A research on production of lemon drink (lemonade) fortified with natural herb extracts

In this research, suitability of addition of linden (Tilia argentea), heather (Erica arborea), green tea (Camellia sinensis), melissa (Lippia citriodora), clove (Eugenia caryophyllata), peppermint (Mentha piperita), ginger (Zingiber officinale) and mate (Ilex paraguarensis) extracts to lemonade were investigated. For lemonade production; sucrose, citric acid, ascorbic acid, preservatives (sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate), lemon flavored emulsion, natural lemon flavor and water were added to concentrated lemon juice as it was determined in the formulation and stirred. Each 1% (w/v) herb extracts that were brewed at 98oC for 5 minutes then cooled down to room temperature. According to the preliminary results the extract of melissa, mate, clove, green tea was added to lemonade as 5% percent of the total beverage volume, while the extract of linden, ginger, peppermint, heather was added to lemonade as 10% percent of the total beverage volume and then mixed. Soluble solids, pH, total acidity, sucrose, glucose, fructose, ascorbic acid, color analysis, antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, mineral (K, Na, Mg, P) analysis were performed and sensory properties were determined in lemon drinks. The soluble solids values of samples were found 13,1 g/100 g and the total acidity values (in terms of citric acid) were found 0,51 g/100 mL. The pH values of samples were measured from 3,35 to 3,47. The linden added lemonade was showed the highest value (597,9 mg/kg), whereas the melissa added lemonade was showed the lowest value (486,04 mg/kg) in terms of ascorbic acid content. The amount of sucrose was changed between 11,07-11,58%, the glucose was between 1,11-1,62% and the fructose was between 11,07-11,58% in lemon drinks. Potassium (K), sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg) and phosphorus (P) values in lemonade were determined in the range of 178,83-210,98 mg/kg, 33,75-39,13 mg/kg, 22,37-27,89 mg/kg and 7,22-10,04 mg/kg, respectively. The total phenolic content in samples changed between 315,11-397,57 mg GAE/100g. When the samples were analyzed in terms of antioxidant activity, FRAP (17,13-26,79 µmol trolox/mL) and ABTS (16,91-25,38 µmol trolox/mL) methods gave higher results than the DPPH (14,88-17,72 µmol trolox/mL) method. Linden, ginger and peppermint added lemonades, which have been found rich in total phenolic compounds and ascorbic acid showed higher antioxidant activity than control lemonade. Lemonades have been liked by panelists in terms of sensory properties. In terms of overall impression, the most preferred lemon drinks were heather and ginger added lemoneds and the control sample. Mate added lemonade was the least preferred. Linden, heather, green tea, clove, melissa, peppermint, ginger and mate are generally consumed in winter season as a hot beverage. Addition of these herb extracts to lemon drinks allowed to produce alternative cold beverages having high nutritional value and preferable by consumers for their sensory properties. It was aimed to serve these products for consumption during all season.