METHOD OF MAKING NON-ALCOHOLIC AND ALCOHOLIC TODDY DRINKS
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is an International Non-provisional Application of U.S.
Non-Provisional Application No. 13/560,316, titled METHOD OF MAKING NONALCOHOLIC
AND ALCOHOLIC TODDY DRINKS, filed on July 27, 2012, which claims
the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/526,285, titled METHOD OF MAKING
NON-ALCOHOLIC AND ALCOHOLIC TODDY DRINKS, filed on August 23, 201 1, both
herein incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention is related generally to the method steps of
manufacturing non-alcoholic and alcoholic toddy drinks, and in particular to a process
using irradiation or filtration to inhibit the fermentation process.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Toddy drinks are made by de-juicing or slicing of the flower stalk of
coconut or palm trees or from coconut water. The Palm family includes Palyra Date
palms, Silver date palms, poneix sylvestris, Jaggery palms, caryota arnes, oil palms,
Elasesisguineense, kithal palms, nipa palms, South African lala palms, and hyphaene
palms. The Palm family belongs to Aracaceae and genus is Cocos Nocifera. Palm trees
thrive where there is plenty of sunshine and an average rainfall of 150 cms to 250 cms
per annum with a temperature above 24 degrees Celsius (75.2 degrees Fahrenheit).
Palm trees grow in more than 80 countries between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic
of Capricorn. There is exists more than 3 billion palms with an average life span of 80 to
100 years.
[0004] The Toddy juice starts to ferment within 2-3 hours after de-juicing, and
between 24 to 30 hours the toddy drink has an ethyl alcohol content of 4-6% caused by
yeast that converts carbohydrate whereby carbon dioxide is removed from pyruvic acid to
form acetaldehyde, which is reduced by nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide to form ethyl
alcohol. After 30 hours, the Toddy juice becomes acidic and vinegar is produced.
Therefore, this requires consumption of the toddy juice within 3 hours for a non-alcoholic
toddy drink or within 30 hours for an alcoholic toddy drink.
[0005] Currently, there is no method by which the toddy juice can be preserved
without denaturing the juice. By refrigeration, the shelf life can be prolonged for a few
days. By pasteurization, the toddy juice is denatured and the taste of the toddy drink
changes. By the use of chemicals to kill yeast in the toddy juice, the taste of the toddy
drink also changes.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The present invention are method steps to manufacture non-alcoholic and
alcoholic toddy drinks by use of only irradiation or only filtration. One embodiment of the
present invention includes a process using gamma irradiation to inhibit the fermentation
process. Another embodiment of the present invention includes a process using filtration
to inhibit the fermentation process. The present invention will enable the shelf life of the
toddy drink to be extended for several months and possibly years without change in the
nature and taste of the toddy drink. One embodiment of the present invention can be
used to preserve the toddy drink before fermentation starts to produce a sweet organic
soft (non-alcoholic) drink. Another embodiment of the present invention can be used to
control fermentation of the toddy drink to produce a sweet organic hard (alcoholic) drink.
[0007] Irradiation and/or filtration keeps the food material almost intact and at the
same time destroys the microbes and parasites. Often the material properly packed can
maintain the freshness for years. Irradiation can be done after packing or bottling in small
measures or in bulk quantities. Whereas, filtration is performed in bulk quantities.
Irradiation and/or filtration of the toddy juice has minimal effects on the vitamins and other
nutrients in the toddy drink and causes very little difference in the taste and smell.
[0008] Coconut water is the fluid contained inside the nut having some sugar as
well as minerals. If it is collected in a sterile receptacle without any human contact and
without any contamination, then it can be considered sterile, equivalent to intravenous
fluids administered to patients. In fact during cholera epidemics during World War II,
coconut water was used as intravenous fluids. Hence coconut water can be treated with
gamma radiation and alternatively by filtration to remove microbes, for the purpose of
preservation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] For the present invention to be easily understood and readily practiced, the
invention will now be described, for the purposes of illustration and not limitation, in
conjunction with the following figures, wherein:
[001 0] Figure 1 is a flow diagram of the present invention process steps to
manufacture toddy drinks using irradiation; and
[001 1] Figure 2 is a flow diagram of the present invention process steps to
manufacture toddy drinks using filtration.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[001 2] Any irradiation or filtration process is acceptable for use in the present
invention. The present invention will be illustrated herein using gamma irradiation as one
type of irradiation process and it is not intended to limit the present invention to only
gamma irradiation.
[001 3] Irradiation Process
[001 4] Gamma irradiation uses either Cobalt 60 or Cesium 137 isotopes. The
dosage necessary to destroy yeast is about 4 to 9 kGy (Gray = 1 joule of energy/Kg of
food, 1Gy = 100 rads, 1kGy = 1000Gy). Bacteria and other microbes can be destroyed
using about 1 to 2.3 kGy of gamma irradiation. The percentage of alcohol will vary
according to the time of irradiation after the toddy juice is collected. There will be no
alcohol of any discernable quantity if the toddy juice is irradiated within 3 hours of
collection from the tree. Between 3 hours and 24 hours after collection, the alcohol
content of the toddy juice will range from slightly more than zero to about 4 %. The
alcohol content reaches a maximum of 4 to 6 % by about 24 to about 30 hours after
collection from the trees. There is no need to stir the toddy juice while it is being
irradiated. Commercial irradiation equipment are available from manufacturers such as,
but not limited to, General Electric, Westinghouse, Siemens, Toshiba, Hitachi, and
Thomson of France.
[001 5] Now turning to Figure 1 that illustrates a flow diagram of the present
invention irradiation process steps to manufacture non-alcoholic and alcoholic toddy
drinks.
[0016] One embodiment of the present invention for preparing a non-alcoholic
Toddy drink includes: dejuicing a stalk of a coconut, dejuicing a stalk of a palm tree, or
extracting coconut water from a coconut to collect coconut water (Block 10), bottling the
non-irradiated toddy juice (Block 12A), deactivating yeast in the toddy juice in the bottles
by only irradiating the toddy juice between 4 to 9 kGy within a predetermined time (within
about 3 hours) after the dejuicing step to produce the non-alcoholic Toddy drink (Block
14A), packing the irradiate bottles in cases and/or shipping crates (Block 16), and
shipping crates and/or shipping crates to warehouses for distribution or directly to stores
(Block 18). As discussed above, any irradiation process is acceptable including gamma
irradiation. This process eliminates the need for refrigeration, pasteurization, or chemical
additives to deactivate the yeast necessary for fermentation. Microorganisms and fungi
are destroyed by irradiation, thus producing a safe and sterile drink.
[0017] Another embodiment of the present invention for preparing a non-alcoholic
Toddy drink includes: dejuicing a stalk of a coconut, dejuicing a stalk of a palm tree, or
extracting coconut water from a coconut to collect coconut water (Block 10), collecting the
non-irradiated toddy juice in a vessel for batch irradiation (Block 12B), deactivating yeast
in the toddy juice in the bottles by only irradiating the toddy juice between 4 to 9 kGy
within a predetermined time (within about 3 hours) after the dejuicing step to produce the
non-alcoholic Toddy drink (Block 14A), bottling the irradiated toddy juice (Block 14C),
packing the irradiate bottles in cases and/or shipping crates (Block 16), and shipping
crates and/or shipping crates to warehouses for distribution or directly to stores (Block
18). As discussed above, any irradiation process is acceptable including gamma
irradiation. This process eliminates the need for refrigeration, pasteurization, or chemical
additives to deactivate the yeast necessary for fermentation. Microorganisms and fungi
are also destroyed by irradiation, thus producing a safe and sterile drink.
[0018] Another embodiment of the present invention for preparing an alcoholic
Toddy drink includes: dejuicing a stalk of a coconut, dejuicing a stalk of a palm tree, or
extracting coconut water from a coconut to collect coconut water (Block 10), bottling the
non-irradiated toddy juice (Block 12A), deactivating yeast in the toddy juice by only
irradiating the toddy juice between 4 to 9 kGy between about 24 hours to about 30 hours
of the dejuicing step to produce the alcoholic Toddy drink with an alcohol content of 4 to
6% (8 to 12 proof), packing the irradiate bottles in cases and/or shipping crates (Block
16), and shipping crates and/or shipping crates to warehouses for distribution or directly
to stores (Block 18). As discussed above, any irradiation process is acceptable including
gamma irradiation. This process eliminates the need for refrigeration, pasteurization, or
chemical additives to deactivate the yeast necessary for fermentation. Microorganisms
and fungi are also destroyed by irradiation, thus producing a safe and sterile drink.
[0019] Another embodiment of the present invention for preparing an alcoholic
Toddy drink includes: dejuicing a stalk of a coconut, dejuicing a stalk of a palm tree, or
extracting coconut water from a coconut to collect coconut water (Block 10), collecting the
non-irradiated toddy juice is a vessel for batch irradiation (Block 12B), deactivating yeast
in the toddy juice by only irradiating the toddy juice between 4 to 9 kGy between about 24
hours to about 30 hours of the dejuicing step to produce the alcoholic Toddy drink with an
alcohol content of 4 to 6% (8 to 12 proof) (Block 14B), bottling the irradiated toddy juice
(Block 14C), packing the irradiate bottles in cases and/or shipping crates (Block 16), and
shipping crates and/or shipping crates to warehouses for distribution or directly to stores
(Block 18). As discussed above, any irradiation process is acceptable including gamma
irradiation. This process eliminates the need for refrigeration, pasteurization, or chemical
additives to deactivate the yeast necessary for fermentation. Microorganisms and fungi
are also destroyed by irradiation, thus producing a safe and sterile drink.
[0020] Another embodiment of the present invention includes the step of filtering
the toddy juice before the step of irradiating.
[0021] Another embodiment of the present invention includes the step of
collecting the toddy juice in a vessel for batch irradiation before the step of irradiating the
toddy juice.
[0022] Another embodiment of the present invention includes the step of filtering
the toddy drink after the step of irradiation.
[0023] Filtration Process
[0024] An alternative embodiment of the present invention uses filtration instead
of irradiation to inhibit fermentation by the removal of yeast and other microbes as shown
in Figure 2 . The collection of the toddy juice is the same as described above for the
irradiation process: dejuicing a stalk of a coconut, dejuicing a stalk of a palm tree, or
extracting coconut water from a coconut to collect coconut water (Block 20), the toddy
juice is filtered through porcelain filters (Block 22A) or membrane filters (Block 22B)
(filters discussed in detail below), bottling the filtered toddy drink (Block 24), packing
bottles into crates/cases for shipping (Block 26), and shipping crates/cases to
warehouses for distribution or directly to stores (Block 28).
[0025] Porcelain filters or Membrane Filters can be used for the filtration process.
In order to filter the micro-organisms and bacteria, the pores of the porcelain and
membrane filters must be 0.5 microns and above. Porcelain filters are numbered 1 to 13 ,
where 1 has the coarsest pores and 13 has finest pores. For filtering yeast the pores size
is to be 5 microns or lower. Therefore, a preferable pores size range from about 0.5
microns to 0.75 microns to filter out all harmful organisms and yeast.
[0026] Porcelain filters were invented in 1884 and are known as Chamberland
Filter/Pastuer Chamberland Filter, and are similar to Berkfield Filters. Porcelain filters can
consist of unglazed porcelain tube that contains a ring of enameled porcelain through
which inflow pipe is fitted. The core of the porcelain tube can consist of metal pipe with
holes through which fluid flows out and is collected. Inflow through the porcelain filter can
be pressurized such that filtration occurs under pressure. Any commercially available
Porcelain filter is sufficient providing the pore size allows for adequate filtration of all
harmful organisms and yeast. Some manufacturers are Synkera Technologies Inc. (2605
Trade Centre Avenue, Suite C, Longmont, CO 808503), H20 Distributors ( 1061 Triad
Court, Suite 9 , Marietta, Georgia 30062), and American Filtration (P.O. Box 4 142, 601
Lily, Corpus Christi, TX 78469).
[0027] Membrane Filters can be ceramic membrane or polymer membranes.
Ceramic membrane is produced with inorganic materials such as aluminum oxides,
silicon carbide and zirconium oxide. They are resistant to active media like acids and
strong solvents. They are stable chemically, thermally, and mechanically and biologically
inert. They have high weight and are costly but ecologically friendly and have long
working life span. Any commercially available ceramic filter is sufficiently for separation
of microbes and low affinity to the liquid used and must be biocompatible. Some
manufacturers are EMD Millipore (290 Concord Road, Billerica, MA 0 1821) , Critical
Process Filtration Inc. (One Chestnut Street, Nashua, NH 03060), and Sterlitech
Corporation (22027 70th Avenues, Kent, WA 98032-1 9 11) .
[0028] While the disclosure has been described in detail and with reference to
specific embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various
changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the spirit and
scope of the embodiments. Thus, it is intended that the present disclosure cover the
modifications and variations of this disclosure provided they come within the scope of the
appended claims and their equivalents.
CLAIMS:
1. A method for preparing a non-alcoholic Toddy drink from a toddy juice collected
from a stalk of a coconut, a stalk of a palm tree, or coconut water, the method comprising
the step of:
deactivating yeast in the toddy juice by only irradiating the toddy juice between 4
to 9 kGy within a predetermined time to produce the non-alcoholic Toddy
drink,
wherein no refrigeration, no pasteurization, and no chemical additives are used in
the yeast deactivating step.
2 . The method according to Claim 1, wherein the irradiating step is gamma
irradiation.
3 . The method according to Claim 1, further comprising the step of bottling the toddy
juice before the step of irradiating.
4 . The method according to Claim 1, further comprising the step of collecting the
toddy juice in a vessel for batch irradiation before the step of irradiating the toddy juice.
5 . The method according to Claim 4 , further comprising the step of bottling the toddy
drink after the step of irradiating.
6 . The method according to Claim 1, wherein the predetermined time is within 3
hours.
7 . The product of the process according to Claim 1.
8 . A method for preparing an alcoholic Toddy drink from a toddy juice collected from
a stalk of a coconut, a stalk of a palm tree, the method comprising the step of:
deactivating yeast in the toddy juice by only irradiating the toddy juice between 4
to 9 kGy between about 3 hours to about 30 hours of the dejuicing step to
produce the alcoholic Toddy drink with an alcohol content,
wherein no refrigeration, no pasteurization, and no chemical additives are used in
the yeast deactivating step.
9 The method according to Claim 8 wherein the irradiating step is gamma
irradiation.
10. The method according to Claim 8 further comprising the step of bottling the toddy
juice before the step of irradiating.
11 The method according to Claim 8 further comprising the step of collecting the
toddy juice in a vessel for batch irradiation before the step of irradiating the toddy juice.
12 The method according to Claim 10 further comprising the step of bottling the toddy
drink after the step of irradiating.
13. The product of the process according to Claim 8 .
14. A method for preparing a non-alcoholic Toddy drink from a toddy juice collected
from a stalk of a coconut, a stalk of a palm tree, or coconut water, the method comprising
the step of:
deactivating yeast in the toddy juice by only filtering the toddy juice to produce the
non-alcoholic Toddy drink,
wherein no refrigeration, no pasteurization, and no chemical additives are used in
the yeast deactivating step.
15. The method according to Claim 14, wherein a Porcelain filter is used in the
filtering step.
16. The method according to Claim 14, wherein a membrane filter is used in the
filtering step.
17. The method according to Claim 16, wherein the membrane filter is a ceramic
membrane filter.
18. The method according to Claim 16, wherein the membrane filter is a polymer
membrane filter.
19. The product of the process according to Claim 14.
20. A method for preparing an alcoholic Toddy drink from a toddy juice collected from
a stalk of a coconut, a stalk of a palm tree, or coconut water, the method comprising the
step of:
deactivating yeast in the toddy juice by only filtering the toddy juice to produce the
alcoholic Toddy drink,
wherein no refrigeration, no pasteurization, and no chemical additives are used in
the yeast deactivating step.
2 1. The method according to Claim 20, wherein a Porcelain filter is used in the
filtering step.
22. The method according to Claim 20, wherein a membrane filter is used in the
filtering step.
23. The method according to Claim 22, wherein the membrane filter is a ceramic
membrane filter.
24. The method according to Claim 22, wherein the membrane filter is a polymer
membrane filter.