Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Products per se – or processes of preparing or treating... – Beverage or beverage concentrate
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-27
2002-02-26
Pratt, Helen (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Products per se, or processes of preparing or treating...
Beverage or beverage concentrate
C426S573000, C426S658000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06350484
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a liquid beverage concentrate and to finished beverages made therefrom. More particularly, this invention relates to formulations of liquid beverage concentrates that allow for highly concentrated, easily mixed formulations having extended shelf lives and that provide finished beverages with excellent taste and mouth feel.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The beverage industry currently uses a number of product formats to deliver various beverages to the consumer in a convenient manner, including ready to consume liquids, dry mixes and liquid concentrates. Shipping and storage costs of bulky, ready to consume products are relatively high, and refrigeration may be required to increase shelf life. This is particularly true for packaging, shipping and storing single serve bottles, cans, bags or boxes.
Liquid concentrates in bulk packaging may be mixed with water and rapidly chilled or heated by dispenser systems at the point of consumption. The higher concentrations reduce shipping bulk and cost by eliminating shipment of water, which is easily obtained at the final mixing location. Packaging costs are also reduced. Liquid concentrates may still require special storage conditions, particularly after being opened. Furthermore, concentrates may be of a lower quality compared to ready to consume products due to poor taste or mouth feel from improper mixing/dilution of the concentrate. There is also a practical limit on the degree of concentration obtainable for liquid beverage mixes, in that the water content must remain high enough to provide a flowable product that is readily pumped and mixed to obtain the desired final product. Furthermore, a product that is too viscous or that is not readily miscible will require longer mixing times and/or more agitation to properly prepare the final product from the concentrate.
Dry mixes or powdered/crystalline formulations often provide the optimum in transportation and storage in that dry goods tend to be more easily handled, do not contain water weight, and tend to be less susceptible to spoilage. However, use of dry mixes is particularly fraught with difficulties in providing convenient dispensing at the point of use. The mix must be properly rehydrated and then dispensed. Such mixes also frequently provide final products with inferior taste and mouth feel compared to ready to consume products and beverages prepared from concentrates. It is frequently difficult to obtain complete dissolution of powder or crystalline mixes in a convenient manner.
Of particular interest is the rising demand for convenient product forms for delivering cold or “frozen” coffee, cappuccino and cocoa beverages. Flavorings for these beverages tend to be problematic for concentrates due to their low solubility/poor suspension characteristics and typically require more dilute solutions to achieve acceptable products.
There is, therefore, a need for improved formulations of liquid beverage concentrates that optimize shipping, handling and storage considerations, but remain flowable and highly miscible for ease of pumping, accuracy of dispensing, and ease and speed of mixing to provide final products. There is also a continued need for liquid beverage concentrates that are resistant to spoilage and can be stored under ambient conditions for several months without detriment to the final consumable product.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide liquid beverage concentrates that are diluted with three to six volumes of water to prepare the intended final beverage products.
It is also an object of the invention to provide liquid beverage concentrates that are easily diluted with water to provide final beverage products with excellent taste and mouth feel, particularly for concentrates of beverages with coffee, cappuccino, tea, cocoa or chocolate flavorings or mixtures thereof.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide liquid beverage concentrates having sufficiently low viscosity to allow the use of conventional beverage pumps and dispensers.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide liquid beverage concentrates having improved shelf lives under ambient storage conditions without reliance on additional preservatives or sterile packaging techniques.
These and other objects and benefits are achieved by formulating liquid beverage concentrates using a combination of fructose, non-dairy creamer, xanthan gum, tragacanth gum and water, together with desired flavorings and other optional elements commonly found in beverage formulations.
With all concentrations expressed as weight percent of the concentrate, one embodiment of the present inventive liquid beverage concentrate comprises at least 25% fructose, at least 20% non-dairy creamer and between about 0.075 and about 0.3% gum mixture, wherein the gum mixture is a combination of xanthan gum and tragacanth gum.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the concentrate comprises about 25-45% fructose, about 20-45% non-dairy creamer and about 0.075-0.3% gum mixture, wherein the gum mixture comprises about 0.02-0.28% each independently of xanthan gum and tragacanth gum.
In another preferred embodiment, the liquid beverage concentrate of the present invention comprises about 30-40%, preferably about 33-38% fructose, about 25-40%, preferably about 28-35% non-dairy creamer, and about 0.075-0.3% , preferably about 0.1-0.2% gum mixture, wherein the gum mixture comprises about 0.02-0.28%, preferably about 0.03-0.27% each independently of xanthan gum and tragacanth gum.
In yet another preferred embodiment, the flavoring of the liquid beverage concentrate of the present invention comprises one or more flavorings selected from the group consisting of coffee, cappuccino, tea, cocoa and chocolate. Each flavoring selected is preferably present at a concentration of about 0.1-3.0%, with a combined total flavoring concentration of about 0.4-8% by weight of the concentrate.
Further objects, embodiments and features of the present invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to preferred embodiments and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended. Any alterations and further modifications in the described embodiments, and any further applications of the principles of the invention as described herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.
Liquid beverage concentrates of the present invention are prepared by mixing fructose, non-dairy creamer, xanthan gum and tragacanth gum in water together with flavorings and optionally other common beverage components to provide a flowable concentrate that can be easily diluted to provide liquid beverages with excellent taste and mouth feel. The concentrate formulations of the present invention also allow for enhanced benefits of low cost, convenience, ease of use, preferred packaging and long shelf life. These benefits are achieved as a result of the novel combination of the above mentioned elements.
Fructose is used for its greater sweetening strength, weight for weight as compared to sucrose (cane sugar). Fructose is roughly 1.5 times sweeter than sucrose in cold media, which allows finished beverage formulations to comprise 8-10% sweetener, rather than the typical 10-15% sweetener of prior art formulations. The lower solids content of the finished product allows for a greater percent reduction of water content in the concentrate while maintaining a sufficiently low viscosity to enable the use of conventional beverage pumps. In one preferred embodiment, the concentration of fructose and other components is selected so that the viscosity of the concentrate is sufficiently low to enable the use of a standard soda fountain “bag-in-a-box”
Pratt Helen
VitaChlor Corporation
Woodard Emhardt Naughton Moriarty & McNett
LandOfFree
Liquid beverage concentrate does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Liquid beverage concentrate, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Liquid beverage concentrate will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2941456