Coffee aroma recovery process
AssigneeNestec S.A.
InventorsMarc Furrer, Catherine Gretsch
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process for the recovery of aroma components from coffee grounds. Coffee grounds are placed in a mixer. The coffee grounds are wet, heated, and exposed to decreased pressure to provide aroma containing gas containing aroma components. From 40% to 95% of the aroma components in the coffee grounds are collected from the aroma containing gas. The aroma components may be added to concentrated coffee extract prior to the drying of the extract. The coffee powder produced has much increased and improved aroma and flavor.
Claims23
A process for preparing a soluble, aromatized coffee powder which comprises:
- wetting a portion of coffee grounds having aroma components;
- heating the coffee grounds uniformly to a temperature of about 50° C. to 95° C.;
- exposing the coffee grounds to decreased pressure while agitating the coffee grounds during the wetting, heating, and decreased pressure to release a substantial amount of the aroma components therefrom as an aroma-containing gas;
- capturing the aroma-containing gas so as to minimize the loss of aroma components;
- and
- forming the soluble coffee powder so as to include the aroma-containing gas.
A method of providing a reconstituted coffee beverage, which comprises:
- wetting a portion of coffee grounds having aroma components;
- heating the coffee grounds uniformly to a temperature of about 50° C. to 95° C.;
- exposing the coffee grounds to decreased pressure to provide the aroma components as an aroma-containing gas while agitating the coffee grounds during the wetting, heating, and decreased pressure;
- capturing the aroma-containing gas;
- forming a soluble coffee powder so as to include the aroma-containing gas;
- and
- reconstituting the soluble coffee powder in water to form the reconstituted coffee beverage having a solid content of 3% by weight of the reconstituted beverage and which comprises at least 0.09 ppm/dry matter beta-myrcene and at least 0.07 ppm/dry limonene.
A method of providing a reconstituted coffee beverage, which comprises:
- wetting a portion of coffee grounds having aroma components;
- heating the coffee grounds uniformly to a temperature of about 50° C. to 95° C.;
- exposing the coffee grounds to decreased pressure to provide the aroma components as an aroma-containing gas while agitating the coffee grounds during the wetting, heating, and decreased pressure;
- capturing the aroma-containing gas;
- forming a soluble coffee powder so as to include the aroma-containing gas;
- and
- reconstituting the soluble coffee powder in water to form the reconstituted coffee beverage having a solid content of 3.3% by weight of the reconstituted beverage and which comprises a concentration of aroma components of at least 50 ppm for a sum of aroma compounds having a retention index RIDBWAX<1130, and at least 4 ppm for a sum of aroma compounds having a retention index 1130≦RIDBWAX≦1430.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.