阅读说明：本技术 啤酒味发酵麦芽饮料 (Beer-flavored fermented malt beverage ) 是由 久保田顺 前川祥太郎 于 2020-10-09 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明的课题在于,提供一种啤酒味发酵麦芽饮料,其适口感优异、与酸味协调的甜味优异、具有啤酒样的香味、醇浓度低于1％(v/v)。课题的解决手段是一种啤酒味发酵麦芽饮料,其包含麦汁发酵液、真正提取物为3.5％(w/w)以上,并且醇浓度低于1％(v/v)。(The present invention addresses the problem of providing a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage that has an excellent palatability, an excellent sweetness that is compatible with sourness, a beer-like flavor, and an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v). The solution of the problem is a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage comprising a wort fermentation broth, a true extract of 3.5% (w/w) or more, and an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v).)

1. A beer-flavored fermented malt beverage comprising a wort fermentation broth, a true extract of 3.5% (w/w) or more, and an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v).

2. The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage according to claim 1, wherein the sum of the concentrations of isomaltose, isomaltotriose and panose is 4.0mg/ml or more.

3. The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage according to claim 1 or 2, which contains a dealcoholized wort fermentation broth.

4. The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the apparent final degree of fermentation of the wort fermentation broth is 80% or less.

5. A method for producing a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage having an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v), the method comprising:

fermenting the transglucosidase-treated wort with yeast to obtain a wort fermentation broth having an apparent final degree of fermentation of 80% or less; and

and a step of reducing the alcohol concentration to less than 1% (v/v) by removing the alcohol from the wort fermentation liquid.

6. The method for producing a beer-taste fermented malt beverage according to claim 5, wherein the real extract of the beer-taste fermented malt beverage is 3.5% (w/w) or more.

7. The method for producing a beer-taste fermented malt beverage according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the sum of the concentrations of isomaltose, isomaltotriose and panose in the beer-taste fermented malt beverage is 4.0mg/ml or more.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a beer-taste fermented malt beverage, and particularly to a beer-taste fermented malt beverage having an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v). In the present specification, the expression "alcohol concentration is less than 1% (v/v)" means that both an alcohol and an alcohol are contained in an amount of less than 1% (v/v). The expression "alcohol" refers to ethanol.

The "fermented malt beverage" refers to a beverage obtained by fermenting malt using malt as a raw material. The term "beer taste" means that the taste and aroma of beer are reminiscent. The term "beer" refers to a beverage obtained by fermenting malt, hops, water, and the like as raw materials with yeast.

Background

For the purpose of achieving alcohol-free, an alcohol-free beer-taste beverage is sometimes produced without going through an alcohol fermentation step. Beer as a fermentation product has a complicated flavor, and it is difficult to reproduce the flavor by blending flavors or the like. Therefore, there is still room for improvement in the non-fermented non-alcoholic beer-taste beverage in terms of palatability, which is the feeling of feeling in the throat, harmony between sweetness and sourness, and beer-like flavor.

On the other hand, low-alcohol beers produced by removing alcohol components from ordinary beers are known. When an alcohol component is removed from beer as a fermentation product, a beer-taste beverage is provided by a flavor component remaining in the beer produced in the alcohol fermentation process.

Patent document 1 describes a beer-taste beverage obtained by subjecting beer after fermentation to dealcoholization treatment to remove alcohol components. In paragraph 0003 of the same document, the following problems are pointed out with respect to the non-alcoholic beer-like beverage: the removal of the alcohol component results in removal of the aroma and sweetness of the alcohol component, and as a result, there are problems in that beer-like aroma is insufficient, sweetness is low, and rich and refreshing feeling are insufficient in terms of the sense.

Patent document 1 attempts to solve the problem by adding predetermined amounts of malt extract and sugar (claim 1). However, malt extracts have an unpleasant odor known as the so-called wort odor. Therefore, the non-alcoholic beer-like beverage to which this malt extract is added is inferior in preference because it has not only a beer-like flavor but also an unpleasant odor.

Patent document 2 describes a method for producing a low-alcohol fermented malt beverage, which is characterized in that transglucosidase is added to malt mash containing malt in a charging step, saccharification is performed so that the proportion of non-fermentable sugars in the total sugars in wort before the fermentation step is 30 to 70 mass%, and an organic acid is added at any time of the production step so that the pH of the final product becomes 3.5 to 4.4 (claim 1). The obtained low-alcohol fermented malt beverage has well-balanced taste and flavor compared with general beers.

However, the low-alcohol fermented malt beverage of patent document 2 still has a high alcohol concentration of 4% by volume or less (claim 7), and therefore the aroma and sweetness of the alcohol component contribute to its organoleptic properties. The method of patent document 2 does not perform dealcoholization and does not particularly provide a beer-taste fermented malt beverage having an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v).

Prior art documents

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2003-250503

Patent document 2: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2012 and 239460

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a beer-taste fermented malt beverage having an excellent palatability, an excellent sweetness in harmony with sourness, a beer-like flavor, and an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v). In the present specification, "palatability" means a feeling of touch or throat-hang feeling felt in the throat when a liquid is taken. The "sweet taste coordinated with sour taste" means a sweet taste that does not cause excessive sour taste as a beer taste while alleviating the stimulation of sour taste.

Means for solving the problems

The present invention provides a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage comprising a wort fermentation broth, wherein the true extract content is 3.5% (w/w) or more, and the alcohol concentration is less than 1% (v/v).

In one embodiment, the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage has a total concentration of isomaltose, isomaltotriose, and panose of 4.0mg/ml or more.

In one embodiment, the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage contains a dealcoholized wort fermentation broth.

In one embodiment, the wort fermentation broth has an apparent final degree of fermentation of 80% or less.

Further, the present invention provides a method for producing a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage having an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v), the method comprising:

a step of subjecting a transglucosidase-treated wort containing 20 wt% or more of non-assimilable sugars based on the total sugar mass to yeast fermentation to obtain a wort fermentation broth having an apparent final degree of fermentation of 80% or less; and

removing the alcohol from the wort fermentation broth to reduce the alcohol concentration to less than 1% (v/v).

In one embodiment, the real extract of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage is 3.5% (w/w) or more.

In one embodiment, the sum of the concentrations of isomaltose, isomaltotriose and panose in the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage is 4.0mg/ml or more.

Effects of the invention

The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage having an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v) of the present invention has excellent palatability, excellent sweetness in harmony with sourness, and a beer-like flavor.

Detailed Description

The beer-taste fermented malt beverage of the present invention can be produced by adding transglucosidase to malt mash containing malt and saccharifying the malt mash in a method for producing a beer-taste fermented malt beverage having an alcohol concentration of less than 1% (v/v) by using malt as a raw material.

The transglucosidase used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is an enzyme having catalytic activity for glycosyltransfer reaction, and various transglucosidase derived from a living organism can be used. For example, any of commercially available transglucosidase enzymes can be used, and these enzymes can be used in combination.

The time at which the transglucosidase is added to the malt mash is not particularly limited as long as the enzyme reaction by the added transglucosidase is sufficiently performed before the end of the charging step. For example, the transglucosidase may be added together with a fermentation material such as malt at the time of preparation of malt mash, or may be added in the middle of saccharification reaction. In the present invention, in order to sufficiently progress the enzymatic reaction by transglucosidase, the transglucosidase is preferably added at the time of preparing the malt mash or at an early stage of the charging step, and more preferably at the time of preparing the malt mash.

For example, first, a crushed product of malt, an auxiliary material such as barley, and warm water are added to a charging tank and mixed to prepare malt mash. The preparation of the malt mash can be carried out by a conventional method, for example, by first holding the malt mash at 35 to 60 ℃ for 20 to 90 minutes to decompose the protein derived from the raw material into amino acids and the like, and transferring the resulting product to a saccharification step. In this case, an enzyme such as transglucosidase, a perfume, a fragrance component such as a fragrant grass, or the like may be added as necessary in addition to the main material and the auxiliary material.

Thereafter, the mash is slowly heated and held at a predetermined temperature for a certain period of time, whereby the starchy material is saccharified by an enzyme derived from malt or an enzyme added to the mash. The temperature and time for the mashing treatment may be appropriately determined in consideration of the kind of enzyme used, the amount of mash, the quality of the target wort fermentation broth, and the like, and may be maintained at 60 to 72 ℃ for 30 to 90 minutes, for example. After the saccharification treatment, the mash is kept at 76 to 78 ℃ for about 10 minutes, and then the mash is filtered by a wort filtration tank to obtain a transparent sugar solution. In addition, when the saccharification treatment is performed, an appropriate amount of enzyme may be added within a necessary range.

The feedstock for mashing comprises malt. The content of malt in the raw material for mashing is not particularly limited, but is 25% or more, preferably 50% or more, and more preferably 67% or more. The starting material for mashing may be a malt usage ratio of 100%. The ratio (%) of malt to all the raw materials except water is referred to as malt usage ratio. Generally, the higher the malt usage rate, the stronger the malt-derived flavor, body and texture of the resulting wort.

The auxiliary raw material is a raw material other than malt and hops. Examples of the auxiliary raw materials include starch materials such as barley, wheat, corn starch, corn grits, rice, and sorghum, and sugar materials such as liquid sugar and granulated sugar. Here, liquid sugar is produced by decomposing and saccharifying starch with an acid or a saccharifying enzyme, and mainly contains glucose, maltose, maltotriose, and the like. In addition, spices, herbs, fruits, and the like used for the purpose of imparting or improving a fragrance are also included in the auxiliary materials.

The saccharifying enzyme is an enzyme that decomposes starchy materials to produce sugars. Examples of the saccharifying enzyme include α -amylase, glucoamylase, and pullulanase.

The wort boiling operation may be carried out according to a method and conditions which are generally carried out in the production of beer. For example, a sugar solution having a pH adjusted is transferred to a boiling kettle and boiled. Hops were added while the vortex pool was still standing from the start of boiling of the sugar solution. As hops, hop extracts or components extracted from hops can be used. The sugar solution is transferred to a settling tank called a vortex tank, and after hop cake generated by boiling and coagulated protein are removed, the sugar solution is cooled to an appropriate temperature by a plate cooler. The above procedure until the wort is boiled can be used to obtain transglucosidase-treated wort.

The non-assimilable sugars are sugars that brewer's yeast does not utilize as a nutrient source for alcoholic fermentation or the like. The lager brewing yeast used in the present invention assimilates glucose, fructose, maltose, and maltotriose. Therefore, sugars other than these are collectively referred to as non-assimilable sugars. Specific examples of the non-assimilable saccharides contained in the transglucosidase-treated wort include isomaltose, isomaltotriose, panose, oligosaccharides of 4 or more saccharides, and non-assimilable polysaccharides. The non-assimilable sugars remain even after the fermentation step and the alcohol removal step, which are described later.

The amount of transglucosidase used in preparing the mash may be appropriately adjusted so that the amount of non-assimilable sugars in the wort falls within the above range, taking into consideration the type and reaction conditions thereof. Generally, the amount of the solid component of the malt mash is 0.05 to 20g/kg, preferably 0.1 to 7g/kg, and more preferably 0.25 to 5 g/kg.

The resultant transglucosidase-treated wort was fermented with yeast. Fermenting the wort according to conventional method. For example, beer yeast is inoculated into the cooled wort, transferred to a fermentation tank, and subjected to alcoholic fermentation.

The final fermentation degree of the wort fermentation broth is preferably 80% or less. If the apparent final fermentation degree of the wort fermentation liquid exceeds 80%, the resulting beer-taste beverage is not sufficiently palatable, and the sour taste tends to be strong. The final fermentation degree of the appearance of the wort fermentation liquid is preferably 45-80%, and more preferably 50-75%.

The degree of fermentation is an important index indicating how much fermentation has progressed in beer after fermentation, and the degree of progress of fermentation. The final degree of fermentation is a ratio of an extract assimilable by brewer's yeast to an original wort extract. Here, the extract assimilable by a brewer's yeast is obtained by subtracting an extract contained in a beer product (that is, an extract remaining after fermentation of all of the extract utilizable by a brewer's yeast (referred to as a final extract)) from an extract of a raw wort. The apparent final degree of fermentation is the final degree of fermentation calculated from the value of the final extract using the extract concentration (% (w/w)) determined from the specific gravity of the apparent extract, i.e., the beer still containing alcohol.

Note that the extract means a nonvolatile solid component. The term extract, depending on the context, refers to the non-volatile solids content itself, the amount of non-volatile solids content, or the concentration of non-volatile solids content.

The apparent final degree of fermentation Vend of wort fermentation broth can be determined, for example, by the following formula (1).

Vend(％)＝{(P-Eend)/P}×100 (1)

[ in the formula, P is a raw wort extract, and Eend is an appearance final extract. ]

The raw wort extract P is an amount obtained by reversely deducing the theoretical value of the wort extract before alcoholic fermentation according to the Balling formula based on the alcohol concentration of the product beer and the value of the extract. Specifically, it can be determined by the method shown in Analytica-EBC (9.4) (2007). Appearance the final extract, ended, can be determined as follows: the value of the apparent extract in the beer residue was determined by collecting beer in a flask, adding a large amount of fresh compressed yeast, fermenting at 25 ℃ while stirring until the extract value could not be further reduced (24 hours), and measuring the value of the apparent extract in the beer residue.

Appearance the final extract, eind, sometimes shows a negative value as calculated from the specific gravity of the final extract containing alcohol. As a result, the apparent final fermentation degree may exceed 100%.

The apparent final degree of fermentation can be controlled by, for example, adjusting the saccharification conditions, the presence or absence of an enzyme when saccharifying a raw material, the type and amount of raw material to be blended, and the like. For example, the apparent final degree of fermentation can be reduced by reducing the amount of the assimilating sugars contained in the malt mash.

After the fermentation is completed, the resulting wort fermentation liquid is aged in a wine storage tank and stored at a low temperature of about 0 ℃ to stabilize the wort fermentation liquid as a further aging step. Then, as a filtration step, yeast, protein, and the like are removed by filtering the aged wort fermentation liquid.

The wort fermentation liquid from which yeast, protein, and the like have been removed can be used to remove carbon dioxide, if necessary. The wort fermentation liquor is subjected to a dealcoholization step to remove the alcohol contained therein. The dealcoholization step is carried out until the alcohol concentration in the wort fermentation broth is, for example, less than 1% (v/v), preferably less than 0.5% (v/v), more preferably less than 0.1% (v/v). The dealcoholization step is carried out by a conventionally known method. For example, a vacuum distillation method may be used. In this case, it is preferable to use a method of leaving the flavor components generated in the alcohol fermentation process.

The dealcoholized wort fermentation broth preferably has a true extract concentration above 3.5% (w/w). If the true extract concentration of the dealcoholized wort fermentation broth is less than 3.5% (w/w), it is difficult to appropriately adjust the extract concentration of the resulting beer-taste beverage, and as a result, the palatability is insufficient and the sourness tends to be strong. The concentration of the real extract in the dealcoholized wort fermentation broth is preferably 3.5 to 10.0% (w/w), more preferably 4.0 to 7.5% (w/w).

The true extract concentration means the concentration of nonvolatile solids (% w/w). The actual extract concentration of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage can be measured, for example, by the EBC method (edited by beer brewing combination: BCOJ beer analysis method, 7.2 (2004)).

The dealcoholized wort fermented liquid contains isomaltose, isomaltotriose and panose in a total concentration of 4.0mg/ml or more. If the concentration is less than 4.0mg/ml, the taste of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage is insufficient and the sour taste tends to be strong. The concentration of the dealcoholized wort fermentation liquid is preferably 6.0 to 25.0mg/ml, more preferably 10.0 to 23.0 mg/ml.

The concentration of isomaltose, isomaltotriose, and panose contained in the dealcoholized wort fermentation broth can be measured, for example, by using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS), or the like.

If necessary, a pH adjusting agent is added to the dealcoholized wort fermentation broth to lower the pH. By sufficiently lowering the pH, the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage of the present invention can be obtained by imparting the bacteriostatic activity required for the commercial beverage. The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage of the present invention may have a low pH to such an extent that the anti-spoilage effect can be obtained. The upper limit of the specific pH is below 4.2, preferably below 4.1, more preferably below 4.0. On the other hand, the lower limit of the pH is 3.0 or more, preferably 3.3 or more, and more preferably 3.6 or more.

The type of the pH adjuster is not limited. The pH adjuster is not limited to food additives, and may be any acid, salt, or beer material having a pH lowering ability, which can be used in, for example, beverages, foods, and processes for producing them. Examples of beer raw materials having a pH lowering ability include acid malt and dark malt. Preferred pH adjusting agents are phytic acid, citric acid, lactic acid bacteria, phosphoric acid, malic acid, sulfurous anhydride, tartaric acid, gluconic acid, acetic acid, succinic acid, adipic acid, itaconic acid, fumaric acid, and combinations thereof. More preferred pH adjusting agents are phytic acid, lactic acid bacteria, phosphoric acid, malic acid, sulfurous anhydride, tartaric acid, and combinations thereof. Among them, phytic acid having less sour taste is most preferable in consideration of influence on flavor of beer-taste beverages.

Adding bitter substance into the dealcoholized wort fermentation liquor as required to adjust bitterness value. As the bitter substance, the isolated iso-alpha acid may be used. In addition, the isoalpha acids are contained in hops and can be used as hops or hop extracts. The hop or hop extract refers to hop leaves, ground hop leaves, an extract obtained by extracting the leaves with water or hot water, a concentrate of the extract, and a dried extract.

The bitterness value of a beer-taste beverage is adjusted to be equivalent to that of beer. Specifically, the bitterness value of a beer-flavored beverage is adjusted to 5 to 100BU, preferably 10 to 35BU, and more preferably 15 to 27 BU. The bitterness value of a beer-flavored beverage can be edited by a beer brewing combination: BCOJ beer analysis, the method described in 8.15 (2004).

Carbon dioxide is added to the dealcoholized wort fermentation broth by a carbonation process. Thus, the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage of the present invention can be obtained. The amount of carbon dioxide added was adjusted so as to provide the same foamability as beer. Specifically, the amount of carbon dioxide to be added is adjusted to 1.2 to 5.0, preferably 2.4 to 3.5, and more preferably 2.6 to 3.2Gas Volume.

The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage of the present invention contains an extract derived from a wort fermentation broth at a concentration of 3.5% (w/w) or more. If the extract concentration derived from the wort fermentation broth is less than 3.5% (w/w), the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage will have an insufficient palatability and will tend to have a strong sour taste. The concentration of the extract derived from the wort fermentation broth of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage is preferably 3.5 to 10.0% (w/w), more preferably 4.0 to 7.5% (w/w).

The beer-flavored fermented malt beverage of the present invention contains isomaltose, isomaltotriose, and panose at a total concentration of 4.0mg/ml or more. If the concentration is less than 4.0mg/ml, the taste of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage is insufficient and the sour taste tends to be strong. The concentration of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage is preferably 6.0 to 25.0mg/ml, more preferably 10.0 to 23.0 mg/ml.

The present invention will be described more specifically with reference to the following examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples. In the examples, the units of concentration and content are based on weight unless otherwise specified.

Examples

< example 1>

[ Process for producing beer-flavored fermented malt beverages ]

Crushed malt, warm water and transglucosidase (manufactured by Ganshina enzyme products Co., Ltd. "transglucosidase L") were added to a charging tank, after protein inactivation was performed at about 55 ℃, the liquid was transferred from a charging tank to the charging tank, and saccharification was performed at a temperature in the range of 60 ℃ to 76 ℃. The saccharified solution was filtered through a Reuther filter (port イタ I) as a filtration tank, and then transferred to a boiling pot, to which hop was added and boiled for 60 minutes. After boiling, an evaporated amount of warm water was added thereto, and the hot solidified material (Hot Ice bank, 12523one ブ) was removed in a vortex bath, followed by cooling to 8 ℃ using a stave cooler to obtain a transglucosidase-treated wort. The amount of transglucosidase added was 0.5% (w/w) in test solution A, 0.15% (w/w) in test solution B, 0.025% (w/w) in test solution C, and no addition was made in test solution D, based on the amount of malt used.

Beer yeast was added to the transglucosidase-treated wort, and after fermentation at about 10 ℃ for 7 days, beer yeast was removed. The pot was replaced to age for 7 days, and then cooled to about-1 ℃ to stabilize for 14 days. Then, the extract of the original wort was diluted to 10.0% (w/w) by adding deaerated water, and then filtered with celite to obtain a wort fermentation broth.

The apparent final degree of fermentation of the resulting wort broth was determined according to conventional methods. As a result, the contents of test solution a, test solution B, test solution C, and test solution D were 52%, 60%, 80%, and 86%, respectively.

The wort fermentation broth thus obtained was sprayed into a degassing tank under a reduced pressure of about 90mbar to remove carbonic acid, and then heated to about 50 ℃ using a plate cooler. Thereafter, the resulting mixture was brought into contact with steam heated to about 50 ℃ in a reduced pressure column of about 90mbar to allow the volatile matter to adsorb the steam and remove the alcohol and the volatile matter, thereby obtaining a dealcoholized wort fermentation broth having an alcohol concentration of 0.02% (v/v).

Carbon dioxide was dissolved in the obtained dealcoholized wort fermentation broth so as to reach 2.9Gas Volume, thereby obtaining a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage.

The true extract (% (w/w)) of the beer-flavored fermented malt beverage was measured by the EBC method.

The concentrations of isomaltose, isomaltotriose and panose in the beer-flavored fermented malt beverages were measured by the following methods. First, a beer-flavored fermented malt beverage after decarbonation was diluted with distilled water as appropriate, filtered through a filter, and subjected to UHPLC analysis. The measurement conditions of UHPLC are shown below.

[ Table 1]

[ sensory evaluation method ]

These test liquids a to D were subjected to sensory evaluation. As evaluation items, 3 items of palatability, harmony of sweetness and sourness, and beer-like flavor were set, and 10 trained panelists in the beer profession scored according to the criteria described later. The average of the scores of all the panelists was taken as the score of each evaluation item. The liquid temperature of the sample to be evaluated was about 4 ℃.

[ evaluation items and evaluation standards ]

And (3) suitability for mouthfeel:

the feeling of feeling in the throat or feeling of hanging the throat when drinking was evaluated as "good feeling". The beer (trade name) produced by Korea beer K.K. was given a score of 5 points, and water was given a score of 1 point, and the score was given on 5 scales.

Coordination of sweetness and sourness:

a sweet taste that alleviates the stimulation of sour taste and is not excessively strong as a beer taste is evaluated as "harmony between sweet taste and sour taste". The beer manufactured by Korea beer K.K. "Asahi Super Dry" (trade name) was rated at 5 points, and water was rated at 1 point, and the grades were scored on 5 scales.

Beer-like flavor:

"beer-like flavor" was graded on 5 grades with "Asahi Super Dry" (trade name) of beer manufactured by Korea beer K.K., and water being 1 point.

Preference:

when the "palatability", "harmony of sweetness and sourness", and "beer-like flavor" were all given a score of 3.0 or more, "preference" was evaluated as "o", and the other cases were evaluated as "x".

[ Table 2]