FOOD & BEVERAGE INGREDIENTS

JUICES

JUICE IS PREPARED BY MECHANICALLY SQUEEZING OR MACERATING FRESH FRUITS OR VEGETABLES. POPULAR JUICES ARE APPLE, ORANGE, PRUNES, LEMON, GRAPEFRUIT, CHERRY, PINEAPPLE, TOMATO, CARROT, GRAPE, STRAWBERRY, CRANBERRY, POMEGRANATE, GUAVA, SAPOTA ETC. JUICES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE IN MIXED FORMS. JUICES ARE ALSO USED FOR MAKING COCKTAILS, MOCKTAILS

TEA

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world.It has a cooling, slightly bitter, astringent flavour which many enjoy.

The term herbal tea usually refers to infusions of fruit or herbs made without the tea plant, such as rosehip tea or chamomile tea. Alternative terms for this are tisane or herbal infusion, both bearing an implied contrast with tea. This article is concerned exclusively with preparations and uses of the tea plant, Camellia sinensis, the Minnan word for which is the etymological origin of the English word tea.

TEA PROCESSING

Types of tea are distinguished by the processing they undergo. Leaves of Camellia sinensis soon begin to wilt and oxidize if not dried quickly after picking. The leaves turn progressively darker because chlorophyll breaks down and tannins are released. This process, enzymatic oxidation, is called fermentation in the tea industry although it is not a true fermentation: it is not caused by micro-organisms, and is not an anaerobic process. The next step in processing is to stop the oxidation process at a predetermined stage by heating, which deactivates the enzymes responsible. With black tea this is done simultaneously with drying. Without careful moisture and temperature control during its manufacture and thereafter, fungi will grow on tea. This form of fungus causes real fermentation that will contaminate the tea with toxic and sometimes carcinogenic substances and off-flavors, rendering the tea unfit for consumption.

Types of Tea

What are the different types of tea?

All tea comes from the evergreen tea bush (Camellia Sinensis).  The following terms

only describe tea leaves after they are harvested from the tea bush and processed

for consumption. 

Green Tea

Oxidization is a chemical reaction that takes place when tea leaves are picked and begin to wither and die.  Green tea is not allowed to oxidize and is quickly dried, pan-fried or oven fired to dehydrate the tea leaves for storage.  This process retains many of the polyphenols, catechins, and flavonoids that are associated with the health benefits of drinking green tea.

Black Tea

Black tea is allowed to oxidize which “ripens” the tea and creates a deep, rich, robust flavor with uniqueness based on the tea grower’s knowledge and skill.The oxidation process is commonly referred to as fermentation.  This is technically incorrect because "fermentation" is a process in which yeast is converted into alcohol and sugar is converted to and released as carbon dioxide gas.

Oolong Tea

Oolong tea falls somewhere between green tea and black tea in the amount of time the tea leaves are allowed to oxidize.  Two terms often used to describe oolong tea are “green” and “amber” style.  The “amber” styles are allowed to oxidize slightly more than the “green style” oolong tea.  This results in a variety of smooth teas available that bear the makers style and tradition.

White Tea

White tea is picked before the leaf buds fully open and are still covered with fine silky hairs.  The delicate buds are quickly air dried to produce some of the rarest and most expensive tea available.  White tea is said to have three time more antioxidants than green or black tea.  Researchers for some of the large cosmetic companies have become very interested in white tea in recent years.  The polyphenols in white tea have been shown to be very effective in mopping up free radicals that can lead to 

aging, and wrinkles, and sagging skin. 

Pu-erh

Pu-erh tea comes from the Yunnan province in China.  Pu-erh tea has a distinct earthy aroma.  This type of tea differs from other formed black tea because it is allowed to grow a thin layer of mold on the leaves.  Of course these are harmless cultures and are reputably known in China for their medicinal effects.  This makes

sense because the antibiotic penicillin was first discovered through mold cultures.

Formed or Compressed Tea Bricks

This could either refer to green tea or black tea that is pressed into tea bricks,medallions, balls or other impressions.  In ancient times, this was necessary to keep compact for storage on long voyages by ship or camel.  It also preserved the tea during these long journeys because the tea was so tightly packed that it sealed out air that would otherwise degrade the tea.

Flavored Tea

Flavored tea is typically a black tea that's soaked in natural or artificial flavors.  Today there are too many flavors to list.  The most notable is Earl Grey,which is flavored with the oil of bergamot.  Flavored green teas and herbal tisanes are also now available and gaining popularity and

Herbal Tea

Herbal tea or herb tea is not really tea at all, since they do not contain leaves from the tea bush (Camellia Sinensis).  Herbal teas are made from seeds, roots, flowers, or other parts of plants and herbs.  They are often blended to make unique tasting infusions and more formally known as tisanes.  Medicinal teas are herbal teas that are used for the treatment of ailments.  These teas are gaining acceptance in western culture.

The Top 50 Beer Brands

1. Carling
2. Foster’s
3. Guinness
4. Stella Artois
5. John Smith’s
6. Tennent’s
7. Carlsberg
8. Kronenbourg 1664
9. Beck’s Vier
10. Peroni
11. London Pride
12. Budweiser
13. Greene King IPA
14. Worthington’s Creamflow
15. Harvey’s Best
16. Belhaven Best
17. Tetley Smooth
18. Grolsch
19. = Abbott Ale, Sharp’s Doom Bar, Heineken
22. Amstel
23. = Carlsberg Export, Timothy Taylor Landlord
25. = Black Sheep Bitter, Budvar, San Miguel
28. = Bombardier, Woodforde’s Wherry
30. = Adnams Bitter, Wadworth 6X
32. Staropramen
33. = Coors Fine Light, Hoegaarden, Holsten Pils
36. = Deuchars IPA, Bass
38. = Beck’s, Miller Genuine Draft
40. = Corona, Leffe, Kirin, Marston’s Pedigree, Shepherd Neame Spitfire, St Austell Tribute
47. = Boddingtons, Copper Dragon Best, Old Speckled Hen, Otter
50. Courage Best



Although the list includes some micro-brew

HOW BEER IS MADE

Brewing is fundamentally a natural process. The art and science of brewing lies in converting natural food materials into a pure, pleasing beverage. Although great strides have been made with the techniques for achieving high-quality production, beer today is still a beverage brewed from natural products in a traditional way. Although the main ingredients of beer have remained constant (water, yeast, malt and hops), it is the precise recipe and timing of the brew that gives one a different taste from another. The production of beer is one of the most closely supervised and controlled manufacturing processes in our society. Apart from brewing company expenditures on research and quality control designed to achieve the highest standards of uniformity and purity in the product, the production of beer is also subject to regular inspection and review by federal and provincial Health Departments. Substances used in the brewing process are approved by Health Canada. On average, a batch of beer will take about 30 days to produce. To be more specific, brewing takes nine and a half hours, while fermentation and aging combined take between 21 and 35 days for ales and lagers respectively.
1.Water
Pure water is an essential ingredient in good beer and brewers pay scrupulous attention to the source and purification of their brewing water. The water used in brewing is purified to rigidly-set standards. If it does not have the proper calcium or acidic content for maximum activity of the enzymes in the mash, it must be brought up to that standard.
2.Malt
Barley is used to make brewers' malt. At the malting companies, barley is soaked, germinated (sprouted), then dried and/or kilned/roasted to arrest further growth. During the period of controlled growth in the malting plant, specific barley enzymes are released to break down the membranes of the starch cells that make up most of the kernel. But these are internal changes only; apart from a slight change in colour, the external characteristics remain essentially unchanged. When the malt leaves a malting plant, it still looks like barley.
In the brewery, the malt is screened and crushed rather than ground to flour in order to keep the husks as whole as possible. This process not only prevents the extraction of undesirable materials from the husks but also allows them to act as a filter bed for separation of the liquid extract formed during mashing.
3.Mashing
Malt is added to heated, purified water and, through a carefully controlled time and temperature process, the malt enzymes break down the starch to sugar and the complex proteins of the malt to simpler nitrogen compounds. Mashing takes place in a large, round tank called a "mash mixer" or "mash tun" and requires careful temperature control. At this point, depending on the type of beer desired, the malt is supplemented by starch from other cereals such as corn, wheat or rice.
4.Lautering
The mash is transferred to a straining (or lautering) vessel which is usually cylindrical with a slotted false bottom two to five centimetres above the true bottom. The liquid extract drains through the false bottom and is run off to the brew kettle. This extract, a sugar solution, is called "wort" but it is not yet beer. Water is "sparged" (or sprayed) though the grains to wash out as much of the extract as possible. The "spent grains" are removed and sold as cattle feed.
5.Boiling and Hopping
The brew kettle, a huge cauldron holding from 70 to 1,000 hectolitres and made of shiny copper or stainless steel, is probably the most striking sight in a brewery. It is fitted with coils or a jacketed bottom for steam heating and is designed to boil the wort under carefully-controlled conditions. Boiling, which usually lasts about two hours, serves to concentrate the wort to a desired specific gravity, to sterilize it and to obtain the desired extract from the hops. The hop resins contribute flavour, aroma and bitterness to the brew. Once the hops have flavoured the brew, they are removed. When applicable, highly-fermentable syrup may be added to the kettle. Undesirable protein substances that have survived the journey from the mash mixer are coagulated, leaving the wort clear.
6. Hop Separation and Cooling
After the beer has taken on the flavour of the hops, the wort then proceeds to the "hot wort tank". It is then cooled, usually in a simple-looking apparatus called a "plate cooler". As the wort and a coolant flow past each other on opposite sides of stainless steel plates, the temperature of the wort drops from boiling to about 10 to 15.5 °C, a drop of more than 65.6 °C, in a few seconds.
7. Fermentation
The wort is then moved to the fermenting vessels and yeast, the guarded central mystery of ancient brewer's art, is added. It is the yeast, which is a living, single-cell fungi, that breaks down the sugar in the wort to carbon dioxide and alcohol. It also adds many beer-flavouring components. There are many kinds of yeasts, but those used in making beer belong to the genus saccharomyces. The brewer uses two species of this genus. One yeast type, which rises to the top of the liquid at the completion of the fermentation process, is used in brewing ale and stout. The other, which drops to the bottom of the brewing vessel, is used in brewing lager.
In all modern breweries, elaborate precautions are taken to ensure that the yeast remains pure and unchanged. Through the use of pure yeast culture plants, a particular beer flavour can be maintained year after year. During fermentation, which lasts about seven to 10 days, the yeast may multiply six-fold and in the open-tank fermenters used for brewing ale, a creamy, frothy head may be seen on top of the brew. When the fermentation is complete, the yeast is removed. Now, for the first time ,the liquid is called beer.
8.Cellars
For one to three weeks, the beer is stored cold and then filtered once or twice before it is ready for bottling or "racking" into kegs.
9.Packaging
In the bottle shop of a brewery, returned empty bottles go through washers in which they receive a thorough cleaning. After washing, the bottles are inspected electronically and visually and pass on to the rotary filler. Some of these machines can fill up to 1,200 bottles per minute. A "crowning" machine, integrated with the filler, places caps on the bottles. The filled bottles may then pass through a "tunnel pasteurizer" (often 23 metres from end to end and able to hold 15,000 bottles) where the temperature of the beer is raised about 60 °C. for a sufficient length of time to provide biological stability, then cooled to room temperature.
Emerging from the pasteurizer, the bottles are inspected, labelled, placed in boxes, stacked on pallets and carried by lift truck to the warehousing areas to await shipment. Also in the bottle shop may be the canning lines, where beer is packaged in cans for shipment. Packaged beer may be heat-pasteurized or micro-filtered, providing a shelf-life of up to six months when properly stored. Draught beer, since it is normally sold and consumed within a few weeks, may not go through this process. The draught beer is placed in sterilized kegs ready for shipment.