If you have infused herbs & spices into your sparkling beverages using your Bonne O, you know how powerful the infused flavours can be. There are many ways to enjoy herbs & spices in your Bonne O beverages: No Muddle Mojitos, Spa Waters, Antioxidant Sparklers, etc. Today we’re going to talk about how the science of herb & spices allow you to extract these flavours.
Earlier this year a wonderful article appeared at the Lucky Peach about this topic. We’ve been waiting for the spring weather to share it so you'll plant lots of herbs for your summer drinks!
In the article they pose this question:
“Every cook knows the way that fresh herbs can lift the flavor of a dish. But have you ever thought about why herbs have the flavors they do—why they don’t just taste like any other green leaf?”
The plants’ defense mechanisms are very relevant to Bonne O pressure infusion process vs. the typical dice, chop & muddle:
“Have you ever chewed on a sprig of thyme or chomped down on a whole peppercorn or clove? It’s not pleasant. That’s because most herb and spice flavors are actually chemical weapons. Their role is to repel insects and snails and other animals that try to eat them, and to kill microbes—especially fungi—that try to infect them.”
And the punch line:
“What does all of this mean for the cook? … How you handle herbs can also affect their flavor. The defensive chemicals responsible for plant flavors are usually concentrated in fine, hairlike glands on the leaf surfaces (the mint family, including basil, oregano, sage, shiso, and thyme) or in special canals within the leaves (most other herbs). If you leave the herbs pretty much intact, what you get is mainly the characteristic flavor of that herb. But if you crush the herb, or cut it very finely, you damage a lot of cells and cause the release of the green, grassy, vegetal defensive chemicals. These can come to dominate the herb’s own particular flavor.”
To summarize, that is why your pressure infused herb flavours can be so intense & pure. You are pressure extracting only those characteristic herb flavours rather than crushing, dicing and muddling the green, grassy, vegetal defensive chemicals. Enjoy!
