Method for producing a beverage, beverage obtained and preparation for producing said beverage
The method of using plant water from the same plant variety for maceration or infusion in herbal tea production enhances organoleptic qualities and reconstitutes active principles, addressing the challenge of improving beverage quality while maintaining natural character at a low cost.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- FR2020004710
- Authority / Receiving Office
- FR · FR
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2020-05-13
- Publication Date
- 2025-06-06
- Estimated Expiration
- 2040-05-13
AI Technical Summary
Existing methods for producing herbal teas and similar beverages struggle to enhance organoleptic qualities while maintaining the natural character of the product at a low cost.
A method involving maceration, infusion, or decoction of plant material using plant water extracted from the same plant variety, which is then separated from the plant material to produce a beverage that replicates the composition of the plant in its natural state.
This method effectively improves the organoleptic qualities of the beverage, reconstitutes all water-soluble active principles, and maintains the natural character of the plant without increasing production costs.
Smart Images
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Abstract
Description
Title of the invention: Method for producing a beverage, beverage obtained and preparation for producing said beverage
[0001] The present invention relates to a method for producing a beverage of the herbal tea, infusion, decoction, maceration, tea and similar type, said beverage and a preparation for producing such a beverage.
[0002] It relates more particularly to a process for producing a beverage, said process comprising a step of maceration or infusion or decoction of plant material in a liquid.
[0003] The consumption of plants, in particular aromatic plants or medicinal plants, whether in natural form or as a drink, in particular herbal tea, after decoction, maceration or infusion of said plants, has grown considerably in recent years, requiring the drying of significant quantities of plants useful for consumption. At the same time, the consumer is increasingly demanding and is looking for a drink whose organoleptic qualities are improved without harming the natural character of the product.
[0004] An aim of the invention is to propose a beverage whose production process makes it possible to improve the organoleptic qualities of said beverage at low cost without harming the natural character of said beverage.
[0005] Another aim of the invention is to propose a drink whose production process makes it possible to reconstitute all of the constituents of said plant and thus to restore all of the water-soluble active principles contained in the fresh plant at the time of its harvest.
[0006] For this purpose, the invention relates to a method for producing a beverage, said method comprising a step of maceration or infusion or decoction of plant material in a liquid, characterized in that the liquid with which the plant material is brought into contact for carrying out the maceration or infusion or decoction step comprises plant water, that is to say water extracted from the cells or tissues of at least one plant, the or at least one of the plants in the plant water belonging to the same plant variety as that of the or one of the plants in the plant material.
[0007] In the present application, the term “plant water” refers to water extracted from the cells or tissues of at least one plant. This water constituting at least one plant is also called native water or sometimes cellular water in the literature. This plant water is preferably produced by drying the plant. In particular, this water is generally extracted from the plant during the drying of said plant by hot air. Thus, in the case of drying of plants by air using a drying installation integrating a thermodynamic dehumidification unit, the plant water can be recovered at the level of the air drying of the plants by condensation of said air. Condensation takes place at the level of the evaporator of the thermodynamic unit. This plant water contains water and can contain compounds of aromatic interest. This plant water can thus make it possible to reproduce in the beverage a composition of the plant material corresponding to its composition in its natural state. The terms infusion, maceration, and decoction must be understood in their broadest sense. Infusion is an operation in which the liquid with which the plant material is brought into contact is a hot liquid generally brought to a temperature between 60 and 100°C.Decoction is an operation in which the liquid with which the plant material is brought into contact is a liquid brought to boiling temperature. Maceration is an operation in which the liquid with which the plant material is brought into contact can be cold and for example at room temperature between 20 and 30°C.
[0008] According to one embodiment of the method, said method comprises, after the infusion, maceration or decoction step, a step of separating the plant material from the liquid obtained. The step of separating the plant material can be carried out by filtration or simple elimination of the plant material from the liquid obtained when the plant material is for example packaged in a sachet or stored in a culinary utensil such as a tea ball or a tea infuser. The liquid obtained constitutes the element to be consumed in the beverage.
[0009] According to one embodiment of the method, the weight of the plant material, to be infused or macerated or decocted, used for carrying out the infusion, maceration or decoction step, is less than the weight of plant water used for said step. Generally, the weight of plant water used for said step is between 2 and 6 times the weight of the plant material.
[0010] According to one embodiment of the method, the liquid comprises a fraction of water.
[0011] According to one method of implementing the process, the plant material to be infused or The maceration or decoction is packaged in a water-permeable bag. This makes the process simple to implement and makes it easier to dispose of the plant material after the maceration, infusion, or decoction stage.
[0012] According to one method of implementing the process, the plant material to be infused or macerated or decocted is bulk plant material.
[0013] According to one embodiment of the method, the plant material to be infused or macerated or decocted is, before being brought into contact with the liquid for carrying out the maceration or infusion or decoction step, in dried form. Alternatively, the plant material to be infused or macerated or decocted is, before being brought into contact with the liquid for carrying out the maceration or infusion step or decoction, in fresh form. It should be noted that at the time of its contact with the liquid for the implementation of the infusion, maceration or decoction step, the plant material can therefore be in dried form or in fresh form, this characteristic being independent of the method of packaging in sachet, in bulk or otherwise of the plant material.
[0014] According to one embodiment of the method, the plant material comprises at least one variety of plant in the form of a flower and / or leaf and / or root and / or tuber and / or rhizome and / or wood and / or at least one variety of fruit and / or at least one variety of spice.
[0015] According to one embodiment of the method, the or at least one of the plant varieties of the plant material is an aromatic or medicinal plant.
[0016] The invention also relates to a beverage characterized in that it is obtained by implementing a process as described above.
[0017] The invention also relates to a preparation for the production of a beverage, said preparation comprising a plant material and a liquid with which the plant material can be brought into contact for maceration or infusion or decoction of the plant material in the liquid. The liquid comprises, for the implementation of a method in accordance with that described above, plant water and the or at least one of the plants in the plant water belongs to the same plant variety as that of the or one of the plants in the plant material.
[0018] According to one embodiment of the preparation, the liquid is stored in individual doses or in a dosing container. The liquid may be in the form of a liquid concentrate to be diluted with water at the time of use or in the form of a ready-to-use liquid.
[0019] According to one embodiment of the preparation, the plant material is packaged in a water-permeable sachet.
[0020] According to one embodiment of the preparation, the plant material comprises at least one variety of plant in the form of a flower and / or leaf and / or root and / or tuber and / or rhizome and / or wood and / or at least one variety of fruit and / or at least one variety of spice.
[0021] According to one embodiment of the preparation in which the plant material comprises at least one plant variety, the or at least one of the plant varieties is an aromatic or medicinal plant. Brief description of the drawings
[0022] The invention will be better understood upon reading the following description of exemplary embodiments, with reference to the appended drawings in which:
[0023] [Fig-1] represents a perspective view of a container containing a beverage in accordance with the invention;
[0024] [Fig.2] represents a perspective view of a preparation for the production of a drink in accordance with the invention.
[0025] As mentioned above, the subject of the invention is a method for producing a drink 1, generally hot, which may belong to the category of herbal teas, teas, mate, fruit infusions and the like, the drink 1 obtained and a preparation for producing said drink 1.
[0026] The method for producing said beverage 1 comprises a step of maceration or infusion or decoction of a plant material 2 in a liquid 4. The plant material 2 may be diverse depending in particular on the taste and properties desired for said beverage. The aim is to confer an original aromaticity to said beverage while retaining a traditional preparation process by infusion or maceration or decoction of said beverage. The plant material 2 generally comprises at least one variety of plant in the form of a flower and / or leaf and / or root and / or tuber and / or rhizome and / or wood and / or at least one variety of fruit and / or at least one variety of spice. When the plant material 2 comprises at least one variety of plant, said plant may be an aromatic or medicinal plant. For example, verbena, mint, lime blossom may be mentioned.
[0027] Preferably, the plant material 2 is, when brought into contact with the liquid 4 for the maceration, infusion or decoction step, packaged in a water-permeable sachet 3. Alternatively, the plant material 2 may be in bulk.
[0028] Characteristically to the invention, the liquid 4 with which the plant material 2 is brought into contact for the implementation of the maceration or infusion or decoction step comprises plant water 6, that is to say water extracted from the cells or tissues of at least one plant, the or at least one of the plants of the plant water 6 belonging to the same plant variety as that of the or one of the plants of the plant material 2. As mentioned above, this plant water 6 is extracted from a plant which can be the plant used to form the plant material 2 of the drink or a plant belonging to the same variety as that used for the plant material 2, this plant having been harvested and stored, for example, under different conditions.
[0029] Vegetable water 6 can be obtained by drying by blowing hot air, the drying air becoming loaded with water and compounds, such as aromatic compounds, upon contact with the plant. This air is then cooled by condensation to recover said vegetable water 6. The process for producing such vegetable water 6 is described in particular in the French patent application FR1901758 not yet published.
[0030] In this patent application, the plant drying installation comprises: - a plant reception dryer equipped with at least one air inlet, a first air outlet, and a second air outlet, called an air exhaust outlet, closing off the outside of the installation, and provided with at least one closing member, - an air intake chamber into which the first air outlet, called the dryer air recirculation outlet, opens, this air intake chamber being equipped with an outside air intake inlet, called fresh air, provided with at least one member for closing said inlet, - a refrigeration unit comprising at least one compressor, one condenser and one evaporator connected together by a refrigerant circuit, - an air circulation circuit connecting the air intake chamber to the air inlet of the dryer by passing through the evaporator and the condenser of the refrigeration unit, - at least one forced air circulation member through said air circulation circuit, and - a control unit.
[0031] The installation also comprises a device for collecting condensates from the evaporator, an activatable / deactivatable device for heating the air in the air intake chamber, and at least two operating modes, namely a first operating mode called drying by circulation of hot air and dehumidification, in which the compressor of the refrigeration unit is in operation, and a second operating mode called drying by circulation of hot air, in which the compressor of the refrigeration unit is stopped, and the activatable / deactivatable device for heating the air in the air intake chamber is active in each of the first and second operating modes.
[0032] The presence of a device for collecting condensates from the evaporator, these condensates being the result of the loading of humidity in the hot air in contact with the plants and the condensation of this water vapor loaded with aromatic compounds at the level of the evaporator forming a cold battery, allows the recovery of condensation water also called vegetable water from the plants in parallel with the drying of the plants.
[0033] The liquid 4 may comprise exclusively plant water or plant water 6 and at least a fraction of water. The liquid 4 is therefore in the form of an aqueous solution comprising plant water. Generally, the weight of the plant material 2, to be infused or macerated or decocted, used for carrying out the infusion, maceration or decoction step, is less than the weight of plant water 6 used for said step. In practice, the weight of the plant water 6 for carrying out said step is generally between 2 and 6 times the weight of the plant material 2 brought into contact with the liquid 4 for carrying out said step.
[0034] When the step is an infusion step, the liquid 4 with which the plant material 2 is brought into contact is generally brought to a temperature between 70 and 90°C.
[0035] When the step is a decoction step, the liquid 4 with which the material 2 plant is brought into contact is generally brought to the boiling temperature of the liquid 4.
[0036] When the step is a maceration step, the liquid 4 with which the plant material 2 is brought into contact may be at room temperature, i.e. between 20 and 30°C.
[0037] The method may comprise, after the infusion, maceration or decoction step, a step of separating the plant material 2 from the liquid obtained. The liquid obtained forms the element to be consumed of said beverage. The plant material 2 may also be left in contact with the liquid obtained during consumption of the liquid obtained.
[0038] To enable the production of such a drink, it is therefore appropriate to have at the origin plant material 2 in fresh or dried form packaged in sachets or in bulk and liquid 4 comprising plant water 6. The plant material 2 and the liquid 4 form the elements of the preparation for the production of said drink. This preparation can be sold in the form of a ready-to-use set. Thus, in the context of such a preparation, the liquid 4 can be stored in individual doses 51 or in a measuring container 52. The liquid 4 can be a liquid concentrate to be diluted in water. The liquid 4 can also be ready to use.
[0039] The procedure is then as follows: the plant material 2 is brought into contact with the liquid 4 comprising plant water 6, for example in a bowl 8. The liquid 4 is heated if necessary before or after being brought into contact with the plant material 2. Similarly, the dilution of the liquid 4 when the latter is initially in concentrated form, by adding water, for example from the tap, can be carried out before or after bringing the liquid 4 into contact with the plant material 2. The liquid can be stored in individual doses 51 or in a measuring container 52. Thus, the weight of plant water 6 of the liquid 4 brought into contact with the plant material 2 is between 2 and 6 times the weight of the plant material 2 at the time of its contact with the liquid 4, that is to say the initial weight of the plant material entering into the composition of said drink.
[0040] The maceration or infusion or decoction step which follows the contacting step requires in practice a few minutes, generally less than five minutes. At the end of this maceration, infusion or decoction step, the liquid part can be consumed after separation or not of the plant material 2. The separation can be carried out by filtration or simple removal of the sachet when the plant material 2 is packaged in a sachet.
[0041] Examples of beverages will now be described.
[0042] Thus, for the production of a mint drink in accordance with the invention, the preparation for the production of said drink comprises plant material in the form of coarsely ground aerial parts of peppermint ( MenthaPiperitd) and liquid 4 comprising peppermint plant water. The peppermint forming the plant material may be that obtained by dehumidification during the drying of peppermint in order to obtain peppermint plant water. Alternatively, the peppermint forming the plant material may be formed from a batch of peppermint different from the batch of peppermint dehumidified by drying in order to produce peppermint plant water. One kilogram of crushed dry peppermint is brought into contact with a liquid heated to a temperature of 70°C. This liquid comprises 4 to 6 kg of peppermint plant water and 15 kilograms of water. The whole is left to infuse for 5 minutes. The whole is then filtered to separate the liquid part from the plant material. The liquid part, also called the obtained liquid, is packaged in bottles. The drink from each bottle can be consumed cold or after heating.
[0043] To make a verbena herbal tea, the procedure is as follows using a preparation in accordance with the invention. The preparation comprises a sachet of verbena comprising 2 grams of ground aerial part of verbena in dried form and a dose of 5 grams of liquid based on verbena plant water. Said plant water is obtained by dehumidification by drying a batch of verbena. The dose of liquid is diluted by a third in hot water brought to a temperature between 70 and 90°C and the plant material is infused in the diluted liquid for a few minutes. At the end of this infusion step, the sachet is removed and the liquid part is ready to consume.
Claims
Claims
1. Method for producing a beverage (1), said method comprising a step of maceration or infusion or decoction of a plant material (2) in a liquid (4), the liquid part being able to be consumed after separation or not of the plant material (2) at the end of the maceration or infusion or decoction step, characterized in that the liquid (4) with which the plant material (2) is brought into contact for the implementation of the maceration or infusion or decoction step comprises plant water (6), that is to say water extracted from the cells or tissues of at least one plant, the or at least one of the plants of the plant water (6) belonging to the same plant variety as that of the or one of the plants of the plant material (2).
2. Method for producing a beverage according to claim 1, characterized in that said method comprises, after the infusion, maceration or decoction step, a step of separating the plant material (2) from the liquid obtained.
3. Method for producing a beverage according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the weight of the plant material (2), to be infused or macerated or decocted, used for carrying out the infusion, maceration or decoction step, is less than the weight of plant water (6) used for said step.
4. Method for producing a beverage (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the liquid (4) comprises a fraction of water.
5. Method for producing a drink (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the plant material (2) to be infused or macerated or decocted is packaged in a water-permeable sachet (3).
6. Method for producing a beverage (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the plant material (2) to be infused or macerated or decocted is a loose plant material (2).
7. Method for producing a beverage according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the plant material (2) to be infused or macerated or decocted is, before being brought into contact with the liquid (4) for carrying out the maceration or infusion or decoction step, in dried form.
8. Method for producing a drink (1) according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the plant material (2) comprises at least at least one variety of plant in the form of flower and / or leaf and / or root and / or tuber and / or rhizome and / or wood and / or at least one variety of fruit and / or at least one variety of spice.
9. Method for producing a beverage (1) according to claim 8 in which the plant material (2) comprises at least one plant variety, characterized in that the or at least one of the plant varieties of the plant material (2) is an aromatic or medicinal plant.
10. Beverage (1), characterized in that it is obtained by implementing a process according to one of claims 1 to 9.
11. Preparation for the production of a beverage (1), said preparation comprising a plant material (2) and a liquid (4) with which the plant material (2) can be brought into contact for maceration or infusion or decoction of the plant material (2) in the liquid (4), characterized in that the liquid (4) comprises, for the implementation of a method according to one of claims 1 to 9, plant water (6) and in that the or at least one of the plants in the plant water (6) belongs to the same plant variety as that of the or one of the plants in the plant material (2).
12. Preparation according to claim 11, characterized in that the liquid (4) is stored in individual doses (51) or in a dosing container (52).
13. Preparation according to one of claims 11 or 12, characterized in that this plant material (2) is packaged in a water-permeable sachet (3).