Anaerobic tea steeper and method of use

• US 20030221563A1
• Filed: 06/03/2002
• Published: 12/04/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sin Hang Lee
• Original Assignee: Sin Hang Lee
• Inventors: Lee, Sin Hang
• Granted Patent: US 6,821,541 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 99/279
• CPC Class Codes: A23F 3/18 Extraction of water soluble tea constituents A23F3/166 takes precedence; isolation of tea flavour or tea oil A23F3/42
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/002 following a specific operational sequence, e.g. for improving the taste of the extraction product

Abstract

This invention introduces a container in the form of a mug with a lid or in the form of an enclosed vessel of any size and shape for tea steeping wherein the dried tea leaves are extracted with hot water neither in contact with oxygen in the free air nor in contact with oxygen in a pocket of free air in order to maximize the preservation of the antioxidants in the aqueous tea extract to be used as a health-promoting beverage. In accordance with a special aspect of the invention, a standard method of using the novel anaerobic tea mug for preparation of tea extract to be consumed in humans and in dogs for the purpose of disease prevention is described.

Claims

1. A container apparatus for steeping intact or fragments of dried tea leaves in water, comprising a container which has a closable opening and which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, which container is formed in such a way that when the tea leaves and water are placed therein there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped within the container in contact with the water.

2. The container apparatus of claim 1 wherein the container is made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals, heat-resistant plastics, or mixtures thereof.

3. The container apparatus of claim 1, wherein the tea leaves contain green tea leaves.

4. The container apparatus of claim 1, which further comprises a dish which has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the container.

5. A container apparatus for steeping intact or fragments of dried tea leaves in water, comprising

(a) a container which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, which container is formed in such a way that when the tea leaves and water are placed therein there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped within the container in contact with the water,

(b) an air outlet in communication with the container,

(c) a tea leaves inlet in communication with the container,

(d) a water inlet in communication with the container,

(d) a tea extract outlet in communication with the container, and

(e) an optional closable opening for cleaning the container.

6. A container apparatus for steeping intact or fragments of dried tea leaves in water, comprising

(a) a container which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, and which has a top opening for receiving a quantity of water, and

(b) a lid sized to fit releasably on the top-opening of the container, which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water,

wherein when intact or fragments of dried tea leaves and water are placed into the container and the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container, the lid is adapted such that there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped under the lid in contact with the water.

7. The container apparatus of claim 6, wherein the lid has a downward protruding bottom adapted to extend below the surface of the water.

8. The container apparatus of claim 6 wherein the container and lid are made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals, heat-resistant plastics, or mixtures thereof.

9. The container apparatus of claim 7 wherein the container is a ceramic or porcelain mug of about 10 cm in height and about 8 cm in inner diameter, and the lid is about 8.5 cm in its outer diameter with a discoid downward protruding bottom of about 7.5 cm in diameter.

10. The container apparatus of claim 6, which further comprises a dish which has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the container, which dish is adapted for the container to rest on and to catch any overflowing hot water when the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container.

11. The container apparatus of claim 6, wherein the container has a handle.

12. The container apparatus of claim 6, wherein the container has spout to facilitate pouring of tea steeped within the container apparatus.

13. The container apparatus of claim 6, wherein the container is pre-marked to show a user the level to which the container should be filled with water.

14. The container apparatus of claim 6, wherein the tea leaves contain green tea leaves.

15. A container apparatus for steeping intact or fragments of dried tea leaves in water, comprising

(a) a container which is made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals or heat-resistant plastics, which can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, which has a top opening for receiving a quantity of water, which has a handle, which has a spout to facilitate pouring of tea steeped within the container apparatus, and which is container is optionally pre-marked to show the user the level to which the container should be filled with water,

(b) a lid sized to fit releasably on the top-opening of the container, which is made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals or heat-resistant plastics, which can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, and which has a downward protruding bottom adapted to extend below the surface of water contained within the container, and

(c) a dish which has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the container, which dish is adapted for the container to rest on and to catch any overflowing water when the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container;

wherein when intact or fragments of dried tea leaves and water are placed into the container and the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container, the lid is adapted such that the downward protruding bottom extends below the surface of the water and there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped under the lid in contact with the water.

16. The container apparatus of claim 15, wherein the tea leaves contain green tea leaves.

17. A method of brewing intact or fragments of dried tea under generally anaerobic conditions, comprising the steps of:

(a) placing a quantity of intact or fragments of dried tea into a container apparatus which comprises a container which has a closable opening and which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, which container is formed in such a way that when the tea leaves and water are placed therein there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped within the container in contact with the water;

(b) filling the container with water having a temperature of between about 70°

C.-100°

C.;

(c) allowing the tea leaves to be extracted in the water for at least about 10 minutes or until the water temperature cools to a safely drinkable temperature; and

(d) optionally, pouring the liquid of step (c) onto ice and storing in an air-tight container in temperatures below about 37°

C. for consumption within about 24 hours.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the quantity of dried tea placed into the container apparatus is between about 2 to about 20 grams.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the container is made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals, heat-resistant plastics, or mixtures thereof.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the container apparatus further comprises a dish which has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the container, which dish is adapted for the container to rest on and to catch any overflowing hot water from the container.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the container has a handle.

22. The method of claim 17, wherein the container has spout to facilitate pouring of tea steeped within the container apparatus.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein the tea leaves contain green tea leaves.

24. A method of brewing intact or fragments of dried tea under generally anaerobic conditions, comprising the steps of:

(a) placing a quantity of intact or fragments of dried tea into a container apparatus which comprises

a container which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, and which has a top opening for receiving a quantity of water, and

a lid sized to fit releasably on the top-opening of the container, which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water;

(b) filling the container with water having a temperature of between about 70°

C-100°

C.;

(c) immediately placing the lid onto the top-opening of the container so that there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped under the lid in contact with the water;

(d) allowing the tea leaves to be extracted in the water for at least about 10 minutes or until the water temperature cools to a safely drinkable temperature; and

(e) optionally, pouring the liquid of step (d) onto ice and storing in an air-tight container in temperatures below about 37°

C. for consumption within about 24 hours.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the quantity of dried tea placed into the container apparatus is between about 2 to about 20 grams.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein in step (b) the container is filled with enough water so that in step (c) when the lid is placed onto the top-opening some of the water overflows out of the top-opening.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein the lid has a downward protruding bottom adapted to extend below the surface of the water.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein the container and lid are made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals, heat-resistant plastics, or mixtures thereof.

29. The method of claim 24 wherein the container is a ceramic or porcelain mug of about 10 cm in height and about 8 cm in inner diameter, and the lid is about 8.5 cm in its outer diameter with a discoid downward protruding bottom of about 7.5 cm in diameter.

30. The method of claim 24 wherein the container apparatus further comprises a dish which has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the container, which dish is adapted for the container to rest on and to catch any overflowing hot water when the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container.

31. The method of claim 24, wherein the container has a handle.

32. The method of claim 24, wherein the container has spout to facilitate pouring of tea steeped within the container apparatus.

33. The method of claim 24, wherein the tea leaves contain green tea leaves.

34. A method of brewing intact or fragments of dried tea leaves under generally anaerobic conditions, comprising the steps of:

(a) placing a quantity of loose green tea leaves into a container apparatus which comprises

a container which is made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals or heat-resistant plastics, which can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, which has a top opening for receiving a quantity of water, which has a handle, which has a spout to facilitate pouring of tea steeped within the container apparatus, and which is optionally pre-marked to show the user the level to which the container should be filled with water,

a lid sized to fit releasably on the top-opening of the container, which is made of ceramic, porcelain, glass, metals or heat-resistant plastics, which can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, and which has a downward protruding bottom adapted to extend below the surface of water contained within the container, and

a dish which has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the container, which dish is adapted for the container to rest on and to catch any overflowing water when the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container;

wherein when intact or fragments of dried tea leaves and water are placed into the container and the lid is placed on the top-opening of the container, the lid is adapted such that the downward protruding bottom extends below the surface of the water and there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped under the lid in contact with the water.

(b) filling the container with water having a temperature of between about 70°

C.-100°

C. so that the water level is at least at or near the top-opening or up to a pre-marked position on the container;

(c) immediately placing the lid onto the top-opening of the container so that there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped under the lid in contact with the water;

(d) allowing the tea leaves to be extracted in the water for at least about 10 minutes or until the water temperature cools to a safely drinkable temperature; and

(e) optionally, pouring the liquid of step (d) onto ice and storing in an air-tight container in temperatures below about 37°

C. for consumption within about 24 hours.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the tea leaves contain green tea leaves.

36. A method of brewing intact or fragments of dried tea leaves under generally anaerobic conditions, comprising the steps of:

(a) placing a quantity of intact or fragments of dried tea leaves into a container apparatus which comprises

a container which is made of inert materials that can withstand contact with water having a temperature of at least 100°

C. without releasing components or odors of the materials into the water, which container is formed in such a way that when the tea leaves and water are placed therein there is no significant contact between the water and atmospheric air and there is no significant amount of air trapped within the container in contact with the water,

an air outlet,

a tea leaves inlet,

a water inlet,

a tea extract outlet, and

an optional closable opening for cleaning the container;

(b) placing intact or fragments of dried tea leaves in the tea leaves inlet,

(c) filling the container with water through the water inlet, which water has a temperature of between about 70°

C.-100°

C.;

(d) releasing any air present in the container through the air outlet;

(e) allowing the tea leaves to be extracted in the water for at least about 10 minutes;

(f) releasing tea extract through the tea extract outlet; and

(g) optionally, pouring the tea extract onto ice and storing in an air-tight container in temperatures below about 37°

C. for consumption within about 24 hours.