# US 2019/0313670 A1 · Flavor-Enhanced Beverage Product and Method of Enhancing the Flavor Thereof > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2019/0313670 A1 - Document ID: US20190313670A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 16/456,143 - Filed: 2019-06-28 - Published: 2019-10-17 - Earliest claimed: 2016-04-01 - Assignees: Frito-Lay North America, Inc. - Applicants: Frito-Lay North America, Inc. - Inventors: Stefan K. BAIER; Peta-Gaye CHAMBERS; Winsome JOHNSON; Rajesh Venkata POTINENI - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190313670A1 ## CPC - A23L 2/56: Flavouring or bittering agents (sweeteners A23L2/60) - A23F 3/40: Tea flavour; Tea oil; Flavouring of tea or tea extract (synthetic tea flavours A23L27/20) - A23F 5/465: {Flavouring with flavours other than natural coffee flavour or coffee oil} - A23L 2/02: containing fruit or vegetable juices - A23L 2/385: Concentrates of non-alcoholic beverages - A23L 2/40: Effervescence-generating compositions - A23L 2/60: Sweeteners - C12G 3/06: with flavouring ingredients - A23L: FOODS, FOODSTUFFS OR NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PREPARATION OR TREATMENT THEREOF (preservation thereof A23B) - A23F: COFFEE; TEA; THEIR SUBSTITUTES; MANUFACTURE, PREPARATION, OR INFUSION THEREOF - C12G: WINE; PREPARATION THEREOF; ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES (beer C12C); PREPARATION OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES NOT PROVIDED FOR IN SUBCLASSES C12C OR C12H ## Abstract A flavor-enhanced beverage includes an added amount of pyroglutamic acid or a salt thereof. The pyroglutamic acid may be in the form of L-pyroglutamic acid, D-pyroglutamic acid, monosodium L-pyroglutamate, monosodium D-pyroglutamate, or a mixture thereof. Both ready-to-drink beverages (such as fruit juices, vegetable juices, coffee, tea, carbonated soft drinks, energy drinks, sports drinks, dairy, and low calorie drinks) as well as concentrated beverages used for the preparation of ready-to-drink beverages benefit from the addition of the pyroglutamic acid. The addition to a beverage product may be in an amount of up to about 3,000 ppm of pyroglutamic acid or a salt thereof, in concentrates, or up to about 300 ppm in ready-to-drink beverages. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A beverage product comprising an added amount of pyroglutamic acid or a salt thereof, wherein the concentration of added pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof ranges from 5 ppm to less than 100 ppm by weight of the beverage product; wherein the beverage product has enhanced mouthfeel relative to a beverage product without added pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, wherein the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof is in the form of L-pyroglutamic acid, D-pyroglutamic acid, monosodium L-pyroglutamate, monosodium D-pyroglutamate, or a mixture thereof. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, wherein the added pyroglutamic acid consists of L-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, wherein the added pyroglutamic acid consists of D-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, wherein the added pyroglutamic acid consists of L-pyroglutamic acid and D-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, wherein the added pyroglutamic acid comprises L-pyroglutamic acid and D-pyroglutamic acid in a ratio ranging from about 50:50 to about 100:0. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The beverage product of claim 6, further comprising dairy. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, further comprising an added flavor. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, further comprising a sweetener, water, dairy, caffeine, carbonation, fruit juice, vegetable juice, a food grade acid, or a mixture thereof. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The beverage product of claim 1, wherein the beverage product is a ready-to-drink beverage and wherein the concentration of added pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof in the beverage ranges from about 5 ppm to about 75 ppm by weight of the beverage product. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The beverage product of claim 10, wherein the concentration of added pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof in the beverage product ranges from about 5 ppm to about 50 ppm by weight of the beverage product. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The beverage product of claim 10, wherein the concentration of added pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof in the beverage product ranges from about 15 ppm to about 50 ppm by weight of the beverage product. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The beverage product of claim 10, wherein the pyroglutamic acid is L-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 14 A method of enhancing mouthfeel of a beverage product, the method comprising adding pyroglutamic acid or a salt thereof to the beverage product in an amount sufficient to obtain a concentration of added pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof in the beverage product from about 5 ppm to less than 100 ppm by weight of the beverage product. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof is L-pyroglutamic acid, D-pyroglutamic acid, monosodium L-pyroglutamate, monosodium D-pyroglutamate, or a mixture thereof. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof is L-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 17 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof is D-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 18 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof is a mixture of L-pyroglutamic acid and D-pyroglutamic acid. ### Claim 19 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof comprises L-pyroglutamic acid and D-pyroglutamic acid in a ratio ranging from about 50:50 to about 100:0. ### Claim 20 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, further comprising adding the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof to a flavor or flavor solvent prior to adding the pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof to the beverage product. ### Claim 21 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the beverage product is a ready-to-drink beverage and wherein the concentration of pyroglutamic acid or salt thereof in the beverage after the pyroglutamic acid has been added ranges from about 5 ppm to about 75 ppm by weight of the beverage product.