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Nestle Patents Coffee Beer 471

Posted by samzenpus from the like-fried-chicken-and-doughnuts dept.
Dotnaught writes "New Scientist reports that Nestec, a Nestle subsidiary, has applied for a patent on a fermented coffee beverage. In other words, coffee beer -- it foams like beer and packs the caffeine of coffee, with "fruity and/or floral notes due to the fermentation of the coffee aroma."
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Nestle Patents Coffee Beer More

Nestle Patents Coffee Beer

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  • Drew Carey Beat them to it!! (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    OMFG. Buzz Beer is teh shit! Kdawg will pwn your mother!

  • What every college town needs (Score:5, Funny)

    by iamjambon ( 927416 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @01:57AM (#13938832)
    More wide-awake drunks.

    • Not a bad patent... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Zouden ( 232738 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @02:39AM (#13939008)
      Actually this drink does not contain any alcohol at all. I don't think it is really beer.
      But anyway, for all those nay-saying this patent, I think it's a fairly decent one. It certainly isn't obvious!

      From TFA:
      Nestlé admits it was tricky to preserve the characteristic coffee smell in the production process. Coffee beans are roasted normally, and the chemicals containing the natural aroma collected in a cryogenic condenser, before being converted into coffee oil. The remains of the roast are then ground to powder, mixed with yeast and sucrose, and fermented for 4 hours at just below 22C. At this temperature the yeast can still metabolise but does not generate alcohol.

      The aroma oil is then mixed in with the liquid and nitrogen is injected to make it foam. Adding a touch of extra sugar also helps trap the aroma until the drink is poured, Nestlé claim.

      Now, ask yourself, is that obvious? I think this patent is perfectly acceptable.
      • Now, ask yourself, is that obvious? I think this patent is perfectly acceptable.

        The patent maybe acceptable, but having read all of that would you actually drink this chemical brew? Me neither!
        Espresso stout [ineedcoffee.com] OTOH... 8*)
    • And this is why I have decided to patent my process for fermenting Jolt Cola.
  • in the Seattle area (Double Black) years ago!

    Another frivolous patent.

    Patently ridiculous!

  • Woohoo! (Score:5, Funny)

    by sexybomber ( 740588 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @01:57AM (#13938835)
    I, for one, welcome our new drunk AND hyper overlords!
    • Nestle basically bought all of the chocolate manufacturing in Europe.

      Take a look at your kitkat some time - licensed from Nestle.

      I was at a restaurant at 10,000ft in the alps. Nestle hot chocolate, of course.

      All of Nestle's chocolate products are made with powdered milk, except for Callier - the only Nestle chocolate made with fresh milk. Have fun getting it in the states.

      Probably the only chocolatier that Nestle doesn't own is Caotina - damn hard to get that stuff in the states too.

      My point is, Nestle has
      • Brewed frothy coffee, what a concept, no coffee shop in the world could have possibly invented that on their own. This is like Microsoft patenting the "double click". Then why don't the Italians then patent pizza and the Mexicans patent tacos and diarrhea!

      • Re:Nestle owns all European chocolate (Score:5, Informative)

        by 10Ghz ( 453478 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @04:22AM (#13939292)
        There are plenty of chocolate-makers in Europe, besides Nestle. Being in Finland, the two dominant companies here are Cloetta/Fazer and Kraft Foods (which owns such brands as Marabou and O'boy, as far as chocolate is concerned). There ARE products by Nestle available here (Kitkat for example), but they are not the dominant player. Nestle might be the biggest one overall, but they do not dominate the field, IMO.

      • Re:Nestle owns all European chocolate (Score:5, Informative)

        by jonwil ( 467024 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @04:29AM (#13939316)
        What about Cadbury and Mars (who make mars, m&m, snickers and other things I think). Both are (at least in australia) quite large.

        • Re:Nestle owns all European chocolate (Score:2, Insightful)

          by Anonymous Coward
          Mod parent up - Cadburys and Mars are just as big, Cadburys Schweps also I believe own the Coca Cola franchise in Europe.
          Nestle only seems big because it bought out British Rowntrees in the late 80's early 90's, which made Fruit Pastels, Kitkats, Smarties, Polos etc...
      • Take a look at your kitkat some time - licensed from Nestle
        Actually, Kit Kat was the invention of Rowntrees in York and only bought out by Nestle years after being established around the world...
      • You're right about Nestle, but, well, at least it's not Cadbury. The "venerable" british chocolatier sells chocolate flavoured wax aggregate, occasionally with crushed economy nut sweepings. It's absolute rubbish. Nestle, while a giant corporation who basically tries to sell you less for more, at least has legitimate researchers or whatever making a kit-kat or whatever taste reasonable. Cadbury is just plain shite.

        I dont eat much chocolate, but when I am over in the USA, I make sure that I get some he

      • Nestle basically bought all of the chocolate manufacturing in Europe..

        What about Lindt [lindtchocolate.com]? I don't think is Nestle owned and there are many "little" chocolate prodoucers in Europe that make some delicious product. Here in italy we have NOVI, that's quite good but if you are searching something particular and you are in tuscany try the one from slitti [slitti.it]

      • Re:Nestle owns all European chocolate (Score:4, Informative)

        by Hadlock ( 143607 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @06:45AM (#13939718) Homepage Journal
        Look in to the history of chocolate. It was Mr. Nestle himself that invented powdered milk. That's where the name - Nestle - came from. Of fucking course it's made with powdered milk. The whole point of using powdered milk is that it allows you to control the moisture content more closely - creating a more even product. Using fresh milk - and calling it quality as a result - is a pure marketing gimmick.

  • ObSimpsons (Score:3, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 03, 2005 @01:58AM (#13938836)
    Marge: "Caw-fee!"
    Bartender: "Bee-er?"

  • This will be perfect for late night problem sets (Score:3, Funny)

    by Physics Nobody ( 688399 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @01:58AM (#13938840)
    The coffee keeps you going and the beer makes sure you don't have to care too much.
  • This is the best invention since Nuts & Gum.

    Homer

  • One step closer to chocolate beer.

    How deliciously absurd!

  • Buzz Beer (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Sohgin ( 823654 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @01:59AM (#13938847)
    I think Drew Carey has a lawsuit.

    • Re:Buzz Beer (Score:3, Informative)

      by QuantumG ( 50515 )
      Call me crazy, but wouldn't the patent actually cover their particular implementation of a coffee-beer like substance? i.e., wouldn't their patent actually have a formular in there somewhere which describes what they are patenting? Looking at the Abstract for the patent they are pretty specific what it is the patent covers. I don't think Drew Carey specified in his show a technique for making the beer or the specific ratios of methylbutanol to methylbutanol and thioacetates to thiols. Not the mention th
  • Here's a food innovation that's up there with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Sheer inspiration.

  • Skittles! (Score:4, Funny)

    by Bifurcati ( 699683 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @02:00AM (#13938857) Homepage
    Aside from being a disturbing combination of knock-me-out and perk-me-up, I think that Skittlebrau [slashdot.org] has a much better chance of being successful.

    NB. I said beer was "knock-me-out" not "knock-me-up", so don't go getting any ideas. Not that the two are mutually incompatible, I guess...

    • Assuming this is you [uq.edu.au] I think it might be a physical impossibility to knock-you-up in the classic sense of the phrase - unless of course you are the yellow one in the picture.

  • Clarification (Score:3, Informative)

    by Ctrl+Alt+De1337 ( 837964 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @02:01AM (#13938859) Homepage
    If it looks like beer, foams like beer, but smells and tases like coffee, then it's this stuff. It has caffiene, but no alcohol. I'm wondering if this is just a novelty, or if there really is some place for it in the market since I think this probably would be more expensive than regular coffee. I would think if people want coffee they'd get coffee, and if they want beer they'd get beer. It just strikes me as a solution without a problem. A very clever solution, but still one without a problem.
    • You know, if there's one thing I look for in a good cup of coffee, it's foam and bubbles.

      Well done Nestle. Next you'll be making beer that is murky, has no head and tastes like bitter burnt beans. Good luck to you.

  • YRO? (Score:2, Informative)

    by kihjin ( 866070 )
    You'd think they'd at least come up with a better name for this 'drink,' instead of concatenating the two ingredients. Anyone who wants to see the patent application, the it's here [wipo.int] [pdf]. I think I'll pass on the taste-test.
  • http://www.tvacres.com/beverages_beer_buzz.htm [tvacres.com]

    The Drew Carey Show ;)

  • Give me Java Porter any day... (Score:4, Informative)

    by GileadGreene ( 539584 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @02:12AM (#13938922) Homepage
    Eh. This stuff has no alcohol content. No thanks! I'll take one of the Mountain Sun Brewery's [mountainsunpub.com] Java Porters over this crap any day.
  • I know someone who's been putting espresso into some of his homebrew for years (a bottle of it keeps you awake while you're working on a bender) but keeping the alcohol out is a new twist and might be worthy of a patent.
  • I thought my grandma patented apple pie!
  • I claim prior art! Drew

  • a couple of contentions (Score:3, Informative)

    by Kargan ( 250092 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @02:30AM (#13938973) Homepage
    There are actually a ton of coffee beers, although not in the same sense as the article suggests:

    http://www.ratebeer.com/ [ratebeer.com] and search for 'coffee', 'mocha' or 'java'.

    However, these are simply Porters, Stouts, etc. that are brewed as they would normally be but with the addition of coffee, being a complimentary and intuitive adjunct since roasted malts frequently contribute a coffeeish, roasty sort of malt bitterness and flavor to many dark beers.

    In fact, this Nestle product wouldn't even seem to be eligible to be called beer since it doesn't appear to contain malt, a prime ingredient of beer along with water, hops and yeast.

  • One of my favorite breweries already does this. Dogfish head's Chicory Stout [dogfish.com] is pretty decent.

    From the URL:
    "A dark beer made with a touch of roasted chicory, organic Mexican coffee, St. John's Wort, and licorice root."

    I'd hope that the patent office would at least bother doing some research.

  • NO, officer... (Score:3, Funny)

    by laughingcoyote ( 762272 ) <(barghesthowl) (at) (excite.com)> on Thursday November 03, 2005 @02:45AM (#13939025) Journal

    That's not BEER you smell on my breath, it's coffee. COFFEE! Hey, put those damn handcuffs away!

  • Google: Results 1 - 10 of about 73,300 for "coffee beer". (0.20 seconds)

    Does anyone think they're the first to think of combining the two most addictive beverages in the world?

    I'm sure the patent is much more specific than just mixing the two, enough to make it unique, but the general idea is nothing new. I really didn't know you could patent food, but I guess where there's a will there's a way.
  • (Waves hand) Question...

    How the fuck is this "your rights online"?

  • OSQ (Score:2)

    by Mr_Icon ( 124425 )
    Homer: Uh, yeah. I need something that will keep me awake,
    alert, and reckless all night long.
    Clerk: Well, Congress is racing back to Washington to outlaw
    these. [puts a bottle of pills on the counter]
    Homer: [takes bottle] Sold!
    [downs most of the pills on the spot]
    Clerk: Hey, you can't take that many pep pills at once.
    Homer: No problem, I'll balance it out with a bottle of sleeping
  • so if you can come up with another way to make it they can swivel... ;)
  • Who invented this? Don't they just cancel eachother out? It's like the simpsons where homer takes sleeping pills and energy pills.
  • I know Coffee Beer existed before because I drank some more than 10 years ago.

    So I decided to pop a search out there:
    http://www.californiawineandfood.com/links/coffeeb eerandotherbeverages.html [california...ndfood.com]

    Also from another site analysing beers: Mountain Sun's coffee beer also has more of a coffee flavor. "I love the Mountain Sun Java, but it has a lot more coffee character," Parker said. "That's the beauty of it. Even in something as esoteric as a coffee beer you can have a range of choices. That's what makes brewing g
  • In the same article they mention a "Cellphone chaperone", interestingly mine http://www.meta-sat.com/ [meta-sat.com] and several other built-in car-phones can do exactly that. From certain numbers previously registered with the phone you can call the car and listen in to what is happening. It is used by numerous delivery companies. They go further and can upgrade the phones software remotely too.

    There was even a demonstration of such a system on British TV at least 10 years ago being used by the police in "sting" opera

  • with "fruity and/or floral notes due to the fermentation of the coffee aroma."

    Ah, yes. The fruity and/or floral notes. It has a slightly musky scent wafting on the pallette and... wait. We're talking about a cross between beer and Red Bull here. WTF is it with the high-brow wine vocabulary?! Ah, well. We brought it back down to the college level at the end when we proposed that it was caused by an aroma that ferments.

    Pass me some of that weed, dude! My aroma is fermenting!

  • ...or didn't you know that, submitter?

    pfft.
  • Forget coffee beer -- I'm sticking with Kahlua [wikipedia.org] (a coffee liqueur). It's versatile. You can drink it, you can mix it with other forms of alcohol to create mixed drinks, you can add chocolate and ice cream to make a mudslide, you can put it in a milkshake, you can add it to brownies, you can make tiramisu...

    Heck, you can put Kahlua in coffee!

    I don't see being able to do any of that with a beer made from coffee. Not if I want the result to be drinkable, anyway.

  • I knew they were working on it! (Score:3, Funny)

    by Muhammar ( 659468 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @04:17AM (#13939274)
    and I could have scooped them - some years ago, I noticed that the stale instant Nestle tastes incredibly lot like a stale weak beer. (I thought it was nice that they did not use the usual burnt motoroil flavor like Folgers'). So they were just passing a beta version of their birra Coffiest!
  • Hmm..I liked this better when it was called Baileys Irish Cream & Coffee.
  • Charlie Papazian in the 'Bible' of homebrew [amazon.co.uk] talks about the use of coffee in brewing beer, and I believe this stands since the first edition in 1984.
  • Funny, still no reference of those tomatoes crossed with tobacco...
    Brought to you by Homer [thesimpsons.com].

    /Didn't RTFA

  • Just home brew your own (Score:3, Informative)

    by hubie ( 108345 ) on Thursday November 03, 2005 @11:14AM (#13940869)
    Here [byo.com] is a nice article on how to home brew your own coffee ale and how to best brew with coffee and/or coffee beans. For those who haven't tried, home brewing is really rather easy (if you can make homemade soup, you can make homemade beer). The only downside (in my opinion) is all the sanitation and cleaning up, i.e., "doin' the dishes." I presently have a Christmas Ale in the fermenter that is about as black as coffee (I hope it mellows a bit between now and Christmas).

    Here is one recipe from that link (I just might have to try it):

    Coffee Imperial Stout
    (5 gal/19L, all-grain)
    OG: 1.067 FG: 1.016
    IBU: 70 SRM: 35
    by Doug McNair, Redhook Breweries

    Ingredients
    8.0 lbs. (3.9 kg) 2-row pale malt
    2.25 lbs. (1 kg) crystal (60&#246;80&#161; L)
    1.5 lbs. (0.7 kg) wheat malt
    1.25 lbs. (0.6 kg) chocolate malt
    0.5 lb. (0.2 kg) roasted barley
    0.5 lb. (0.2 kg) black patent malt
    18.75 AAU Northern Brewer hops (bittering)
    (2.5 oz./71 g of 7.5% alpha acids)
    1.5 oz. (42 g) finishing hops
    (Northern Brewer or Cascade)
    15 oz. (445 mL) of espresso
    Ale yeast (your choice)

    Step by Step
    Mash in all grains at 149&#161; F (65&#161; C). Hold until converted, about 1 hour. Mash off at 170&#188; F (77&#161; C) and begin lautering. Sparge to achieve eight gallons (30 L) of wort. Bring to a boil and add 2.5 oz. (71 g) boiling hops. Total boil is 70 minutes. After the boil, turn off the heat and add 1.5 oz. (43 g) finish hops for five minutes. Cool to 70&#188; F (21&#161; C) and ferment with ale yeast. Original gravity goal is 17.5&#161; Plato (1.069 SG). Terminal gravity will be pretty high, approximately 1.016. Add espresso at end of primary fermentation, bottle and enjoy!

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