48 STiR coffee and tea | 2023 Issue 4 (August / September)
Oolong elevates oily foods
Japan's Suntory Global Innovation Center reports on its research finding that
oolong tea makes an ideal beverage to accompany dishes that are high in fat.
A total of 21 study participants evaluated food and drink across three factors
— greasiness, bite, and bitterness. Slices of salami sausage were used as
samples. The results showed that a sip of oolong helped reduce the sense of
greasiness. This concurs with the common practice in China of taking oolong
while dining on rich foods. Suntory Group is a major maker of RTD teas,
including oolong.
https://www.suntory.com/sic/research/t_oolong/
Anaerobic-fermented robusta
conquers arabica
In a short film by Brooklyn's Nguyen Coffee
Supply, champion barista Maya Crowley explains
how anaerobic fermentation gives robusta beans
the complexity and acidity that power her
signature drinks, which took an award at an SCA
competition previously won only by arabica
roasts. Give it the eye on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-efJ9cLI4A
Coffee bean processing
in a (scientific) nutshell
In a review published in Food Chemistry, the
authors compare emerging methods of coffee
bean processing and summarize comprehensive
information on their effects on chemical, biologi-
cal and sensory properties. Authors Noor
Ariefandie Febrianto and Fan Zhu of the Univer-
sity of Auckland, New Zealand, advocate
simplifying and improving post-fermentation
processes to reduce defects and become more
accessible to producers.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2023.135489
Herbal tea gives Barbie her glow
A skin care specialist who worked the set of the hit movie required actor
Margot Robbie to drink milk thistle infusions to attain just the right complexion.
"It's Barbie, and she needs to look perfect, so the brief for the skin was to
create that halo of light often seen in 1940s photographs," Jasmina Vico told
Vogue UK magazine. The herbal tea is said to cleanse the liver.
bit.ly/44q8Pri
Fungi that eat plastics
Scientists at two universities in Sri Lanka examined various types of fungi that
are adapted to break down decay-resistant hardwoods. The authors
discovered that some species have the ability to deteriorate sheets of LDPE,
low-density polyethylene. The recently published findings may be of use in
the quest to manage disposal of waste from plastic materials by using
microbial biodegradation.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0288133
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