Patent ID: 7056545

Claim:
A process for stabilizing an aroma-providing component against loss or degradation of desirable flavor or sensory characteristics of its aroma during storage which comprises associating with a stabilizing agent an aroma-providing component that is isolated, concentrated or separated from a food, beverage, food-forming or beverage-forming material, wherein the stabilizing agent is a nucleophile that contains at least one atom of sulfur or nitrogen providing at least one lone pair of electrons for reaction, the stabilizing agent being present in an amount effective to chemically interact with undesirable compounds to form a stabilized aroma-providing component which (a) retains a significant portion of one or more of the desirable flavor or sensory characteristics of the aroma in the aroma-containing component during storage, or (b) reduces off flavor generation during storage of the aroma-providing component; and separately storing the stabilized aroma-providing component prior to combining it with a further component of a food, beverage, food-forming or beverage-forming material and optionally with a liquid to form a product for consumption so that, when combining the aroma-providing component with the material to form the product for consumption, the aroma-providing component imparts to the product an improved or enhanced aroma compared to the aroma provided by an unstabilized aroma-providing component.