Acidic drink

Details Acidic drink Acidic drink

2000-06-19

2002-07-02

Paden, Carolyn (Department: 1761)

Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products

Product with added plural inorganic mineral or element...

C426S590000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06413561

ABSTRACT:

The present invention relates to an acid beverage with improved long-term stability, to a method of producing the same and to a kit containing the basic constituents of the beverage.
BACKGROUND ART
Milk-containing beverages have already been known since a long time. As early as 1905 the preparation of impregnated skimmed milk (“champagne milk”) was described, which was sweetened and aromatized by adding flavors. In Japan a sour milk beverage which is prepared by using lactobacillus cultures has already been on the market since 1935. This beverage based on fermented dairy products can also be refined with respect to its flavor with the help of a multitude of additives.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,260,085 describes a milk-containing beverage which contains water, milk solids, flavoring substances and a 2-component stabilizer system of monoglycerides and diglycerides as well as carrageenan and/or pectin. The beverage further contains a buffer system of sodium phosphate and potassium hydroxide to keep the pH between 6.3 and 6.5.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
U.S. Pat. No. 5,202,145 describes a method for producing a milk-containing beverage in which a homogenized composition of water, milk solids and a 2-component stabilizer system is mixed with an aqueous buffered solution provided with a flavorant and is subsequently heated. The 2-component stabilizer system contains a mixture consisting of a first component containing monoglycerides and up to 10% by wt. of diglycerides, and of a second component containing carrageenan and/or pectin. The buffer system consists of a mixture of sodium phosphate and potassium bicarbonate and has a pH of 6.8 to 7.2. The whole amount of potassium bicarbonate is converted by heating into potassium hydroxide and carbon dioxide, the pH of the beverage being adjusted to 6.3 to 6.5. The mik solids used have a milk fat content of at least 15% and a milk protein content of at least 25%, based on the weight of the milk solids used. The content of milk solids in the beverage is 1% by weight.
Although milk protein is sensitive to acid substances, resulting in coagulation and precipitation in the presence of acid-containing substances, such as fruit juices, there are quite a large number of milk-containing beverages with a pH above 3.0.
GB-A-1315718 describes a method for producing an acid milk beverage in which a mixture containing skimmed milk is set to a pH of 3.5 to 3.7 by adding suitable acids. The resulting beverage has a white milk-like turbidity.
U.S. Pat. No.4,194,019 describes a method for producing a stabilized, acid, milk-containing beverage. Skimmed milk is first set to a pH of 3.35 to 3.75 by adding an acid or by fermentation. The mixture is subsequently subjected to an ultra-heat temperature (UHT) treatment at 125° C. to 160° C. for not more than 10 seconds.
EP-B-449354 (DE-B-69101166) describes a method for producing an acid calcium-enriched fermented-milk beverage. To avoid stability problems during pasteurization, and prior to the bottling of the finished beverage, the concentration of the dry substances is increased in the milk to be fermented. Furthermore, a stabilizer and a small amount of a magnesium salt are added to the beverage.
The known milk-containing beverages have several drawbacks. As for their appearance and their flavor, the milk-containing beverages with an almost neutral pH are very similar to milk and have a heavy viscous character. In particular with respect to smell, flavor and texture, the milk-like appearance of these beverages is evaluated in a negative way. Thus they lack the refreshing acid character which can e.g. be achieved by adding edible acids or carbon dioxide. Often the beverages have flaws in the form of fat rings in the bottle neck or a very solid bottom sediment.
Acid milk-containing beverages exhibit heavy viscous characteristics due to the raw materials used, such as yoghurt or curdled milk, or due to their high milk content. The drinking pleasure rather resembles the consumption of a complete meal.
On account of the high viscosity and the low storage quality, which additionally requires an uninterrupted cooling chain, flaws in the beverage, such as ring formation, are not so often observed or are concealed by a suitable packaging (opaque cups) or consumption instructions (shake well before use). Moreover, a high-concentrate product cannot be obtained with the above-described methods. It is thus impossible to locate production and beverage bottling facilities at a great spatial distance from one another.
It is the object of the present invention to provide an acid beverage which exhibits a better storage stability than known acid beverages, and a method for producing the same, as well as a kit containing the basic constituents of the beverage.
This object is achieved by an acid beverage which contains at least one fat, one hydrocolloid, one milk protein and calcium and magnesium ions, at a pH of 3.5 to 4.5.
Preferably, the beverage contains 0.003 to 3.8 g/l of at least one fat, 0.1 to 10 g/l of at least one milk protein, 0.01 to 10 g/l of at least one hydrocolloid, 0.1 to 1.2 g/l calcium ions and 0.01 to 0.7 g/l magnesium ions.
The beverage according to the invention has excellent sensory characteristics, imparts good palatability and has a refreshing character.
The fat used in the beverage according to the invention may derive from any desired vegetable, animal or synthetic fats or fat sources or mixtures thereof.
The fat source used is preferably milk, usually cow milk, having a fat content of 0.3 to 4%, commercially available milk varieties (with fat contents of from 1.5 to 3.9%) being preferably used because of their easy availability. However, it is also possible to use milk concentrates or milk reconstituted from milk powder. Vegetable or animal fat sources are e.g. soybean oil, sunflower oil, rape oil, linseed oil, cottonseed oil or coconut fat or tallow, respectively, lard or butter.
The total fat content in the beverage is normally 0.003 to 3.8 g/l, preferably 0.03 to 1.5 g/l and particularly preferably 0.1 to 0.5 g/l.
The milk protein added to the beverage according to the invention is a protein found in natural milk or a mixture thereof. Said milk proteins are proteins such as caseins, whey proteins, minor components, such as fat globule membrane proteins or butyrophilin, or enzymes. Preferred are whey proteins, such as &bgr;-lactoglobulin, &agr;-lactalbumin, serum albumin, immunoglobulins or procous peptones. &agr;-lactalbumin is particularly preferred as the whey protein.
The total milk protein content of the beverage is suitably 0.1 to 10 g/l, preferably 0.3 to 3 g/l, particularly preferably 0.5 to 1.5 g/l.
If the beverage contains fat in the form of milk or dairy products, the amount of added milk protein is preferably at least 50% by wt. and particularly preferably 60 to 80% by wt., based on the total milk protein amount in the beverage.
Although the known fermented beverages can be produced more easily, they have a typical, often undesired taste because of the aroma development of the bacterial cultures used.
Acid-fermented dairy products are produced by using bacterial cultures. The bacteria (from the families Streptococcus and Lactobacillus) ferment the lactose of milk into lactic acid because of their metabolic activity. As a result, the pH falls below the isoelectric point of casein of about 4.65. This results in a coagulation of the proteins and in a further degradation, partly into the amino acids. Moreover, the bacterial cultures produce flavoring substances (acetaldehyde, acetoin, diacetyl, acetone) which determine the flavor of the acid-fermented products (Dieter Osteroth (editor) Taschenbuch für Lebensmittelchemie und -technologien, Vol. 2, 1
st
ed., Springer Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, 1991).
Thus the properties of a fermented milk product are preferred in an acid beverage with respect to stability because part of the protein structure has already been changed and will thus no longer be changed in an acid beverage. Sour or curdled dairy products, such as yoghurt, are thus particularly well

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