GB2027447A - Alcoholic stimulant beverages - Google Patents

Abstract

This invention relates to improvements in alcoholic stimulant beverages based on known wine products. It is an object to provide beverages with the basic taste of known wine products, but greatly enhanced. The beverages have a considerably higher alcohol content and the extra taste of the spirits and aromas added. They are stronger tasting with a consistency in between that of the known wine products and liqueur. It is also an object to provide concentrated beverages which occupy a smaller volume than conventional wine products, and yet can be treated further to produce a taste corresponding to known wine products in a variety of available tastes, whereas wine alone is not suited to further dilution. By concentrating a wine product with alcohol for instance ethanol, brandy, rum and similar spirits, as well as taste ingredients like citrus or other fruit, besides a sweetening agent, a concentrated product is obtained occupying some half the volume of the equivalent amount of known wine products. Alternative components include aromatic essences, spices, herb extracts, fruit extracts and chemically flavoured ingredients. The invention provides concentrated alcoholic beverages capable of dilution with water or soda water to produce a range of available tastes for stimulation or enjoyment.

Description

SPECIFICATION Alcoholic stimulant beverages The present invention relates to improvements in alcoholic stimulants and more specifically to wine products with an alcoholic content of around 12%.

An object of the invention is to improve known commercially manufactured wine products by an alcoholic concentration method in order to obtain a different stronger drink, with a considerably higher alcohol content than the known wine products, as well as a different taste, while the known wine products of about 12% alcohol are not suited for diluting, carbonated water can be added to the concentrated stimulant making it different from known wine products, as it becomes sparkling with yet another flavour by dilution of the concentrated product with plain water, a wine beverage, which tastes like the known stimulant is more economically produced. The components added to the wine product conceal the deterioration of taste taking place when alcohol alone is added to wine, and the mixture subsequently being diluted with soda or water.It is a feature of the concentrated stimulant that same can be diluted to numerous strengths, whereby the consumer obtains a great number of variations in taste. In contrast to known wine products with an alcoholic content of approximately 12%, it is unnecessary to add preservatives to the concentrated stimulant to enhance keeping qualities.

It is intended in this improved stimulant that by adding ethanol, rum, brandy, or other alcohol, the percentage of alcohol in known wine products is increased for example to about 23%. In preferred embodiments of the invention extra taste ingredients are added in the form of fruit taste like citrus, for instance citrus juice and/or citrusoil, in addition to sweetener, for instance sugar, with possibly, aromatic essences including spices, extracts of herbs and fruits, as well as chemical compounds, for instance essences with the taste of brandy or rum. A beverage is thus obtained which in comparison with known 12% alcoholic wine products, besides having an increased alcohol content, also has a different taste. The beverage has the basic taste of known wine products, but greatly enhanced, it tastes much more of fruit.It is sweeter, has a higher specific gravity, often around 1.05, and is therefore of different consistency, the body being something in between the body of wine as in the known wine products, and the full body of liqueur. In addition the stimulant beverage has the extra taste of added spirits and/or aromas.

It can be classified as being between a sweet aperitif and a dry liquer. It does not resemble any existing wines or spirits, but it is a stimulant beverage with a quite unique taste and character.

It carbonated water is added to the concentrated beverage, for instance naturally effervescent mineral water or carbonated water, a new type of wine beverage, characterized by a sparkling effect, is obtained. Known wine products produced with around 12% alcohol, cannot advantageously be diluted with aerated water, as a slight addition does not give sufficient effect, and a larger additional results in an unpleasant, watery taste. It is characteristic, and a substantial product improvement, that the concentrated beverage according to the invention can be taken with a refreshing bubbling effect from aerated or carbonated water.

If the consumer wishes to dilute the concentrated beverage with plain water to obtain a product corresponding to the known 12% alcoholic wine product this is achieved more economically. In modern, industrial production, the price, which is of interest, is the so-called delivered price including packaging, and transport to the consumer. A major saving in cost is obtained when bottles and cartons can be reduced in size. In connection with the tremendous increase in transportation charges, the cost of packaging and transport have to-day often become the decisive expense factors, as the prices for the average wines and spirits have become quite low, and are usually very uniform. By supplying a concentrated product, the manufacturer is able to considerably reduce the weight and volume of shipments.A reduction to half is not unusual, resulting in considerable savings on the high transport and packaging cost, savings, which at the consumer lever can exceed the original manufacturing price for the wine and the spirit, and accordingly make the new beverage significantly cheaper than known wine products. The product also becomes more useful as it is of considerable advantage that the smaller size results in less weight to carry and that less space is necessary for storage. It is advantageous that the beverage can be supplied as a concentrate, which can be diluted to a drink like the known wine products.

In this invention the alcohol content of the known wine product is increased, for example to 23%, that the product becomes dilutable with aerated or plain water. It is known that it is not feasible to do the same with ordinary wine. If for instance to red wine, with an alcoholic content of about 12%, so much alcohol has been added that the mixture acquires an alcoholic content of about 23%, and said mixture subsequently is diluted with so much aerated or plain water that the alcoholic content is reduced to about 12%, one obtains a watery product with very poor taste. According to the invention, in addition to alcohol, highly flavoured ingredients are added to conceal the unpleasant deterioration in the taste of the red wine.Preferred tastes can be the taste of fruit, like citrus, sweetener, brandy, rum, spices, herb and fruit extracts, and artificial chemical compounds, for instance essences with the taste of rum and brandy.

A further characteristic of the invention is that the concentrated beverage can be diluted according to taste. The consumer does not have to drink the concentrated product as it is or dilute it to such an extent that it resembles the known wine product. As an additional feature, it can be diluted entirely according to taste, as the beverage is stimulating at all grades of dilution, within the said two limits. The consumer obtains a choice, not hitherto available with the known wine products, a choice providing the grade of strength desired, at the time of consumption.

It is advantageous that the concentrated beverage, in contrast to known wine products with an alcoholic content of about 12%, does not contain sulphur or other preservatives, as national health authorities strongly caution against consuming more of these substances than absolutely necessary.

EXAMPLE 1 To produce a bottle with 36 centilitre of the concentrated beverage, the following proportions are mixed: 15i cl Red wine, alcohol content around 12% 3 cl Sugar 4- cl 96% Alcohol 4 cl Brandy, alcohol content 40% 2 cl Rum, alcohol content 40% 71 cl Citrus juice including the citrus oil from the citrus peels, consisting of 1.7 part Orange juice three times concentrated to 5 parts lemon juice (to be added once the sugar has been dissolved) or, for instance to make the product more economically: EXAMPLE 2 To produce a bottle of 36 centilitres of the concentrated beverage, the following proportions are mixed: 25.2 cl Red wine, alcohol content around 12% 4 cl Sugar 5.4 cl Ethanol 2.2 cl Citrus juice from oranges and lemons, five times concentrated 0.7 cl Essence of vanilla, raisons, prunes and green walnuts or, for instance to make a concentrate of a known white wine mixture with blackcurrant.

EXAMPLE 3 To produce a bottle of 36 centilitres of the concentrated beverage, the following proportions are mixed 18 cl Dry, white wine, alcohol content 11.5%, burgundy made from Aligote grapes 3 cl Sugar 6 cl 96% Alcohol 1 cl Brandy, alcohol content 40% 9.5 cl Blackcurrent juice: 1 kilo fresh blackcurrents and 0.6 litre water used for making one litre juice In all three examples the concentrated beverages will have an alcoholic strength of approximately 23%. It can be bottled without the necessity of adding sulphur dioxide or other preservatives. The consumer can drink it undiluted or, with water or soda, dilute it according to taste, to the strength desired. If soda is used, a unique refreshing, sparkling drink is obtained. If the consumer dilutes with plain water to about half, he obtains a beverage equal to the known wine products with about 12% alcohol. If the 23% concentrated beverage is produced with the addition of a fine, delicate tasting brandy, a very light rum, or a smaller quantity of essences with the same tastes, these ingredients will not be identifiable as rum and brandy, either in the concentrated or the diluted drink, but the discreet flavours will be sufficient to mask the inferior taste of a diluted wine and enhance the main tastes of the wine and the fruit. It is, however, also possible to use a sharp tasting brandy, dark rum, gin or other spirits with a strong taste, in addition to larger quantities of essences, if a special flavour is desired.

Claims (7)

1. A stimulant beverage consisting of wine, with fruit taste and sweetener added, characterized by the addition of alcohol in the form of ethanol, brandy, rum or other spirits, and quantities of extra taste ingredients in the form of citrus, like citrus juice and/or citrus oil or other fruit, as well as sweetener, for instance granulated sugar, plus, possibly, aromas like spices, extracts of herbs and fruits, artificial chemical compounds, for instance essences with the taste of brandy and rum, in order to obtain a concentrated, strong and tasty beverage with an alcoholic content which, at least, is around 75%, but normally 100% or more over the known wine mixture's alcohol content of about 12%, a beverage which in comparison with the known wine mixture has a different, and much stronger taste of fruit, is much sweeter, has an additional taste of the added spirits and/or aromas, and a higher specific gravity, resulting in a different consistency, something in between the wine like body of the known wine mixture and the full body of liquer.

2. The alcoholic beverage claimed in claim 1 in which the beverage has been added sufficiently spirits, and so potent taste ingredients like mentioned under claim 1, that one achieves a concentrated beverage, which can be diluted with aerated water to an effervescent beverage with a pronounced bubbling effect, not tasting watery.

3. The alcoholic beverage claimed in claim 1 or 2 in which the beverage has been added spirits, and taste ingredients like mentioned under claim 1, in quantities so large that the resulting concentrated beverage can be supplied in packaging with substantially less volume than the known wine mixture, and be diluted by the consumer with water, soda or other, wherein substantially less volume is a minimum of about 25%, but normally 50% or more.

4. The alcoholic beverage claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 to which, in comparison with known wine mixture, besides extra spirits, has been added extra taste ingredients like mentioned under claim 1, to secure that the deterioration in taste, taking place when alcohol is added to wine with subsequent diluting with water or aereated water, is concealed by the extra taste ingredients added.

5. The alcoholic beverage claimed in claim 1, 2, 3 or 4 in which the beverage has been added spirits, and taste ingredients like mentioned under claim 1, in qantities so large that the consumer can dilute with beverage like soda or water to various degrees of strength, obtaining good tastes at all levels, like for instance when a 23% product can be diluted to all grades of alcoholic strength down to about 12%, and a tasty beverage is obtained at all grades.

6. The alcoholic beverage claimed in claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 in which the quantity of alcohol added is sufficient to avoid the addition of sulphur or other preservation agents, in order to obtain long keeping qualities, for instance in the case with a beverage according to claim 1 containing around 23% of alcohol.

7. An alcoholic beverage substantially as herein described and with reference to Examples 1 or 2 or 3.