Patent
The present invention relates to the use of sweet steviol glycoside compounds, particularly rebaudioside B, in sweetening compositions. Sweetening compositions comprising selected amounts of rebaudioside B have been shown to possess favorable flavor profiles when compared to other high intensity sweetener compounds and are useful in the preparation of consumables.
1. A sweetening composition comprising sweet steviol glycosides including at least rebaudioside A and rebaudioside B, wherein rebaudioside B is present in a concentration of from about 10 to about 60% by weight of the total amount of rebaudioside A and rebaudioside B in the sweetening composition.
2. The sweetening composition of claim 1 , wherein rebaudioside B is present in a concentration of from about 10 to about 30% by weight of the total amount of rebaudioside A and rebaudioside B in the sweetening composition.
3. The sweetening composition of claim 1 , wherein the rebaudioside A and rebaudioside B together comprise from about 25 to about 90% by weight of the sweet steviol glycosides present in the sweetening composition.
4. A method of sweetening a food product or beverage, the method comprising including an effective amount of the sweetening composition of claim 1 in the food product or beverage.
5. A method of sweetening a beverage, the method comprising including an amount of the sweetening composition of claim 1 in the beverage effective to provide a total concentration of rebaudioside B of at least about 50 ppm and no greater than about 500 ppm.
6. A method of sweetening a beverage, the method comprising including an amount of the sweetening composition of claim 1 in the beverage effective to provide a total concentration of rebaudioside B of at least about 100 ppm and no greater than about 400 ppm.
7. A method of sweetening a beverage, the method comprising including an amount of the sweetening composition of claim 1 in the beverage effective to provide a total concentration of rebaudioside B of at least about 200 ppm and no greater than about 300 ppm.
8. A beverage or food product comprising the sweetening composition of claim 1 , wherein the sweetening composition is present in the beverage or food product in an amount effective to provide a total concentration of sweet steviol glycosides of at least about 200 ppm.
9. A beverage or food product comprising the sweetening composition of claim 1 , wherein the sweetening composition is present in the beverage or food product in an amount effective to provide a total concentration of sweet steviol glycosides of at least about 300 ppm.
10. A beverage or food product comprising the sweetening composition of claim 1 , wherein the sweetening composition is present in the beverage or food product in an amount effective to provide a total concentration of sweet steviol glycosides of at least about 500 ppm.