Process for preparing a soluble tea product

Claim 1

IN THE PROCESS OF TREATING TEA TO PRODUCE A COLD WATER SOLUBLE POWDERED TEA EXTRACT WHEREIN AN INITIAL AQUEOUS TEA EXTRACT IS PREPARED FROM TEA LEAVES, AND CHILLED TO PRECIPITATE A PORTION OF THE TEA TANNINS CONTAINED IN SAID EXTRACT AND THUS FORM A CLARIFIED EXTRACT, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES SEPARATING SAID PRECIPITATED TANNINS FROM SAID EXTRACT, SUBJECTING SAID SEPARATED TANNINS TO AT LEAST ONE OXIDATION REACTION BY MEANS OF AN OXIDIZING AGENT SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF OXYGEN, AN OXYGEN CONTAINING GAS, AN OZONE CONTAINING GAS, AND HYDROGEN PEROXIDE, SAID OXIDATION REACTION BEING PERFORMED WITHIN A PH RANGE OF FROM ABOUT 5.5 TO ABOUT 7.5 WITH SAID PH RANGE BEING MAINTAINED BY THE ADDITION OF SUITABLE AMOUNTS OF AN ALKALINE SOLUTION, THE AMOUNT OF OXIDIZING AGENT EMPLOYED IN SAID OXIDATION REACTION BEING SUFFICIENT TO SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETELY OXIDIZE SAID TEA TANNINS, MIXING THE RESULTANT SOLUTION OF OXIDIZED TEA TANNINS WITH THE CLARIFIED EXTRACT, AND DRYING THE RESULTANT MIXTURE TO PROVIDE A POWDERED TEA EXTRACT.