Plum wine or beverage containing plum wine with low hydrogen cyanide content

Abstract

The present invention addresses the problem of improving the ripeness or high-quality mellowness of a plum wine or a plum wine-containing beverage having a low hydrogen cyanide content. In the present invention, the content of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate in a plum wine having a low hydrogen cyanide content or a beverage containing the plum wine is set to a specific range.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a Japanese plum wine or a Japanese plum wine-containing beverage having a low hydrogen cyanide content and containing benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate in specific amounts, and related methods. Background Art

[0002] Japanese plum wine is a beverage produced by adding Japanese plum fruits to alcoholic beverages such as shochu, and is a liqueur under the Liquor Tax Law. Conventionally, Japanese plum wine has been made at home, and in recent years, various types of Japanese plum wine have been manufactured and sold by brewing manufacturers.

[0003] In recent years, various studies have been conducted on the manufacturing method of Japanese plum wine. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for producing Japanese plum wine having a low ethyl carbamate content by subjecting Japanese plum fruits to water bath heating and then immersing them in an alcoholic solution.

[0004] Patent Document Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-306973 Summary of the Invention

[0005] Japanese plums contain cyanogenic glycosides, from which hydrogen cyanide can be generated. As a result, hydrogen cyanide is contained in Japanese plum wine or a Japanese plum wine-containing beverage. If the amount of hydrogen cyanide is at the level usually contained in Japanese plum wine, it will not have an impact on the human body, but it is preferably reduced as much as possible.

[0006] As a method for reducing the hydrogen cyanide content, a method of diluting the Japanese plum wine used as a raw material is considered. However, when hydrogen cyanide is generated from the cyanogenic glycosides contained in Japanese plum fruits, components such as glucose are generated as by-products during the generation process, which contribute greatly to the unique aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of Japanese plum wine. Therefore, when diluting Japanese plum wine, the concentration of these components is also reduced. As a result, in Japanese plum wine or a Japanese plum wine-containing beverage having a low hydrogen cyanide content, the tendency for the lack of the unique aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of Japanese plum wine becomes stronger.

[0007] Therefore, the subject of the present invention is to improve the aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of Japanese plum wine or a Japanese plum wine-containing beverage having a low hydrogen cyanide content.

[0008] The present inventors have found that if the contents of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate in Japanese plum wine having a low hydrogen cyanide content or a beverage containing such Japanese plum wine are set within a specific range, the aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling can be improved, and thus the present invention has been completed.

[0009] The present invention relates to the following, but is not limited thereto. (1) A Japanese plum wine or a Japanese plum wine-containing beverage, characterized in that the content of benzaldehyde is 4000 ppb or more, the content of triethyl citrate is 9400 ppb or more, and the content of hydrogen cyanide is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol. (2) The umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage according to (1), characterized in that it further contains capric acid. (3) The umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage according to (1) or (2), characterized in that the content of capric acid is 9500 ppb or more. (4) A method for producing an umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage, characterized in that the content of benzaldehyde is 4000 ppb or more, the content of triethyl citrate is 9400 ppb or more, and the content of hydrogen cyanide is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol. (5) A method for enhancing the aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of an umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage with a hydrogen cyanide content of less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol, characterized by including a step of mixing raw materials in such a way that the content of benzaldehyde in the umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage reaches 4000 ppb or more and the content of triethyl citrate reaches 9400 ppb or more.

[0010] The present invention can enhance the aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of an umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage with a low hydrogen cyanide content. Regarding the "aging feeling" of the umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage used in this specification, it refers to the feeling related to aroma or taste when drinking the umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage, which has a complex taste composed of sourness, sweetness, fragrance, etc., while the overall taste is harmonious, and has a soft and pleasant aftertaste. In addition, the so-called "high-quality mellow feeling" refers to the feeling related to aroma or taste when drinking the umeshu or umeshu-containing beverage, which has a mellow feeling and a complex taste in terms of aroma or taste, while a good balance can be felt, and a rich diffusibility and persistence can be felt in the mouth.

[0011] When only the content of one of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate is within the scope of the present invention, the above-mentioned enhancing effect is very weak. In contrast, when the contents of both benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate are within the scope of the present invention, the enhancing effect will be significantly enhanced. In this regard, the present invention of this case has great superiority. Detailed implementation mode

[0012] The umeshu and umeshu-containing beverage of the present invention and related methods are described as follows. In addition, unless otherwise stated, the "ppm" and "ppb" used in this specification refer to ppm and ppb of weight / volume (w / v), which have the same meanings as "mg / L" and "μg / L" respectively.

[0013] In addition, the term "alcohol" described in this specification refers to ethanol unless otherwise stated. (Umeshu and umeshu-containing beverage) As used in this specification, the term "ume shochu" refers to a beverage obtained by steeping the fruits of ume plums such as green ume plums or ripened ume plums, or a part thereof (including seeds), which are used as raw materials, in an alcohol-containing liquid such as shochu, and extracting the components therefrom.

[0014] The variety of ume plum that supplies the ume fruits is not particularly limited as long as it is a plum commonly used for manufacturing ume shochu. For example, it can be cited: Nangao ume, Shirokaga ume, Ryukyo ume, Koshu ume, Lucy ume, Ougin, Suika, Kaga Jizo, Hachiro, Mineharu, Murasaki Hime, Kibou, Minabe 21, NK14, Orange High, Purple Nangao, U. Jack (Japanese: Yu Jack), Maesawa ume, Improved Uchida, Yoshimura ume, Shinshu Houhou, Takada ume, Shinpeitaifu, Tamayori Hime, Natsumidori, Fukutaifu, Red Dance, Kafuka, Kojo, Tsuki Sekai, Ume no Sato, etc. The ripeness of the fruits is not particularly restricted and can be unripe green ume plums or fully ripe fruits. Also, the ume fruits or a part thereof can be directly steeped in the alcohol-containing solution, or after being processed, for example, crushed, cut, heated, frozen, or dried, and then used in the steeping process.

[0015] The alcohol-containing liquid used in the steeping process contains alcohol and usually also contains water. In addition, in one example, this liquid contains distilled spirits and thus contains alcohol. The distilled spirits are not limited by their raw materials or manufacturing methods. As such distilled spirits, for example, it can be cited: whisky, brandy, spirits (such as vodka, rum, tequila, gin, aquavit), neutral spirits, liqueurs, shochu. Preferably, the distilled spirits are whisky, brandy, or neutral spirits. The typical steeping temperature is normal temperature (around 25°C), and the typical steeping time is 1 to 12 months, for example, around 1 to 3 months.

[0016] As used in this specification, the term "ume shochu-containing beverage" refers to a beverage containing ume shochu. As a typical example of an ume shochu-containing beverage, a beverage obtained by diluting ume shochu with water or carbonated water can be cited.

[0017] The content of ume shochu in the ume shochu-containing beverage is preferably 1 to 99 v / v%, more preferably 5 to 99 v / v%, more preferably 10 to 99 v / v%, more preferably 20 to 99%.

[0018] The content of hydrogen cyanide in the ume shochu or ume shochu-containing beverage of the present invention is very low, and its content is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol conversion, preferably 7 ppm or less, more preferably 6 ppm or less, more preferably 5 ppm or less, more preferably 4 ppm or less, more preferably 3 ppm or less, more preferably 2 ppm or less.

[0019] Here, the so-called "calculated on the basis of 100% alcohol" means that the amount of hydrogen cyanide per certain amount of alcohol contained in a beverage sample such as plum wine or a plum wine-containing beverage can be calculated by the following formula. (Hydrogen cyanide content calculated on the basis of 100% alcohol) =(Hydrogen cyanide content in the beverage sample) / (Alcohol content in the beverage sample (v / v%))×100

[0020] The content of hydrogen cyanide in the beverage can be measured by any known method, for example, by the method shown in the following examples.

[0021] (Benzaldehyde, triethyl citrate, capric acid) The plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage of the present invention contains a specific amount of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate. These components can enhance the sense of aging or the high-quality mellow feeling of the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage.

[0022] In the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage of the present invention, the content of benzaldehyde is 4000 ppb or more, and the content of triethyl citrate is 9400 ppb or more; preferably, the content of benzaldehyde is 4000 - 60000 ppb, and the content of triethyl citrate is 9400 - 30000 ppb; more preferably, the content of benzaldehyde is 4500 ppb - 60000 ppb, and the content of triethyl citrate is 9700 - 30000 ppb; more preferably, the content of benzaldehyde is 4500 ppb - 25000 ppb, and the content of triethyl citrate is 9700 - 20000 ppb.

[0023] In addition, in a preferred embodiment, the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage of the present invention further contains 2000 ppb or more of capric acid. The content is more preferably 2000 - 90000 ppb, more preferably 4000 - 80000 ppb, more preferably 7000 - 20000 ppb, and more preferably 9500 - 15000 ppb.

[0024] In order to adjust the content of these components, for example, a part or all of these components can also be added from the outside. In order to add the desired components from the outside, they can be directly added to the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage, or raw materials such as plum juice, plum extract, and base wine containing a part or all of these components can be added to the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage.

[0025] The content of these components can be analyzed by any known method such as GC-MS, LC-MS, etc. For example, their content can be measured by gas chromatography (GC), and examples of the measurement method are described in the following examples.

[0026] (Alcohol) The plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage of the present invention contains alcohol. The alcohol content of the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage is preferably 1.0 to 30 v / v%, more preferably 3.0 to 25.0 v / v%, and still more preferably 5.0 to 22.0 v / v%.

[0027] In this specification, the alcohol content can be measured by any known method. For example, it can be measured by a vibrating densitometer. Specifically, a sample is prepared by removing carbon dioxide from the beverage by filtration or ultrasonic waves, and the prepared sample is directly fired and distilled. The density of the obtained distillate at 15 °C is measured, and conversion is carried out using the "Table 2 Conversion Table of Alcohol Content, Density (15 °C), and Specific Gravity (15 / 15 °C)" in the attached table of the analysis method specified by the National Tax Agency of Japan (National Tax Agency Ordinance No. 6 of 2007, revised on June 22, 2007).

[0028] (Other components) In the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage of the present invention, as long as the unique flavor originally possessed by the plum wine is not impaired and the effects of the present invention are not impaired, in addition, additives usually formulated in beverages, such as sugars, flavors, vitamins, pigments, antioxidants, preservatives, seasonings, acidulants, extracts, pH adjusters, quality stabilizers, etc., can also be formulated.

[0029] (Beverage in a container) The plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage of the present invention can be provided in a container-packed form. The form of the container includes metal containers such as cans, PET bottles, cartons, glass bottles, bags, etc., but is not limited thereto.

[0030] (Method) In another aspect, the present invention is a method for improving the aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of a plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage in which the content of hydrogen cyanide is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol.

[0031] The method includes a step of mixing raw materials in such a way that the content of benzaldehyde in the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage reaches 4000 ppb or more and the content of triethyl citrate reaches 9400 ppb or more. These steps are also applicable to the manufacturing method of a plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage.

[0032] The method for adjusting the content is as described above for the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage, or can be known from the above. In addition, the content of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate and specific examples or contents of other components are also as described above for the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage.

[0033] (Numerical range) For the sake of more clear description, in this specification, the numerical range represented by the lower limit value and the upper limit value, that is, "lower limit value ~ upper limit value", includes these lower limit values and upper limit values. For example, the range represented by "1 ~ 2" includes 1 and 2. Example

[0034] The present invention will be described below based on examples, but the present invention is not limited by these examples. (Test Example 1) Effects of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate The plum wine raw liquor A produced in the laboratory was diluted with water (plum wine raw liquor content 70 v / v%), and a plum wine-containing beverage (Control Group 1) with a hydrogen cyanide content of less than 0.4 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol and containing 60 ppb of benzaldehyde and 7500 ppb of triethyl citrate was prepared. Then, various amounts of benzaldehyde, triethyl citrate, or both were added to this control group to obtain a variety of beverages. The alcohol content of each beverage was 12 - 25 v / v%.

[0035] In addition, the determination of the hydrogen cyanide content was carried out as follows. That is, an alkali was added to the beverage as a sample to inactivate the hydrolytic enzyme from plums contained in the sample, and then the pH was adjusted to about 5.5, followed by steam distillation, and the free hydrogen cyanide was trapped in an alkali solution. Then, a pyridine-pyrazolone reagent was added to the obtained solution to make it colored, and the concentration of hydrogen cyanide was quantified by colorimetry. The subsequent test examples were also carried out in the same manner.

[0036] Furthermore, in order to determine the contents of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate in each beverage, GC-MS analysis was carried out under the following conditions. The subsequent test examples were also carried out in the same manner. · Analytical device GCMS manufactured by Agilent Technologies · GC oven temperature conditions 40°C (5 minutes) - 6°C / min - 240°C · Chromatographic column DBwax 60 m inner diameter 320 μm film thickness 0.25 μm (Agilent J&W) · Sample pretreatment None

[0037] These beverages were subjected to sensory evaluation. Specifically, 3 professional reviewers carried out sensory evaluation on each beverage according to the following criteria, and the average value of their scores was obtained (the average value was rounded to an integer). In order to reduce individual differences in evaluation, each reviewer used standard products corresponding to each score and established a consensus on the relationship between each score and taste in advance. As long as there is no special statement, this evaluation method can also be used in other test examples.

[0038] <Matured feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of plum wine-containing beverage> 1 point: No matured feeling or high-quality mellow feeling 2 points: Slightly feel the matured feeling or high-quality mellow feeling 3 points: Somewhat feel the matured feeling or high-quality mellow feeling 4 points: Feel the matured feeling or high-quality mellow feeling 5 points: Strongly feel the matured feeling or high-quality mellow feeling

[0039] The contents of each component and the evaluation results are shown in Table 1. When only the content of benzaldehyde or triethyl citrate is increased, the score increases. When the contents of both are increased, an effect exceeding the additive effect of these two components can be obtained.

[0040] [Table 1]

[0041] (Test Example 2) Effect of benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate, part 2 A commercially available plum wine product B (a plum wine with a high fruit juice content and low cyanide type manufactured by a liquor manufacturer) was used as a control group. Except for this, the same experiment as in Test Example 1 was carried out (but with a smaller number of test times). The control group in this experiment is called Control Group 2. The hydrogen cyanide content in Control Group 2 is less than 6 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol, the content of benzaldehyde is 2500 ppb, and the content of triethyl citrate is 8500 ppb. In addition, the alcohol content of each beverage is 12 - 15 v / v%. The experimental results are as follows.

[0042] [Table 2] Control Group 2 Benzaldehyde Content (ppb) No Additive 4000 Triethyl Citrate Content (ppb) No Additive 9400 Evaluation 1 5

[0043] Even when using different plum wines, the same tendency as in Test Example 1 was confirmed. This implies that the invention of this case can be applied to a wider range of plum wines or plum wine-containing beverages.

[0044] (Test Example 3) Effect of capric acid The beverage of Control Group 1 used in Test Example 1 contained 4100 ppb of capric acid. Benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate were added thereto to prepare a beverage of a comparative example with a benzaldehyde content of 4000 ppb and a triethyl citrate content of 9400 ppb. Further, various amounts of capric acid were added to the comparative example to prepare beverages containing capric acid at various contents. The alcohol content of each beverage is 12 - 25 v / v%. The same sensory evaluation as in Test Example 1 was carried out on these beverages.

[0045] The capric acid content and the evaluation results are shown in Table 3. In addition to benzaldehyde and triethyl citrate, excellent effects can also be obtained when the content of capric acid is increased.

[0046] [Table 3]

Claims

1. A plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage, characterized in that, the content of benzaldehyde is 4000 ppb or more, the content of triethyl citrate is 9400 ppb or more, and the content of hydrogen cyanide is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol conversion.

2. The plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage according to claim 1, characterized in that, it further contains capric acid.

3. The plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, the content of capric acid is 9500 ppb or more.

4. A method for manufacturing a plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage, characterized in that, the content of benzaldehyde is 4000 ppb or more, the content of triethyl citrate is 9400 ppb or more, and the content of hydrogen cyanide is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol conversion.

5. A method for enhancing the aging feeling or high-quality mellow feeling of a plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage in which the content of hydrogen cyanide is less than 8 ppm in terms of 100% alcohol conversion, characterized in that, it includes a step of mixing raw materials in such a way that the content of benzaldehyde in the plum wine or plum wine-containing beverage reaches 4000 ppb or more and the content of triethyl citrate reaches 9400 ppb or more.

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