Mineralized brewed beverages

Claim 1

A method of producing a mineralized brewed coffee which comprises the steps of (a) intimately admixing a particulate coffee with a composition comprising 1 to 25 parts by weight of a finely divided mineral source consisting of a naturally occurring hydrated aluminum silicate containing minerals selected from the group consisting of calcium, magnesium and iron and mixtures thereof, 1 to 40 parts by weight of a particulate water insoluble, water swellable flow retarding agent and 1 to 100 parts by weight of a particulate non-toxic coloring agent wherein the weight ratio of coffee to mineral source is between about 450:1 to 18:1, to form a particulate mixture; (b) confining a predetermined amount of said particulate mixture by a filter medium through which said particulate coffee, particulate flow retarding agent and a majority of said finely divided mineral source cannot pass in solid form; (c) subjecting said predetermined amount of said particulate mixture confined by said filter medium to a predetermined amount of hot water for a period of time sufficient to (1) cause said flow retarding agent particles in said mixture to swell and retard the flow of hot water through said mixture, (2) to extract into said hot water the desired hot water soluble components from said coffee and (3) to dissolve in said hot water said coloring agent and the hot water soluble mineral components from said mineral source; and (d) passing said hot water containing said soluble coffee components and dissolved coloring agent and soluble mineral components through said filter medium along with a minimum amount of solids from said mineral source which are sufficiently small to pass through said filter medium at a rate permited by said water swelled flow retarding agent particles and finely divided mineral source to form a hot, mineralized brewed coffee beverage.

Claim 2

A method of producing a mineralized brewed coffee which comprises the steps of (a) intimately admixing a particulate coffee with a composition comprising 1 to 25 parts by weight of a finely divided mineral source consisting of a naturally occurring hydrated aluminum silicate containing minerals selected from the group consisting of calcium, magnesium and iron and mixtures thereof, 1 to 40 parts by weight of a particulate water insoluble, water swellable flow retarding agent and 1 to 100 parts by weight of a particulate non-toxic coloring agent wherein the weight ratio of coffee to mineral source is between about 450:1 to 18:1, to form a particulate mixture; (b) confining a predetermined amount of said particulate mixture by a filter medium through which said particulate coffee, particulate flow retarding agent and a majority of said finely divided mineral source cannot pass in solid form; (c) subjecting said predetermined amount of said particulate mixture confined by said filter medium to a predetermined amount of hot water for a period of time sufficient to (1) cause said flow retarding agent particles in said mixture to swell and retard the flow of hot water through said mixture, (2) to extract into said hot water the desired hot water soluble components from said coffee and (3) to dissolve in said hot water said coloring agent and the hot water soluble mineral components from said mineral source; and (d) passing said hot water containing said soluble coffee components and dissolved coloring agent and soluble mineral components through said filter medium along with a minimum amount of solids from said mineral source which are sufficiently small to pass through said filter medium at a rate permited by said water swelled flow retarding agent particles and finely divided mineral source to form a hot, mineralized brewed coffee beverage.