Patent Application
20230284823
The present invention relates in general to the field of machines for the preparation of beverages. More particularly, it relates to a system for filtering and regulating the electrolytic composition of the water for an espresso coffee machine. The present invention also relates to an espresso coffee machine comprising such a system and a method for the controlled extraction of coffee.
Water is quantitatively the most important ingredient in espresso coffee and, after the coffee itself, the ingredient which affects the beverage taste the most.
Apart from the different process types for obtaining the beverage, what remains fundamental, besides the primary product (coffee), is the “extraction liquid”. It is not by chance that 95-98% of the composition of a cup of coffee, from espresso to filter coffee, from moka to boiled, is composed of water. This vital element can contain various substances capable of modifying the final result of the beverage in terms of extracted volatile aromatic compounds and their flavours. Water, in fact, is not only an inert, colourless, tasteless and odourless solvent, but can be considered in all respects an “ingredient” fundamental to the final quality.
The Applicant has noticed that at present the chemical composition of the water feeding a coffee machine has a very great variability both considering various locations of the same country and, more so, considering different nations.
The water supplied by the public water supply contains, in fact, variable amounts of salts and is characterized by variable values of parameters such as hardness, i.e. the content of calcium and magnesium ions, pH, etc.
These differences have multiple repercussions, both on the correct operation and duration of the coffee machines and on the quality of the beverage obtained, resulting in a substantial impossibility of controlling and standardizing the performance of the machines installed in different parts of the world.
As regards, for example, the correct operation and durability of espresso coffee machines, the use of water with a high content of calcium and magnesium ions, if not suitably treated, can lead to the formation, even in short times, of deposits which are intolerable due, for example, to the precipitation of insoluble salts such as calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide.
It is known, in order to solve this drawback, to use water softened by ion exchange resins which replace the ions responsible for hardness with sodium ions, thus preventing the deposits of limestone (calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate). It is also known to use completely demineralized water which is then remineralized in an uncontrolled fashion.
The Applicant has noted that both strategies drastically alter the chemical composition, and therefore also the chemical-physical characteristics of the water used for the coffee extraction. Furthermore, the Applicant has noticed that undesired effects may occur on the organoleptic characteristics of the beverage obtained. Moreover, demineralized water, especially if heated, can become aggressive for the components of the coffee machine.
The term “specific ion effect”, or “Hofmeister effect”, is used to indicate a series of physical-chemical phenomena that occur with organic molecules dissolved in aqueous solutions containing salts. Among these phenomena one of the most studied is the variation in solubility of the organic molecules in aqueous solution as the electrolytic composition of the solution varies.
The Applicant has therefore noticed that the chemical composition, and in particular the electrolytic composition, of the water used in espresso coffee machines can alter the solubility of the organic molecules contained in the ground coffee, and therefore favour, or not, their extraction during the coffee preparation.
In fact, the preparation of espresso coffee can be considered as an extraction process of a series of substances from a porous organic matrix (ground coffee powder) with a polar solvent (water), therefore a distribution between two phases and, as such, conditioned by the relative affinity of each substance for the two phases.
However, the relationship between the water solubility of organic molecules and the presence of salts, although long studied with respect to macromolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids, does not appear to have been studied with regard to small organic molecules. In particular, to the best of the Applicant’s knowledge, there is no systematic study in the prior art on the effect of ions on the water solubility of small organic molecules under high temperature and high pressure conditions, nor are reported in the art methods of using this effect in extraction processes from organic matrices of interest in the food industry.
In order to control and/or standardize the characteristics of the espresso coffee, the Applicant has set the objective of developing a system and a method for the controlled extraction of the organic molecules present in the ground coffee, useful during the preparation of the espresso coffee, which allows, for example, to obtain a beverage with desired organoleptic characteristics.
Advantageously, this system and method is also able to render the water used for the preparation of the espresso coffee less corrosive or wearing for the components of an espresso coffee machine.
Advantageously, the method based on the specific ion effect allows to control the chemical composition, and therefore the organoleptic characteristics, of the coffee extract obtained, modulating the electrolytic composition of the water used.
According to a first aspect, the present invention relates to a method for the controlled extraction of at least one organic molecule present in ground coffee, during the preparation of an espresso coffee in a machine for the preparation and dispensing of an espresso coffee, said method comprising the steps of:
Advantageously, the method according to the present invention further comprises a water filtration step.
According to an embodiment, said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt is added in step b) in the form of one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water.
According to an embodiment, said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt is added in step b) to the demineralized water in solid form.
According to an embodiment, said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt is added in step b) to the demineralized water both in solid form and in the form of one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water.
Preferably, the addition in step b) of the process according to the present invention is carried out by homogeneously mixing.
Advantageously, the addition in step b) is carried out proportionally to the water flow required by the machine.
In particular, the demineralization of step a) according to the present invention can be total or partial. Preferably demineralization is total.
Preferably, the at least one salt added in step b) according to the present invention is an inorganic salt.
Preferably, said inorganic salt is chosen from the group comprising sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium salts. Even more preferably said inorganic salt is chosen from the group comprising potassium chloride, sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium sulphate, potassium nitrate, calcium sulphate and magnesium sulphate.
Advantageously, the amount of salt to be added in step b) according to the present invention can be adjusted, on the basis of the water flow required by the machine, using aqueous solutions containing suitable concentrations of the selected one or more salts. Typically, the aqueous saline solution will have a concentration of from 1 mM to 200 mM, preferably from 2 mM to 100 mM.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a system to be inserted in series at the inlet of the water in a coffee machine, allowing to suitably adjust the electrolytic composition of the water to be used in the coffee extraction step.
Therefore, in a second aspect, the present invention relates to a system for dynamic regulation of the electrolytic composition of the water for an espresso coffee machine, comprising a device for the demineralization and optionally filtration of the water, and a device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water.
According to an embodiment, said device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water is a device able to provide one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water.
According to an embodiment, said device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water is a device able to provide to the demineralized water said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt in solid form.
According to a further embodiment, said device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water is a device able to provide to the demineralized water said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt both in solid form and in the form of one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water.
Advantageously, the addition is carried out proportionally to the water flow required by the machine.
Finally, according to a third aspect, the present invention relates to a machine for preparing and dispensing espresso coffee comprising:
Preferably, the system according to the present invention further comprises a water filtration device.
According to an embodiment, said device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water is a device able to provide one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water.
According to an embodiment, said device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water is a device able to provide to the demineralized water said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt in solid form.
According to a further embodiment, said device for the addition of at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water is a device able to provide to the demineralized water said at least one organic and/or inorganic salt both in solid form and in the form of one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water.
Advantageously, the addition takes place proportionally to the water flow required by the machine.
A partializer may also be provided which receives water upstream of the corrector and supplies water to the addition device, so that the machine is supplied with a portion of water which has passed through the addition device and a portion which has not been remineralized.
The partializer may comprise a proportional valve.
The present invention will become completely clear from the following detailed description, given by way of non-limiting example, to be read with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:
According to the present invention, a method for treating the water used in an espresso coffee machine is provided. The method, aimed at controlling the chemical composition, and in particular the electrolytic composition, of the water to be used for the preparation of espresso coffee, provides a step of demineralization, total or partial, and optionally filtration of the water, and then a step in which one or more organic and/or inorganic salts are added to the water.
According to the present invention, there is provided a method for the controlled extraction of at least one organic molecule present in ground coffee, during the preparation of espresso coffee in a machine for the preparation and dispensing of espresso coffee, said method comprising the steps of:
Preferably, according to the present invention, the step a) of demineralization, and optionally filtration, can be carried out with techniques known in the art, for example by reverse osmosis, distillation, etc., or by distillation with Millipore® device. In this way, the water obtained from step a) of the method according to the present invention can be water with various degrees of purity, for example distilled water of type I, II or III. Preferably, the water obtained is completely demineralized ultrapure water of type 1 (MilliQ®).
Subsequently, depending on the organoleptic properties to be imparted to the espresso coffee, one or more organic and/or inorganic salts are added to the water at the desired concentration. According to embodiments, the salts are added in the form of one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from demineralized water and containing one or more organic and/or inorganic salt with the appropriate concentration. In addition, or in alternative, the salts are added in solid form to the demineralized water.
The Applicant has found that specific organic and inorganic salts are capable of favouring, or on the contrary disadvantage, the extraction of the different organic molecules contained in the ground coffee.
The following Table 1 shows the ability of eight salts typically present in oligomineral waters to extract the most important organic components of the coffee.
The salts are reported, with respect to each substance to be extracted, in order of extractive ability, from the worst to the best extractor, i.e. in increasing order of quantity of substance extracted from the ground coffee. The red column indicates the amount of substance extracted using completely demineralized ultrapure water (MilliQ®).
From the data reported in Table 1 it is possible to identify, for each of the tested substances, the electrolytes which act as better or worse extractor (Table 2). It can also be noted that in many cases individual ions (e.g. chloride ion, calcium ion, etc.) are responsible for the major variations, and not the specific salt used.
By accurately choosing the type and amount of salts dissolved in the water used for the preparation of espresso coffee, it is possible to control the chemical composition of the beverage obtained, and therefore its organoleptic characteristics. Each of the above substances, in fact, is characterized by a particular taste (Table 3) and its concentration in the coffee obtained contributes to give a particular taste.
The controlled extraction according to the present invention therefore allows, starting from the same mixture of powdered coffee, to obtain espresso coffee with specific organoleptic characteristics (for example acidity, sweetness, bitterness, etc.). More details on this will be offered in the examples.
According to the method of the present invention, therefore, a system is provided for regulating the electrolytic composition of the water so that the water supplied to the coffee machine allows to obtain an espresso coffee with specific organoleptic characteristics. This also enables the performance of the coffee machines to be standardized, in terms of the quality of the coffee obtained and of the efficiency and durability of the machine, regardless of the place where the machine is installed, i.e. the quality of the water available from the public water network.
According to the present invention, there is also provided a system for regulating the electrolytic composition of the water for an espresso coffee machine, characterized in that it comprises a water demineralization and optionally filtration device, and a device for adding at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water.
Finally, according to a third aspect, the present invention relates to a machine for preparing and dispensing espresso coffee comprising:
The machine 10 comprises at least one dispensing unit 13 for dispensing espresso coffee. Preferably, the machine 10 comprises several dispensing groups 13, for example three such as the exemplary machine of
A portafilter for supporting a filter basket for a coffee powder puck can be removably connected to each dispensing group 13.
The machine 10 may comprise one or more displays 16 and pushbuttons, for example for switching the machine on/off and/or for starting/ending the dispensing operation.
Preferably, the machine 10 shown in
According to the present invention, the machine 10 also comprises the system 50 configured at least to demineralize at least partially, and optionally to filter, the water entering the machine, and subsequently to add at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the water to be used for the preparation of the espresso coffee.
According to an embodiment of the present invention (
With reference to
Preferably, the system 50 comprises one or more flowrate measuring devices. For example, a first flowmeter 31 may be provided upstream of the adding device 37 and a second flowmeter 34 upstream of the partializer.
The Applicant has carried out a series of tests under real conditions of use of the machine. Each 50 ml sample of espresso coffee was obtained using 14 g of ground coffee, which was extracted at 92° C. and a pressure of 8 bar. Each espresso was filtered, diluted with Milli-Q water in a 1:100 ratio, and analysed to determine the concentration of the organic molecules typically present in the ground coffee. Such organic molecules of interest are: carbohydrates (expressed as pectin), caffeine, trigonelline, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, malic acid, citric acid, nicotinic acid, melanoidin.
For the determination of the concentration of each analyte five independent analyses were carried out for each of the extraction solutions used.
The Applicant has found that there is a direct relationship between the electrolytic composition of the water used for the extraction and the concentration of analytes of interest in the espresso coffee.
The Applicant has also found that this relationship can be exploited to obtain a coffee extract with controlled chemical composition, and therefore with controlled organoleptic characteristics.
The first experimental measurements were related to the evaluation of a correlation between the type of salts present in the water used for the preparation of espresso coffee and the concentration in the obtained coffee of some organic molecules typically present in the espresso coffee.
By way of non-limiting example, the results relating to experiments for extracting caffeine and trigonelline contained in the espresso coffee prepared at different temperatures and using water having different ion composition are reported hereinafter.
From the analysis of the two figures it is evident that the extractive ability of the water varies both with the variation of its electrolytic composition and with the variation of the temperature, and that this effect is different for the two molecules analysed.
This is due to a variation in the relative affinity of such molecules for the two matrices (ground coffee and water), and this variation is specific for each molecule analysed.
It has in fact been possible to experimentally determine the temperature dependence of the parameter indicating the relative affinity of a substance for an organic and a polar phase, i.e. the octanol water partition coefficient (Kow), both for caffeine (panel a) and for trigonelline (panel b;
Thus, subsequently the variation of the extractive ability of the water has been studied with respect to the molecules typically contained in the ground coffee, as a function of the type of salt contained in the water used and its concentration.
By way of non-limiting example, the results relating to caffeine and carbohydrate, expressed as pectin, extraction experiments carried out at a temperature of 90-93° C., are reported hereinafter
The analytical methods used are reported in the following Table 4.
The above results therefore demonstrate that there is a direct correlation between the electrolytic composition of the water used for the preparation of espresso coffee and the chemical composition of the coffee obtained, which, as is known, is directly responsible for the organoleptic characteristics of the beverage.
The experiments carried out have therefore led to the conclusion that by controlling the electrolytic composition of the water used for the preparation of espresso coffee it is possible to control the organoleptic characteristics of the beverage obtained.
Four different types of espresso were prepared starting from the same ground coffee powder, but using water treated according to the method of the present invention and containing 2-4 mM concentrations of sodium, potassium, magnesium or calcium ions.
On the basis of the extractive abilities of each of these ions, it is possible to predict the organoleptic characteristics of the espresso coffee obtained with each saline solution. Graphs A-C of
Observing the graphs it is therefore possible to anticipate that the espresso coffee obtained starting from water containing 2 mM sodium ions (graph A) will be characterized mainly by bitter taste and toasted/caramelized aroma; the one obtained starting from water containing 2 mM potassium (graph B) will be mainly characterized by sweet taste and acidity; an espresso obtained from water containing 2.5 mM of magnesium ions (graph C) will be characterized by a strong aroma and a good balance of sweetness and bitterness; and the one obtained from water containing 4 mM calcium ions (graph D) will be characterized by a sweet taste and a marked acidity.
The espresso prepared with the saline solutions having a concentration of from 0.002 M to 0.004 M were subjected to a panel of 9 tasters: the panel judgments are reported in the following Table 5. The agreement between the experimental data and the judgment of the tasters is very high, almost total if one considers bitterness and acidity together. Distinguishing the two flavours on the palate can in fact be difficult.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 102020000016078 | Jul 2020 | IT | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IB2021/055944 | 7/2/2021 | WO |
