Instant beverage and instant tea

Instant beverage, instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and instant fruit tea beverage in the form of a powder, granules or paste which contain cocoa powder or powdery edible acids and/or vitamins, vegetable extracts and/or vegetable powders and/or fuit extracts and/or fruit powders, and optionally flavoring and/or aromatizing agents, and a carrier are prepared by using a protein as a carrier which protein is dispersible and/or soluble in a liquid. The content of vegetable extract and/or vegetable powder and/or fruit extract and/or fruit powder can be significantly increased. The new products are not cariogenic.

Instant teas are generally prepared from dried vegetable extracts, various 
flavoring and/or aroma agents, and a readily water-soluble carrier. 
Saccharose and dextrose have predominantly been used as the carriers. 
Instant teas have been prepared by spray-drying the components, except for 
the carrier, either individually or together, mixing the components with 
the carrier, and granulating the mixture if desired. Particularly 
sensitive vegetable extracts have in part also been obtained by freeze 
drying. Because of the relatively high cost of lyophilization, spray-dried 
preparations to which flavoring or aroma agents could be subsequently 
added are often used. Instant teas based on saccharose and/or dextrose 
generally contain from 1 to 6%, and preferably about 2%, of vegetable 
extract. The bulk of such an instant tea, 94 to 99% by weight, is mainly 
the carrier. 
Instant teas based on saccharose and/or dextrose have the drawback that 
when frequently used, particularly by babies and infants, a high 
occurrence of caries is observed due to the sugar present. Maltodextrin 
has replaced sugar as the carrier in some products. However, maltodextrin 
also has cariogenic properties similar to those of saccharose and 
dextrose. 
It is an object of the present invention to develop an instant tea which 
does not have the disadvantage of being cariogenic and, therefore, may 
also be acceptable for use with babies and infants, while the storage 
quality, dosability and handling properties of conventional instant teas 
are retained. 
The essential component of various teas is an extract or powder of 
vegetable origin (that term being used in its broadest sense), the leaves, 
roots, barks, petals, but also the fruits being used. The term "Tea" is 
inclusive of a number of vegetable extracts and powders, which can be 
classified into four subgroups: Tea, Tea Beverage, Fruit Tea, and Fruit 
Tea Beverage. The present invention relates to all of these four groups. 
Thus, instant teas, in the broadest meaning of the term, include instant 
tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and instant fruit tea 
beverage. Instant means that said teas are in the form of powder, granules 
or paste capable of being rapidly dispersed and/or dissolved upon contact 
with a liquid so that a ready-to-drink composition is easily and rapidly 
obtained. Thus, instant teas do not comprise the ready-to-drink 
compositions including a liquid but only their powdery, granular or 
paste-like precursors. 
The instant tea, instant tea beverages, instant fruit tea, and instant 
fruit tea beverages according to the invention do also not comprise the 
pure vegetable extracts, vegetable powders, fruit extracts or fruit 
powders without carriers. The pure extracts are difficult to instantize, 
are generally very hygroscopic and difficult to handle. Such extracts 
instantized without a carrier are so hygroscopic that they solidify to a 
hard mass after only a short exposure to the moisture of the air. The 
resultant hard mass is difficult to measure, has a high bulk density and 
is only slowly soluble in water. Another disadvantage of vegetable extract 
instantized without a carrier is that it loses its aroma to a considerable 
extent and also some of its flavor. The subsequent addition of liquid 
flavoring and/or aroma agents is also extremely difficult when the extract 
instantized is without a carrier. 
It has now been found that instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit 
tea, and instant fruit tea beverage in the form of a powder, granules or 
also a paste which contain a vegetable extract and/or vegetable powder 
and/or fruit extract and/or fruit powder, and optionally flavoring and/or 
aroma agents, are obtained by using a protein which is dispersible and/or 
soluble in a liquid as the carrier. Thus, the instant tea, instant tea 
beverages, instant fruit tea, and instant fruit tea beverage according to 
the invention are characterized in that the carrier is a protein which is 
dispersible and/or soluble in a liquid; water-soluble proteins are 
particularly suitable. More specifically, proteins from the connective 
tissue which are soluble in water to give a clear solution and have a 
short chain have proven to be suitable. 
It has also been found, according to this principle, that there may be 
prepared instant beverages in the form of a powder, granules or a paste 
which contain cocoa powder or powdery edible acids and/or vitamins. Thus 
another object of the present invention is to provide an instant beverage 
and a process for preparing same. 
The liquid most often used for dispersing and/or dissolving the various 
products according to the invention is water. However, milk, fruit and 
vegetable juices, alcoholic beverages and other such water containing 
beverages can also be used. 
In contrast to the instant teas based on saccharose and/or dextrose which 
generally contain 1 to 6%, and preferably 2%, of vegetable extract, the 
instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and instant fruit 
tea beverage according to the invention preferably contain 10 to 50% by 
weight of vegetable extract and/or vegetable powder and/or fruit extract 
and/or fruit powder and, thus, preferably only 50 to 90% by weight of 
protein as the carrier. 
Surprisingly, it is possible by the use according to the present invention 
of protein as the carrier to instantize a larger amount of cocoa powder, 
vegetable extract and/or vegetable powder and/or fruit extract and/or 
fruit powder and nevertheless to obtain products which with respect to the 
storage quality, dosability and handling properties thereof are comparable 
or even superior to conventional instant beverages and instant teas based 
on saccharose and/or dextrose. This effect in part resides in that the 
bulk densities of the products according to the invention are 
substantially lower than those obtained with the use of saccharose and/or 
dextrose as the carrier. The conventional instant teas generally have a 
bulk density of 0.4 to 0.8 g/ml, and the products according to the present 
invention have bulk densities of 0.1 to 0.5 g/ml, and prefereably of about 
0.2 g/ml. Furthermore, the products according to the invention are 
substantially less hygroscopic than vegetable extracts instantized without 
a carrier. Thus, the lower bulk densities thereof are retained even for an 
extended period of time in the presence of the moisture of the air. 
Therefore, they will remain in a condition such as to be easily measured, 
easily handled, and readily dispersible. 
If the final instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and 
instant fruit tea beverage preparation may be opaque, a finely ground 
vegetable powder or fruit powder may be used in place of the vegetable or 
fruit extracts. Unless the opaqueness of the final preparation is 
considered undesirable, a protein being readily dispersible in the liquid 
may be used as the protein. If, however, clear preparations are required, 
then a vegetable extract or fruit extract as well as a protein which is 
soluble in the liquid would have to be used. A protein from the connective 
tissue which is soluble in water to give a clear solution and has a short 
chain has proven to be particularly suitable. To obtain a clearly soluble 
instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and instant fruit 
tea beverage, a milk protein free from fat and carbohydrates and only 
weakly gelling gelatin derivatives may be employed as the protein. Milk 
powder as such while it contains about 1/3 of dispersible and/or soluble 
protein, is not suitable as a carrier according to the present invention 
because of its high fat and carbohydrates contents. Water-soluble proteins 
from wheat, corn and soybean may also be employed. 
The instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and instant fruit 
tea beverage according to the present invention may optionally contain 
flavoring and/or aroma agents. The flavoring agents include, inter alia, 
the carbohydrate-free sweeteners such as saccharin, cyclamate, aspartame, 
and the sugar-surrogates such as xylitol, sorbitol and mannitol. 
As the aroma agents, basically any of the known natural and synthetical 
aroma agents approved for use in foods can be utilized. Since aroma agents 
are somewhat volatile and tend to be lost totally or partially during the 
instantizing procedure, they are mostly added afterwards. 
The process according to the invention is a process for preparing instant 
beverages, instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and 
instant fruit tea beverage in the form of a powder or granules which 
contain cocoa powder or powdery edible acids and/or vitamins, vegetable 
extracts and/or vegetable powders and/or fruit extracts and/or fruit 
powders and optionally flavoring and/or aroma agents on a carrier, which 
process is characterized in that either 
(a) cocoa powder or powdery edible acids and/or vitamins, the vegetable 
extract and/or the vegetable powder and/or the fruit extract and/or the 
fruit powder and optionally the flavoring and/or aroma agents and a 
dispersible and/or soluble protein are mixed in the dry state, or 
(b) cocoa powder or powdery edible acids and/or vitamins, the vegetable 
extract and/or the vegetable powder and/or the fruit extract and/or the 
fruit powder are dispersed and/or dissolved together with a protein, mixed 
and dried together, and the products thus obtained are optionally 
granulated, pressed and/or agglomerated, and optionally flavoring and/or 
aroma agents are added thereto. 
In some cases, it is possible to eliminate the complete drying step to 
obtain rapidly dispersible and/or soluble pastes. Said pastes may 
preferably be filled into collapsible tubes, and are storable, readily 
measurable and easy to handle and may, thus, also be considered as instant 
beverages, instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit tea, and 
instant fruit tea beverage. 
It is one common feature of all of the products according to the invention 
that they can be prepared substantially without an addition of cariogenic 
carbohydrates and are low in calories as compared to conventional instant 
beverages and instant teas. This is particularly important in baby and 
infant nutrition where inhibition of caries is very important. However, 
the instant beverages, instant tea, instant tea beverage, instant fruit 
tea, and instant fruit tea beverage according to the invention may be used 
for all types of drinkable preparations. In so far as the products are 
dispersible and/or soluble in aqueous alcohol, they may also be used for 
quickly and simply preparing alcoholic mixed drinks. 
Clearly soluble preparations are preferred for the products of baby and 
infant nutrition. Therefor, proteins obtained from connective tissue and 
having short chains have proven to be particularly suitable as the 
carriers. They are prepared, for example, by a partial enzymatic 
degradation of fresh connective tissue on a commercial scale so that 
short-chain proteins having molecular weights in the range from 2,000 to 
10,000 are obtained. These products are neutral in flavor, heat-stable up 
to maximum 150.degree. C., sterilizable under the conditions of 
pasteurization, and preparable with a low germ content below the germ 
number admissible for dietary food. They are storable under dry conditions 
for years and water-soluble to at least 90%. Moreover, while easily 
wetted, they are not hygroscopic, and do not tend to agglomerate. Such 
short-chain proteins, for example, have been offered by the B.P.F. 
Biologisch-Physikalische Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, Frankfurt, Federal 
Republic of Germany) under the name of KK-Protein "F" and by the firm 
Milei (Schwabisch-Gmund, Federal Republic of Germany). 
Commercially available cocoa powders, to which cocoa aroma may be 
subsequently added if desired, can be used as the cocoa powder according 
to the invention. Citric acid, tartaric acid, and malic acid are 
especially used as the powdery edible acids. Ascorbic acid, some or all of 
the B complex vitamins and the usual mixtures of various vitamins may be 
used as the vitamins. 
More specifically, when the vitamines are spray-dried together with a 
solution of the protein, stability is increased. Similar observations have 
been made with flavoring and aromatizing agents, which according to the 
invention are stabilized against decomposition and deterioration after the 
protein has been dried. 
As the soluble vegetable extracts and fruit extracts, basically all of the 
extracts may be used which have already been processed to give instant 
teas according to prior art. Said extracts mostly are spray-dried aqueous 
extracts. In so far as a sufficient solubility is ensured, dried alcoholic 
extracts may also be employed or added. Said extracts may either be dried 
in a dissolved or dispersed state together with the protein. However it is 
preferred that they are mixed with the carrier in the dry condition. 
Products that are particularly easy to handle by the consumer are obtained 
by subsequently granulating or pressing said mixtures, while flavoring 
and/or aromatizing substances may optionally be added in said process 
step. Products having a particular aroma stability are obtained by 
incorporating the aroma ingredients in a microencapsulated state in the 
final product. In addition to employing the conventional steps for 
granulating, pressing, or agglomerating, the final product may also be 
processed by the so-called Pillsbury process such as to give a flocculent 
material. In all cases products having low bulk densities are obtained 
that are stable, easy to handle and easy to be measured.

Typical products and the processes for preparing same according to the 
invention are illustrated in detail by way of the following examples. 
EXAMPLE 1 
80 parts by weight of a short-chain protein (KK-Protein "F", produced from 
the B.P.F., Biologisch-Physikalische Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, 
Frankfurt, Federal Republic of Germany) was thoroughly mixed with 20 parts 
by weight of spray-dried fennel extract (Extractum Foeniculi aquos sicc.) 
and the mixture was granulated in a fluid bed granulator with the addition 
of water. 1.8% by weight of fennel oil in a microencapsulated state was 
added to the granules and thoroughly admixed. 1 g of the final granules 
with 100 ml water gave a fennel tea of good quality. 
The composition of the short-chain protein was as follows: 
Protein (N.times.6.25): 94.4% 
Nitrogen: 15.1% 
Ash: 1.26% 
Fat: 0.091% 
Water: 4.2% 
Bulk density: 380 g/l.+-.30 g/l 
Molecular weight: 2,000 
pH Value, 5% solution (.+-.0.2%): 5.6 
Water solubility, 10 g/l, room temperature, 10 h: 99.945% 
Viscosity, 10% solution: 2.0 cP 
Chloride: not detectable 
Phosphate: not detectable 
Potassium: not detectable 
Sodium: 433 mg/100 g 
Calcium: 79 mg/100 g 
Magnesium: 8 mg/100 g 
Total germ number: max. 3.000/g 
E. coli: negative/0.1 g 
Coliform: max. 10/g 
Staphylococcus aureus: negative/11 g 
Salmonella: negative/25 g 
Bacteria inhibitors (DAB 7): not detectable 
Free nitrogen compounds, (ammonia odur volatile amines): not detectable 
______________________________________ 
Essential Amino Acids (AA) 
% by weight 
______________________________________ 
Isoleucine 1.49 
Leucine 3.07 
Lysine 3.89 
Methionine 1.08 
Phenylalanine 1.87 
Threonine 1.80 
Tryptophane 1.09 
Valine 2.64 
Histidine 1.27 
Arginine 6.83 
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EXAMPLE 2 
40% by weight of fennel extract and 56.4% by weight of short-chain protein 
were mixed as in example 1, and 3.6% by weight of microencapsulated fennel 
oil were added thereto. The product thus obtained was also still quickly 
soluble. 0.5 g of said product were already sufficient for the preparation 
of 100 ml fennel tea. 
EXAMPLE 3 
44.9% by weight of short-chain protein (KK-Protein "F", produced from the 
B.P.F., Biologisch-Physikalische Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, Frankfurt, 
Federal Republic of Germany) were dissolved in 100 parts by weight of 
water. 30% by weight of citric acid, 20% by weight of natural orange 
aroma, 4.4% by weight of .beta.-carotene and 0.7% of saccharin were added 
to the mixture. The mixture was spray-dried and granulated. 1 g of the 
obtained granules with 100 ml of water provided a good-tasting refreshing 
beverage containing no sugar. 
EXAMPLE 4 
To an aqueous solution containing 57.32 parts by weight of short-chain 
protein there were added in the same manner as in example 1, 40 parts by 
weight of cocoa powder, 1.68 parts by weight of sweetener and 1.0 part by 
weight of a mixture of sodium chloride, vanillin and cocoa aroma, and the 
obtained mixture was spray-dried and granulated. 5 g of these granules in 
100 ml of milk quickly yield a cocoa beverage containing no sugar. 
EXAMPLE 5 
An aqueous solution of 82.72 parts by weight of short-chain protein was 
mixed with 17.28 parts by weight of a commercially available vitamin 
composition (6 parts by weight of the vitamin B complex; 75 parts by 
weights of vitamin C; 12 parts by weight of vitamin E; 0.05 parts by 
weight of biotin; 15 parts by weight of nicotinic acid amide; 10 parts by 
weight of calcium D-pantothenate), and the mixture was spray-dried and 
granulated. 1 g of the granules are quickly dissolved in 100 ml liquid and 
will satisfy the daily vitamin need of an adult person. 
EXAMPLE 6 
94.7 kg of short-chain protein (KK protein "F") were dissolved in water 
together with 5.22 kg of a vegetable extract mixture for bladder and 
kidney tea. The mixture was spray-dried. 36.9 g of ethereal oils and 
flavoring agents were added thereto, and then the mixture was granulated. 
100 g of the instant tea having been thus obtained contained the following 
active portions: 
Extr. Fol. Betulae aquos sicc.: 510.0 mg (8:1) 
Extr. Flor. Calendulae aquos sicc.: 235.0 mg (10:1) 
Extr. Herb. Equiseti aquos sicc.: 470.0 mg (7:1) 
Extr. Fruct. Foeniculi aquos sicc.: 210.0 mg (7:1) 
Extr. Rhiz. Graminis aquos sicc.: 470.0 mg (7:1) 
Extr. Fruct. Juniperi aquos sicc.: 515.0 mg (3:1) 
Extr. Rad. Liquiritiae aquos sicc.: 470.0 mg (10:1) 
Extr. Rad. Ononidis aquos sicc.: 425.0 mg (8:1) 
Extr. Fol. Orthosiphonis staminei aquos sicc.: 375.0 mg (6:1) 
Extr. Fruct. Phaseoli sine Semine aquos sicc.: 425.0 mg (8:1) 
Extr. Herb. Virgaureae aquos sicc.: 510.0 mg (7:1) 
Extr. Fol. Uvae ursi aquos sicc.: 605.0 mg (6:1) 
The ratio numbers in parantheses denote the concentration ratios of the 
respective extracts, i.e. a partial extract was prepared from the amount 
of drug as indicated in the first place. 
8.5 parts by weight of said instant tea are readily dissolved in and 
provide a bladder and kidney tea which conforms to an commercially 
available product that has not been instantized. 
EXAMPLE 7 
79.86 kg of the clearly soluble short-chain protein according to example 6 
were dissolved in water together with 20 kg vegetable extract for bladder 
and kidney tea according to example 6, and the mixture was spray-dried. 
0.14 kg of ethereal oils and flavoring agents were added thereto, and the 
mixture was granulated. 2.2 g of the tea having been thus obtained were 
dissolved in 100 ml of water and yielded a tea corresponding to that of 
example 6. 
EXAMPLE 8 
89.5 kg of short-chain protein, 10.0 kg Extr. Sennae e fol. sicc. and 0.5 
kg of ethereal oils and flavoring agents were processed in an analogous 
way to that example 6 to give an instant tea which after being dissolved 
in water will be a laxative tea. 
EXAMPLE 9 
79.0 kg of clearly soluble protein, 6 kg of Extr. Ginseng sicc. e radicis 
5:1 and 15.0 kg of Extr. Thea nigrae were processed as in example 6 to 
give an instant tea which may be dissolved and yield a Ginseng tea with 
black tea.