MANUFACTURE OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

• US 3,843,809 A
• Filed: 08/23/1972
• Issued: 10/22/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Egon Luck
• Original Assignee: Egon Luck
• Inventors: Luck, Egon
• Primary Examiner(s): Naff, David M.
• Application Number:
  US05/282,953
• Time in Patent Office: 790 Days
• Field of Search: 99/30,34,35,78,171CP 426/192
• US Class Current: 426/592
• CPC Class Codes: C12G 3/04 by mixing, e.g. for preparation of liqueurs

Abstract

Artificial wines, liquors, brandies and liqueurs may be made by treating vodka or other suitable alcoholic beverage with an organic acid such as citric, malic or tartaric acid, alkali metal sulfite catalyst-stabilizer and flavoring to make the desired beverage. To make wines, liquors, brandies, and liqueurs, water will also usually be employed, often together with a sweetening agent, such as invert sugar, and in the case of more viscous drinks, an organic gum or thickening agent may be utilized.

Claims

1. A METHOD FOR MAKING AN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE WHICH COMPRISES REACTING AN ORGANIC ACID SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF CITRIC, MALIEC AND TARTARIC ACIDS, AND MIXTURES THEREO WITH ETHANOL TO OBTAIN ESTERIFICATION BETWEEN THE ACID AND ETHANOL, WITH THE PROPORTION OF ORGANIC ACID BEING FROM ABOUT 0.1 TO 3 PERCENT ON A FINAL BEVERAGE BASIS AND WITH THE AMOUNT OF ETHANOL BEING SUFFICIENT TO PREVENT A BEVERAGE CONTAINING ABOUT 6 TO 60 PERCENT OD ETHANOL, IN THE PRESENCE OF ABOUT 0.1 TO 200 PARTS PER MILLION OF A BISULFITE ESTERFICATION CATALYST FOR THE REACTION, SAID PROPORTION OF SUCH CATALYST BEING SUFFICIENT TO CATALYZE THE ESTERIFICATION REACTION BETWEEN THE ACID AND ETHANOL, AND ADMIXING A FLAVORING PROPORTION OF A FLAVORING AGENT WITH THE MIXTURE OF ALCOHOL AND ESTER PRODUCED.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the ethanol reacted with the organic acid is an aqueous ethanol of 30 to 95 percent ethanol content, the catalyst is selected from the group consisting of alkali metal bisulfites and metabisulfites, the reaction between the acid and the ethanol is effected at elevated temperature, the flavoring is dissolved in the product and the product is cooled to a temperature of 5* to 25*C.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein there is present with the organic acid a buffering quantity, from 5 to 50 percent of the acid content, of a salt of such an acid, the pH is maintained in the range of 3 to 7 during the reaction, the reaction is effected at a temperature of 40* to 60*C., from 1 to 35 percent of sugar is admixed with the reaction product at the elevated temperature and a diluting quantity of water, from 10 to 60 percent of the reaction mixture, is admixed with the product.

4. A method according to claim 3 wherein the organic acid employed is citric and the buffering agent is an alkali metal citrate, the sugar is invert sugar, the starting alcohol is vodka and the alcohol content of the product is from 6 to 22 percent.

5. A method of making an alcoholic beverage which comprises mixing with an aqueous alcohol selected from the group consisting of vodka and vodka plus water, an organic acid selected from the group consisting of citric, malic and tartaric acids and mixtures thereof in an amount between about .1 and 3 percent of the beverage, in the presence of an effective proportion, between about 0.1 and 200 parts per million, of a bisulfite esterification catalyst to promote production of the ethyl ester of such acid, and a flavoring quantity of flavoring agent, to produce a beverage containing between 6 and 60 percent ethanol which is an imitation wine, brandy, liquor or liqueur.

6. An alcoholic beverage which comprises an ethyl alcohol ester of an organic acid selected from the group consisting of citric, malic and tartaric acids and mixtures thereof, aqueous ethanol of 6 to 60 percent ethanol Content, the proportion of ethyl alcohol ester corresponding to the proportion of organic acid reacted with ethanol to form the ester, which is in the range of about 0.1 to 3 percent of the beverage, from 0.1 to 200 p.p.m. of bisulfite esterification catalyst sufficient to stabilize the ethyl ester of the acid in the alcoholic beverage, and a flavoring amount of a flavoring agent.

7. An alcoholic beverage according to claim 6 wherein the aqueous ethanol is vodka, the flavoring is a natural flavoring and constitutes from 0.1 to 5 percent of the beverage and there is sugar present in the beverage to the extent of 1 to 35 percent thereof.

8. An alcoholic beverage according to claim 7 wherein the organic acid is citric acid, there is present an alkali metal salt of citric acid in a proportion which is from 5 to 50 percent of the citric acid reacted to form the ethyl citrate, the catalyst is selected from the group consisting of alkali metal bisulfites and metabisulfites, the pH of the beverage is in the range of 4 to 6 and the alcoholic content of the beverage is from 6 to 22 percent.

9. An alcoholic beverage according to claim 8, thickened with from 0.2 to 3 percent of an organic gum which is stabilized against degradation and loss of thickening power by the presence of sodium bisulfite.

10. An alcoholic beverage according to claim 9 wherein the thickening gum is carrageenin or gelatin.

11. A kit, useful with alcohol for making alcoholic beverages, which comprises separate or compartmented container(s) containing a solid organic acid selected from the group consisting of citric, malic and tartaric acids, and mixtures thereof, alkali metal salts(s) of such acid(s), bfisulfite catalysts for the esterification of ethanol with said acids and flavorings adapted to produce liqueur, liquor, brandy and wine-type alcoholic beverages, with the proportions of contents of such separate or compartmented containers(s) being such as to provide when mixed the beverage of claim 6.

12. A kit according to claim 11 wherein the separate containers or compartments contain citric acid, sodium citrate, sodium bisulfite, liqueur, brandy, liquor and wine flavors and invert sugar, so that by reacting and mixing the kit contents with vodka and water, liqueur, brandy, liquor and wine-type alcoholic beverages may be selectively made from the kit components.