Darcy S. ONeil
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Alternatives to Alcohol for Flavour Development
🕑 Added 2024-10-11 15:55:36 +0000 UTCFor a number of reasons, mostly availability, many people are looking for alternatives to alcohol for flavour development and diluting essential oils. This video and the content below will guide you on some of the alternatives.
These alternative solvents are available through most flavour and perfume supply companies.
Propylene Glycol
FEMA 2940 CAS: 57-55-6 (Propane-1,2-diol or 1,2-Propanediol)
This is the most common alternative to alcohol in flavour development. It works well with oxygenated compounds, though isn't great with terpenes and monoterpenes. It is very safe to use and is readily available on the market. It is slightly viscous but could probably be used to make extracts, though your results may vary.
Regulation: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=184.1666
Usage levels: 5% for alcoholic beverages and 2% for non-alcoholic.
Solubility: Miscible with water
⚠ Dipropylene Glycol ⚠
It is essential to note that dipropylene glycol (DPG) is not the same as propylene glycol (PG) and DPG is not approved for internal use. Therefore, when ordering please do not confuse DPG with PG.
Triacetin
FEMA 2007 CAS: 102-76-1
A simple triglyceride made from glycerin and acetic acid. It is a colourless, viscous, and odourless liquid with a high boiling point and a low melting point. It has a mild, sweet taste in concentrations lower than 500 ppm but may appear bitter and medicinal at higher concentrations. It has a long history of use dating back to the 1930s and was a superior solvent until high-purity propylene glycol came about in the 1960s.
No Limitations on Use
Solubility: 7% (70 g/L)
Fact: It has been considered a possible source of food energy in artificial food regeneration systems on long space missions. Getting over half of one's dietary energy from triacetin is believed to be safe.
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm?fr=184.1901
Triethyl Citrate
FEMA 3083 CAS: 77-93-0
Triethyl citrate is an ester of citric acid and ethyl alcohol. It is a colourless, odourless liquid used as a food additive, emulsifier, and solvent. At low levels, below 100 ppm, its flavour is practically imperceptible; below 500 ppm, it has a slightly sweet flavour. Above 500 ppm, it can be perceived negatively, with a bitter medicinal flavour.
No limitations on use as high concentrations are unpleasant.
Solubility: 6.5% (65 g/L)
Regulation: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=184.1911
Glycerin
Glycerin is not a great solvent for flavour development. Though it works for some things, like vanillin, it is not a primary choice as a solvent. It can add body, sweetness, and mouthfeel to beverages.
Comments
Darcy S. O'Neil
Not really, ethanol is a great solvent, water terrible for flavour applications and propylene glycol somewhere in the middle. I find vodka has too much water resulting in a hazy appearance. This isn't bad for flavour, just longterm stability. Bumping up the solvent power with 25% PG helps lower the total water content giving it a bit more stability. You could do 50/50 vodka/PG and probably get better results.
James Norquay
thanks Darcy. Are there any rule of thumb ratios for mixing ethanol and PG for making extracts and/or essences?
Darcy S. O'Neil
First, gum Arabic is a good emulsifier, but the Internet has over-simplified its use. Most videos show the gum being mixed with the oils. Still, the reality is that for gum Arabic to be truly functional, you need proper emulsification, and that means using special blenders (rotor-stator type) to break the droplet size below 5 microns to form a stable emulsion. The other issue is that the oils will still separate out and float to the surface even when mixed with an emulsifier. Emulsions are complex, and there is a branch of science for emulsions because they are studied in so many industries like food and beverage, oil and gas and pharmaceuticals, to name a few. I get a lot of questions about it, but the cost of the equipment to do it is usually outside most people's budgets ($5000 plus). Though you can find some cheaper units on Amazon, I can't vouch for their capabilities. Using isolated flavour compounds is easier for most people because it doesn't require special equipment and that is the direction I'll be heading in soon. You may notice I'm laying the groud work for it with the last few videos.
Waldo Smit
Hi Darcy, great information, thank you! I have tried to scan all of your literature and haven’t come across much information on Gum Arabic as a solvent/emulsifier with water except for the original Cola recipes back in the day. Do you think it still has a place in formulating flavours today?
