The present invention relates to a system for producing a tea beverage, comprising a brewing chamber and a portion capsule having a cavity in which tea granules are contained, wherein the portion capsule is provided in the brewing chamber and a liquid flows through the brewing chamber and the portion capsule and, in the process, extracts and/or desorbs the tea granules and as a result produces a tea beverage.
Systems of this kind are known from the prior art and are used, for example, to produce so-called fruit teas. To this end, dried pieces of fruit, dried fruit skin and/or herbs are provided in the portion capsule. However, the systems known from the prior art have the disadvantage that the portion capsules often become blocked or even crack when the tea beverage is brewed.
The object of the present invention was therefore to provide a system which does not exhibit the disadvantages of the prior art.
This object is achieved by a system for producing a tea beverage comprising a brewing chamber and a portion capsule having a cavity in which tea granules are contained, wherein the portion capsule is provided in the brewing chamber and a liquid flows through the brewing chamber and the portion capsule and, in the process, extracts and/or desorbs the tea granules and as a result produces a tea beverage, wherein the tea granules are provided such that the square of the average volumetric flow rate of the liquid is at least 1.3.
According to the invention, the system comprises a brewing chamber and a portion capsule.
The portion capsules for producing a tea beverage are preferably in the shape of a truncated cone or cylinder and are produced, for example, from a thermoformed plastic film or using a plastic injection-moulding process. Said portion capsules usually have a capsule base, a cavity with an open filling side, and a collar edge on which a cover film or foil is sealed or adhesively bonded. Before the cover film or foil is arranged on the collar edge, the existing cavity is filled with tea granules. A filter element which is supported against the capsule base is preferably arranged between the tea granules and the capsule base, the said filter element preventing particles from entering the tea beverage. The tea granules are, in particular, substances which are used for producing a fruit and/or herbal tea, that is to say preferably dried pieces of fruit flesh and/or fruit skin and/or tea-like substances which can each be contained in whole form and/or in comminuted, in particular ground, form. The granules often have a large number of different components which are contained, in particular, as a mixture. For example, the granules include fine cuts of fruit, in particular apple and/or orange, flesh and/or skin which can be contained in ground or unground form. Lemongrass, ginger and any other substance from which a fruit tea can be produced is also a preferred constituent part of the tea granules.
Before the extraction process, the portion capsule is preferably sealed off from the environment in a substantially aroma-tight manner. However, the portion capsule does not have to be hermetically sealed, but rather can also be provided in a hermetically sealed package before it is used, the said hermetically sealed package then being, for example, manually opened, and/or openings which may be present in the capsule base and/or in the cover region are covered by a film or foil which is pulled off and/or pierced before the tea is produced.
The brewing chamber, which is part of a corresponding automatic machine, comprises, for example, two parts which can be separated and joined together, and therefore open and, respectively, close the brewing chamber. The portion capsule is inserted into the brewing chamber in order to prepare the tea beverage. After or during the closing process of the brewing chamber, the capsule is preferably opened on its closed bottom side by means of an opening mandrel which is arranged in the brewing chamber, and after the brewing chamber is sealed off, the filling side of the portion capsule, which filling side is sealed by means of a sealing film or foil, is tapped by means of one or more puncturing means. Hot water is then delivered to the portion capsule under pressure. The water flows through the tea granules and extracts and/or dissolves the substances which are required for producing the beverage from the tea granules. The tea beverage which is produced in this way leaves the portion capsule and is collected in a container. The temperature of the hot water is preferably 90-100° C. The hot water is preferably provided at the portion capsule input at a pressure of 10-20 bar. The volumetric flow rate of the hot water is preferably continuous, but can also be intermittent.
According to the invention, the tea granules are now provided such that the square of the average volumetric flow rate is at least 1.3. In this case, the average volumetric flow rate is the achieved yield of tea beverage, measured in millimetres, divided by the time required for producing the beverage, measured in seconds. It has now surprisingly been found that if is ensured that the portion capsule does not become blocked and/or crack during tea production only if this lower limit is complied with. This average volumetric flow rate is influenced, for example, by the swelling index of the tea granules, the weighed portion, the volume of the cavity and/or the particle size distribution, Dv50.
The Dv50 of the tea granules is preferably 300-1000, preferably 350-900 μm.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the swelling index of the tea granules is 1.8-4.0, preferably 2.0-3.8. The swelling index is determined by a specific quantity of tea granules being presented and then a multiple of the volume of the tea granules of water at a temperature of 100° being added to the said tea granules. The volume of the tea granules is determined before and after the water is added and a quotient which gives the swelling index is formed from said measurements. Since tea granules always swell when water is added, the quotient is always greater than 1.
The weighed portion of granules is preferably 0.4-7, preferably 0.5-5 g per portion capsule. This quantity has proven expedient for producing 150-250 ml of tea beverage, preferably 180-220 ml.
The volume of the cavity is preferably 20-30 ml, particularly preferably 22-26 ml, very particularly preferably 23.5-24.5 ml.
A filter element is preferably provided in the cavity, the said filter element preferably having a felt structure. The filter element prevents particles entering the finished beverage. The felt structure particularly preferably has a mass per unit area of between 600 and 1500 grams per square metre, particularly preferably between 1000 and 1400 grams per square metre, and very particularly preferably of 1200-1300 grams per square metre. The thickness of the filter element is preferably between 0.8 and 3.3 millimetres, particularly preferably between 1.1 and 3.0 millimetres, and is very particularly preferably 1.2-1.4 millimetres. The felt structure is, in particular, a needle felt structure. The filter element preferably comprises at least a felt structure and a support structure, in particular a woven fabric structure, wherein the felt structure particularly preferably comprises at least a partial section of the volume of the support structure. The felt structure preferably extends over the entire cross section of the support structure, but particularly preferably only over a subregion of the height of the support structure. The felt structure is preferably connected to the support structure in an interlocking, force-fitting and/or cohesive manner. The filter element preferably has two or more felt structures which are preferably separated from one another by the support structure. The thickness of the two felt structures can be the same or different. A felt structure which faces the tea granules is preferably thinner than the felt structure which faces the capsule base, or vice versa. The surface of the felt structure is preferably treated, in particular heat-treated, in order to fix loose fibres for example. The filter element which has a felt structure is preferably inserted only into the capsule, in particular onto the base of the said capsule. However, the filter element can also be connected to the capsule, in particular to the base of the said capsule, in particular in a cohesive manner. When the portion capsule is perforated, the perforation means can enter this filter element. A plurality of filter elements, which have one or more felt structures and a support structure, are preferably arranged one above the other in the capsule, and possibly connected to one another. The filter element which has the felt structure is produced, for example, by a woven fabric structure comprising longitudinal and transverse threads being provided. In order to construct a felt, in particular a needle felt, fibre units of from 0.8 to 7 dtex are preferably selected. The combination of the individual fibres with one another to form a felt and/or anchoring of the said felt in the support structure preferably takes place by the production process of needling. In this case, needles having reverse barbs are stabbed into the presented fibre package at high speed and pulled out again. Owing to the barbs, the fibres are intertwined with one another and/or with the supporting woven fabric by means of a large number of loops which form.
According to a preferred embodiment, the capsule base has a prefabricated output opening which is preferably sealed off using a film or foil, wherein the film or foil particularly preferably has a pull-off tab for pulling off the film or foil by hand. However, the film or foil can also be perforated by a perforation means in the brewing chamber. The output opening preferably has a cross-sectional area of such a size that no appreciable pressure loss occurs as the finished beverage flows out at the output opening, even if there is a perforation means in the output opening. The tea beverage is preferably under substantially no pressure downstream of the filter element, that is to say it is at ambient pressure. The outlet opening preferably has a diameter of between 10 and 14 mm.
The filter element preferably spans the output opening.
Exemplary embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the figures and explained in greater detail in the following description. The figures are described only by way of example and do not restrict the general concept of the invention.
Identical parts are always provided with the same reference symbols in the various figures and will therefore also generally each be cited or mentioned only once.
It is clear to a person skilled in the art that it is possible for the perforation means 16 to span, tap and/or pierce the filter element when the said perforation means penetrates the capsule, that is to say it is possible for the filter element to be connected, for example, to the base of the capsule in a cohesive manner at least in sections, to be provided so as to bear against the base as far as possible over a large surface area and/or to be spanned.
The invention is explained further in the text which follows with reference to the appended table.
In the table:
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10 2014 108 622.8 | Jun 2014 | DE | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/EP2015/063746 | 6/18/2015 | WO | 00 |