or less, or 80°C or more, 85°C or more, or 90°C or more.

In the cooling process, the purified liquid is cooled to a temperature at which fermentation by yeast is possible to obtain a pre-fermentation liquid. In the cooling process, for example, the temperature of the pre-fermentation liquid may be cooled to 5°C or higher and 25°C or lower, 6°C or higher and 20°C or lower, or 7°C or higher and 15°C or lower.

In the fermentation process, the pre-fermentation liquid is fermented with yeast to obtain a post-fermentation liquid. In the fermentation process, yeast is added to carry out alcoholic fermentation. More specifically, the pre-fermentation liquid is inoculated with yeast and fermented to obtain a post-fermentation liquid containing alcohol produced by the yeast. The temperature of the raw material liquid in the fermentation process (fermentation temperature) may be, for example, 5°C or higher and 25°C or lower, 6°C or higher and 20°C or lower, or 7°C or higher and 15°C or lower.

The manufacturing method according to this embodiment may include a step of filtering the post-fermentation liquid as a post-fermentation step following the fermentation step. By carrying out the filtration step, insoluble solids, yeast, etc. can be removed from the post-fermentation liquid.

The manufacturing method according to this embodiment may include a post-fermentation process (aging process) as another post-fermentation process. The post-fermentation process may involve, for example, fermenting the post-fermentation liquid in a storage tank for several weeks.

In the manufacturing method according to this embodiment, other post-fermentation processes may include heating (sterilization), adding various additives (e.g., colorants, antioxidants, acidulants, bittering agents, flavorings), adding alcohol, carbonation, etc. to the post-fermentation liquid (or the post-fermentation liquid after the filtration process). Spirits, for example, can be used as the alcohol added in the post-fermentation process.

When the fermented beer-flavored beverage is non-alcoholic, it may be produced by fermenting it in the same way as regular beer or other beer-flavored beverages to produce alcohol, and then removing or reducing the amount of alcohol, or it may be produced by shortening the fermentation period to suppress the production of alcohol.

In the manufacturing method according to this embodiment, there is no particular restriction on the timing of adding the non-frozen ground hops to the raw material liquid, but from the viewpoint of more significantly achieving the effect of the present invention of obtaining a fermented beer-flavored beverage that has a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma and reduced harsh bitterness when drunk, it is preferable to add the hops after the latter half of the boiling process (the stage when the raw material liquid temperature is being lowered), and it is even more preferable to add the hops after the latter half of the boiling process and before the process of filtering the post-fermentation liquid.

Non-frozen ground hops may also be added to the raw material liquid by so-called late hopping (e.g., adding non-frozen ground hops to the raw material liquid (sugar-containing liquid or post-boiled liquid) while the temperature of the raw material liquid is being lowered in the latter half of the boiling process) or dry hopping (e.g., adding non-frozen ground hops to the raw material liquid (pre-fermentation liquid, fermentation liquid or post-fermentation liquid) before, during or after the fermentation process).

After the non-frozen ground hops are added to the raw liquid, there is no particular limit to the time for which the non-frozen ground hops are kept in contact with the raw liquid, but it can be set appropriately between 5 minutes and 4 weeks, for example, depending on the temperature of the raw liquid.

The fermented beer-taste beverage according to this embodiment can be provided in a container. Any container that can be sealed can be used, and so-called canned or barrel containers made of metal (such as aluminum or steel). Glass containers, PET bottle containers, paper containers, pouch containers, etc. can also be used as the container. There is no particular limit to the capacity of the container, and any container currently in circulation can be used. Note that it is preferable to use a metal container, as it is possible to completely block gas, moisture, and light and maintain stable quality at room temperature for a long period of time.

The production method according to this embodiment makes it possible to obtain a fermented beer-flavored beverage that has a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma and has a reduced harsh bitterness when consumed. Furthermore, as shown in the examples below, a fermented beer-flavored beverage with such a flavor has an S-fraction/bitterness value of 0.30 or more.

As one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method for imparting a fresh, mild, and non-harsh aroma to a fermented beer-taste beverage, the method including a step of adding non-frozen ground hops to a raw material liquid. As another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method for reducing the harsh bitterness of a fermented beer-taste beverage, the method including a step of adding non-frozen ground hops to a raw material liquid.

The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples. However, the present invention is not limited to the following examples.

[Preparation of hops]
The hops used were Cascade grown in Hokkaido in 2017. The hops were frozen and stored at -20°C immediately after harvest.

Preparation of Non-Frozen Ground Hops
Hops (cones) that had been frozen and stored without drying were thawed at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes. The thawed fresh hops were crushed using a cutting plate (5 mm) in a mincer (electric mincer SG-30, Fukuno Sangyo Co., Ltd.). Hops that were immediately sealed after crushing and frozen at -20°C and stored at -20°C until use were designated "non-frozen crushed hops (immediately after crushing)", and hops that were left at room temperature for 3 hours after crushing, sealed, frozen at -20°C, and stored at -20°C until use were designated "non-frozen crushed hops (3 hours)".

Preparation of frozen ground hops
For comparison, frozen ground hops were prepared as follows: Hops (cones) that had not been dried but had been frozen were placed in a mortar, an appropriate amount of liquid nitrogen was poured in, and the hops were ground using a pestle. Immediately after grinding, the hops were sealed and frozen at -20°C, and then stored at -20°C until use.

[Production of fermented beer-flavored beverages]
(Rate hopping)
Malt and water were mixed, and then saccharified by a conventional method to obtain a saccharified liquid. The obtained saccharified liquid was filtered, and then hops (hop pellets and hop extract) were added and boiled in a boiling kettle. After boiling, the hot wort was transferred to a whirlpool, and solids in the hot wort were precipitated and removed. The obtained purified liquid was cooled to obtain wort.

The hops (non-frozen-ground hops or frozen-ground hops) prepared above were added to the obtained wort in a ratio of 22.3% by weight/volume based on the wort, and then treated at 105°C for 5 minutes. This was cooled to obtain the hop liquid.

Hop liquid was added to the wort to give a concentration of 3.09 volume/volume percent, and then beer yeast was added and fermented in a fermentation tank. The resulting fermented liquid was stored in a pre-filtration tank, after which a fermented beer-flavored beverage (late hopping) was obtained.

(Dry hopping)
Malt and water were mixed, and then saccharified by a conventional method to obtain a saccharified liquid. The obtained saccharified liquid was filtered, and then hops (hop pellets and hop extract) were added and boiled in a boiling kettle. After boiling, the hot wort was transferred to a whirlpool, and solids in the hot wort were precipitated and removed. The obtained purified liquid was cooled to obtain wort (pre-fermentation liquid).

The hops (non-frozen crushed hops or frozen crushed hops) prepared above were added to the wort at a ratio of 0.668 wt/vol % based on the wort, and beer yeast was added and fermented in a fermentation tank. The resulting fermented liquid was stored in a pre-filtration tank, and a fermented beer-flavored beverage (dry hopped) was obtained.

[Analysis and evaluation of fermented beer-flavored beverages]
(Measurement of Bitterness Value)
The bitterness value of the fermented beer-taste beverage was measured according to the method described in “8.15 Bitterness Value” of the Revised BCOJ Beer Analysis Methods (published by the Brewing Society of Japan, edited by the International Technical Committee [Analysis Committee] of the Brewers Association of Japan, revised and expanded in 2013).

(Measurement of S-fraction)
The S-fraction of the fermented beer-taste beverage was measured by solid-phase extraction of the fermentation liquid sample (fermented beer-taste beverage) followed by reverse-phase chromatography (high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using a reverse-phase column).

Solid-phase extraction was performed as follows. After conditioning a column (Bond Elut C8, 50 mg, 1 mL, GL Sciences) with a methanol-1.7% phosphoric acid solution, the column was equilibrated with a 0.186 g/L EDTA-2Na aqueous solution. 3 mL of the fermentation liquid sample was applied to the column, which was then washed and eluted with a 90% methanol, 1.5% phosphoric acid, 0.0019 g/L EDTA-2Na solution. This eluate was used as the analytical sample and subjected to measurement by reverse phase chromatography.

Measurement by reverse phase chromatography (HPLC using a reverse phase column) was carried out as follows.
<HPLC conditions>
Column: X Bridge C18 (Waters, inner diameter 2.1 mm, length 150 mm, particle diameter 3.5 μm)
Mobile phase A: 0.043% phosphoric acid, 0.2 g/L EDTA 2Na aqueous solution Mobile phase B: acetonitrile Flow rate: 320 μL/min Sample injection volume: 8 μL
Mobile phase gradient:
Mobile phase A Mobile phase B
0 minutes 62% 38%
32 minutes 45% 55%
45 minutes 25% 75%
53 minutes 25% 75%
54 minutes 62% 38%
70 minutes 62% 38%
Detection wavelength: 275 nm
From the measurement results, the sum of the areas of all peaks detected before iso-α-acids was calculated (S-fraction peak area). The S-fraction was quantified by converting the S-fraction peak area into a relative value when the peak area at 100 ppm of iso-α-acids was set to 100.

(Measurement of linalool)
The linalool content in the fermented beer-flavored beverage was measured by solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS). Specifically, 8 mL of the fermentation liquid sample was placed in an SPME vial containing 3 g of sodium chloride and sealed. The calibration curve was created by the standard addition method. After shaking each vial at 40°C for 15 minutes, an SPME fiber (Polydimethylsiloxane/Divinylbenzene 65 μm: manufactured by Supelco) was exposed to the headspace in the vial. Volatile components were adsorbed on the fiber at 40°C for 15 minutes, and then desorbed at the inlet for 3 minutes, and analyzed by GC/MS. The GC/MS analysis conditions were as follows:
・Analytical equipment: Agilent GC-MS 5973N
Column: HP-1MS 30m x 0.25mm, film thickness 1.0μm
Injection method: splitless injection Constant flow: 1.1 mL/min
Carrier gas: He
Inlet temperature: 260°C
Transfer line: 320°C
Oven temperature: 40°C (3 min) → 5°C/min → 200°C (0 min) → 10°C/min → 320°C (0 min)

(sensory evaluation)
In the sensory evaluation, the aroma of the fermented beer-flavored beverage was evaluated as "mild,""green," and "spiky," while the taste of the fermented beer-flavored beverage was evaluated as "spiky (bitter)." The aromas of "mild,""green," and "spiky" were evaluated by five selected panelists with distinguishing abilities, and the taste of "spiky (bitter)" was evaluated by four panelists.

Fermented beer-flavored beverages produced by dry hopping using frozen crushed hops were scored at 2 points (standard), with each item scored from 0 to 5 points (in increments of 0.5 points), and the average of all panels was used as the evaluation score. For the "mild" item, 5 points were given if mild, and 0 points if not mild. For the "green" item, 5 points were given if green, and 0 points if not green. For the "spiky" item, 5 points were given if not prickly, and 0 points were given if prickly. For the "spiky (bitter)" item, 5 points were given if not prickly, and 0 points were given if prickly. For each item, the higher the score, the more preferable the beverage.

The results of various analyses and the sensory evaluation are shown in Table 1.

As shown in Table 1, the fermented beer-flavored beverage produced with the addition of non-frozen-ground hops (made by grinding fresh hops in a non-dried, non-frozen state) received higher scores in all sensory evaluation items than the fermented beer-flavored beverage produced with the addition of frozen-ground hops (made by grinding fresh hops in a frozen state). This tendency was the same regardless of the timing of hop addition (late hopping, dry hopping).

Claims (3)

A fermented beer-flavored beverage having an S-fraction/bitterness value ratio of 0.30 or more and 0.50 or less . adding non-frozen ground hops to the liquid feedstock;
2. The method for producing a fermented beer-taste beverage according to claim 1 , wherein the non-frozen ground hops are obtained by grinding fresh hops in an undried and unfrozen state. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the non-frozen ground hops are obtained by crushing fresh hops under pressure in a state in which the fresh hops are neither dried nor frozen.