System and method for extraction of soluble flavoring components from a solid flavor carrier material into a brewing liquid

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11898126-B2
Application number	US-201816632107-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 12, 2018
Priority date	Jul 21, 2017
Publication date	Feb 13, 2024
Grant date	Feb 13, 2024

Abstract

Disclosed is a system and method for extraction of soluble flavoring components from a solid flavor carrier material into a brewing liquid. The system comprises a process vessel and a filtration device. The process vessel comprises an inlet for solid flavor carrier material, a circulation inlet for material comprising brewing liquid and a circulation outlet for material comprising brewing liquid. The filtration device is arranged for separation of solid components from material comprising brewing liquid and is a cross-flow filtration device comprising at least one cross-flow filter, a circulation inlet for material comprising brewing liquid, a circulation outlet for unfiltered material comprising brewing liquid and a closable outlet for filtered material comprising brewing liquid. The process vessel and the filtration device are comprised in a recirculation loop. Furthermore, the system comprises a recirculation pump and a closable feed inlet for introduction of material comprising brewing liquid into the recirculation loop.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system for extraction of soluble flavoring components from a solid flavor carrier material into a brewing liquid, wherein the system comprises:
a process vessel arranged to receive the solid flavor carrier material and to receive and discharge brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid, wherein said process vessel comprises an inlet for the solid flavor carrier material, a circulation inlet for the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid and a circulation outlet for the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid, and
a filtration device for separation of solid components from the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid, wherein said filtration device is a cross-flow filtration device comprising at least one cross-flow filter within the cross-flow filtration device, a circulation inlet for the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid, a circulation outlet for unfiltered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid and a closable outlet for filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid;
wherein the process vessel and the filtration device are comprised in a recirculation loop for circulation of the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid,
wherein the circulation outlet of the process vessel is connected to the circulation inlet of the filtration device in the recirculation loop,
wherein the circulation outlet of the filtration device is connected to the circulation inlet of the process vessel in the recirculation loop,
wherein the system further comprises a recirculation pump for generating a flow of the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid in the recirculation loop,
wherein the recirculation loop further comprises a closable feed inlet for introduction of the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid into the recirculation loop, said closable feed inlet being connected to the circulation inlet of the process vessel, and
wherein the recirculation loop optionally further comprises a closable drain outlet.

2. The system according to claim 1 , wherein said cross-flow filtration device is a filtrate-in-to-out filtration device, wherein the filtration device comprises an inner compartment arranged to receive material comprising brewing liquid via the circulation inlet of the filtration device and to discharge the unfiltered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid via the circulation outlet of the filtration device, wherein the filtration device comprises an outer compartment arranged to receive the filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid and to discharge the filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid via the closable outlet for the filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid, wherein each cross-flow filter comprised in the filtration device has an inner surface and an outer surface, and wherein the inner surface of each cross-flow filter is arranged in contact with said inner compartment and wherein the outer surface of each cross-flow filter is arranged in contact with said outer compartment.

3. The system according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of said at least one cross-flow filter is a cylindrical cross-flow filter, wherein the cylindrical cross-flow filter surrounds a channel being part of said inner compartment.

4. The system according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of said at least one cross-flow filter is a wedge wire filter.

5. The system according to claim 4 , wherein the wedge wire filter comprises wedge wires arranged parallel with a flow direction of the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid through the inner compartment from the circulation inlet to the circulation outlet, the wedge wires comprising planar portions forming said inner surface.

6. The system according to claim 1 , wherein said cross-flow filter comprises filter openings having a size of ≤200 μm.

7. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the circulation inlet of the process vessel is arranged such that a tangential flow of the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid is introduced into the process vessel when the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid is pumped in the recirculation loop by the recirculation pump.

8. A brewery arrangement comprising the system according to claim 1 and at least one device selected from the group of a whirlpool, a wort cooler and a fermentation tank.

9. The brewery arrangement according to claim 8 , wherein the brewery arrangement comprises the whirlpool, wherein the system is positioned upstream of said whirlpool.

10. The brewery arrangement according to claim 8 , wherein the brewery arrangement comprises the whirlpool and the wort cooler, wherein the system is positioned between the whirlpool and the wort cooler.

11. The brewery arrangement according to claim 8 , wherein the brewery arrangement comprises the fermentation tank, wherein the system is positioned downstream of the fermentation tank or is positioned in a recirculation loop having an inlet and an outlet connected to the fermentation tank.

12. A method for extraction of soluble flavoring components from a solid flavor carrier material into a brewing liquid, the method comprising:
a) providing the system according to claim 1 ;
b) introducing the solid flavor carrier material into said process vessel via said inlet for the solid flavor carrier material;
c) introducing the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid into the recirculation loop via the closable feed inlet, with the closable outlet for filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid of the filtration device and the optional closable drain outlet closed, so as to fill up the recirculation loop with the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid;
d) circulating the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid in the recirculation loop, with the closable feed inlet, the closable outlet for the filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid of the filtration device and the optional closable drain outlet closed, so as to disaggregate the solid flavor carrier material and provide the circulating brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid with solid components of the solid flavor carrier material, and
e) after disaggregation of the solid flavor carrier material, opening the closable feed inlet and the closable outlet for the filtered brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid of the filtration device, feeding the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid into the recirculation loop via the closable feed inlet, and circulating the brewing liquid material comprising the brewing liquid in the recirculation loop.

13. The method according to claim 12 , wherein the circulation of step d) is performed at a first flow rate and the circulation of step e) is performed at a second flow rate, wherein the second flow rate is higher than the first flow rate.

14. The method according to claim 12 , wherein the brewing liquid is beer or wort and wherein the solid flavor carrier material comprises a solid hop material, such as hop pellets.

15. The method according to claim 12 , wherein the optional closable drain outlet is kept closed during steps b)-e) of the method and wherein the method further comprises the step of:
f) introducing a second material comprising a second brewing liquid into the recirculation loop via the closable feed inlet and circulating the second material in the recirculation loop, with the outlet for the filtered

Assignees

• Alfa Laval Corp Ab

Inventors

• Martin Denis

Classifications

• C12C3/085 Primary

  Extraction of hops with beerwort · CPC title

• C12C5/026

  Beer flavouring preparations · CPC title

• C12C11/006

  Fermentation tanks therefor · CPC title

• C12C13/00

  Brewing devices, not covered by a single group of C12C1/00 - C12C12/04 · CPC title

• C12C5/00

  Other raw materials for the preparation of beer · CPC title