FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a method of making an additive-free carbonated beverage as disclosed in the preamble of claim 1 and to an additive-free carbonated beverage, preferably sea soned with natural products, as disclosed in the preamble of claim 8.

Herein, the term "natural product" refers to natural sub stances, primarily mushrooms, natural plants and plant parts, such as forest mushrooms, polypores, herbs, natural berries as well plant stalks, branches, leaves, roots, flow- ers and seeds, primarily collectable from forests and other places in nature. Herein, a natural product may also refer to preferably naturally cultivated mushrooms and plants, such as fruits, vegetables and root vegetables. Further, the term "beverage base" used below refers to a liquid from which the carbonated beverage according to the invention made. The liquid constituting the beverage base can be water, alcohol or juice made from natural products, for example.

The carbonated beverage according to the invention is a car- bonated beverage seasoned with one or more natural products, below briefly referred to as "the beverage", the shelf-life of which is based on a natural preservative contained in the natural product and the shelf-life extending effect of car bonic acid as well as, in some cases, on the shelf life extending effect of citric acid. Preferably, the carbonated beverage is made from an alcoholic or alcohol-free liquid, such as water, from carbon dioxide, which produces carbonic acid, as well as from plant-originated aromatic and/or fla voring agents, such as berries, berry juices and fruits or fruit juices. Further, in some cases, citric acid is added to the beverage to extend its shelf-life. Preferably, the beverage according to the invention utilizes the combined effect of natural preservatives as well as of the shelf-life extending properties of carbonic acid, and, in some cases, of citric acid. As already mentioned above, the carbonic acid of the beverage according to the invention preferably comes from carbon di oxide. Carbon dioxide is a weak acid and created when carbon dioxide is dissolved in water, for example. Thus, the car bonic acid present in the beverage is a compound formed by water and carbon dioxide. Dissolving carbon dioxide in a liquid, such as water or a soft drink, results in an equi librium where the liquid contains both dissolved carbon di oxide and carbonic acid. In this equilibrium, the solution normally only contains a very small amount of carbonic acid out of the amount of carbon dioxide.

When gaseous, carbon dioxide displaces the oxygen in the air, thus also inhibiting bacterial growth. Carbon dioxide has been extensively studied and found out to be safe for use in foodstuffs. Carbon dioxide is industrially used, i.a., for refrigerating and freezing foodstuffs, for carbonating soft drinks and beer as well as for modified atmosphere packaging of foodstuffs. Carbon dioxide has not been discov ered to have any detrimental effect on the digestive system or the health in general. Its daily acceptable daily intake (ADI) is not restricted and it is permitted in all food stuffs. Carbonic acid is one the few soft drink acids that does not cause damage to the teeth. Carbon dioxide gives soft drinks their fresh bubbling feature.

Most of the prior-art carbonated beverages available on the market contain, i.a., unnatural and/or synthetic preserva tives, acidity regulators, colorants, stabilizers and anti oxidants. Some carbonated beverages contain natural ingre dients but usually also synthetic ingredients. A completely natural drinking product combining both a good taste, posi- tive health effects and a long shelf-life cannot be found on the market .

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The problem with the current carbonated beverages is that they contain artificial additives, such as preservatives, sweeteners, acidity regulators, colorants, stabilizers and antioxidants. Today, the artificial, unnatural and synthetic additives are generally regarded as unhealthy but they are widely used in carbonated beverages because of their low price or easy availability. Attempts have been made to solve this problem by reducing the use thereof and by replacing them with healthier ingredients. The carbonated beverage ac cording to the invention is made by carbonating a liquid, most commonly water, and by mixing it with a natural product containing a plant-originated, natural preservative and serving as a flavoring and preserving agent. Many natural plants contain phenolic compounds and are therefore very suitable for use as a flavor source, and, at the same time, as a preservative, of the carbonated beverage. A low-cost and long shelf-life is achieved by the combined effect of carbonic acid and the natural products used in the prepara tion.

The solution according to the invention provides a naturally seasoned carbonated beverage with a long shelf-life, along side the soft drinks sold in stores and restaurants as well as homemade carbonated soda.

As is known, most carbonated beverages are produced in mass- production plants where the production is not always a com pletely aseptic process, thus subjecting the beverages, dur ing their preparation, to a variety of microbes. Therefore, different additives, such acidity regulators, preservatives, antioxidants and stabilizers are used in their preparation processes.

Carbonated beverages with added preservatives, such as plant-originated phenolic compounds, contained in natural products can be regarded as healthier than beverages with added artificial additives.

OBJECTIVE OF THE INVENTION

This invention aims at eliminating the above-mentioned draw- backs and to provide a preparation method allowing a tasteful, healthy and purely natural carbonated beverage to be made at a low price, without any artificial additives or preserva tives. Further, the invention aims at providing the above- mentioned, purely natural carbonated beverage. The method ac cording to the invention is characterized in what is set forth in the characterizing part of claim 1. The carbonated beverage according to the invention is characterized in what is set forth in the characterizing part of claim 8. Other embodiments of the invention are characterized in what is set forth in the rest of the claims. ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

The carbonated beverage according to the invention contains mushrooms, plants and/or constituents of plants, such as berries, leaves, conifer needles, plant stalks and roots available from nature, as well as a liquid, such as water and/or alcohol, used as a base for the beverage. An advantage of the natural carbonated beverage according to the inven tion is that the carbonated beverage contains not a single synthetic ingredient and is healthy, 100 % natural product.

Another advantage is that the carbonated beverage according to the invention is very inexpensive and simple to make because the only ingredients used for the beverage, in ad dition to carbonic acid, are mushrooms and/or plant-origi nated natural substances, and mainly water and/or alcohol. The preparation thereof is not dependent on expensive indus trial preparation equipment or preparation processes or in gredients from third parties. The carbonated beverage accord ing to the invention is highly suitable for household use and in the HoReCa industry.

The invention creates a new category of carbonated beverages, based on the preservation, functional effects and natural ness provided by intrinsic phenolic compounds of carbonic acid and mushrooms and/or plants. The carbonated beverage according to the invention allows a variety of additive-free beverages, containing no artificial preservatives, to be made .

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Typically, in the method of preparing the carbonated bever age, a liquid beverage base is carbonated and seasoned with one or more different natural products, such as mushrooms and plants or parts thereof. Preferably, the shelf-life of the beverage is extended by the combined effect of substances found in the natural products used for the seasoning of the beverage and of the carbonic acid. Thus, the combined effect extending the shelf-life of the beverage is achieved by let ting the carbonic acid formed in the beverage in preparing step of the beverage and the shelf-life extending substances of the natural products react with each other. This binds the carbonic acid and at least some of the shelf-life ex tending substances of the natural products together.

Preferably, the carbonated beverage prepared by the method according to invention contains carbonic acid for an extended shelf-life and natural products, such as mushrooms and plants and/or constituents thereof, for seasoning as well as for an extended shelf-life. Preferably, the plants used for the beverage are natural plants.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In a method according to a preferred embodiment of the in vention, the carbonated beverage according to the invention is made by adding, one or more natural products containing phenolic compounds, as a flavoring and shelf-life extending agent, i.e. as a preservative, to a desired beverage base, and by carbonating the beverage with carbonic acid, the car- bonation also extending the shelf-life of the beverage. The beverage base can be water, alcohol or a juice containing one or more natural products. Preferably, natural mushrooms and plants that add flavor to the beverage and that contain a maximum amount of the phenolic compounds extending the shelf-life of the beverage, are used as the natural products added to the beverage base. Preferably, only carbonic acid and flavor-adding natural products containing phenolic com pounds are used as a preservative in the preparation of the beverage, and in the beverage, their combined effect provid ing a sufficient shelf-life. Citric acid can be added if a prolonged shelf-life of the beverage is desired.

The following plants are especially suitable for seasoning the carbonated beverage according to the invention, and for extending its shelf-life, because said plants contain a lot of flavor-adding and shelf-life extending phenolic com- pounds : black chokeberry, blueberry, bilberry, lingonberry, wild strawberry, cloudberry, cranberry, crowberry, raspberry, ro- wanberry, rosehip, sea buckthorn, strawberry, all currants, black crowberry, rhubarb, cherry, apple, pear, nettles, dan delion, conifer needles, coffee, tea, cocoa etc.

Mushrooms, such as forest mushrooms and polypores, such as chaga mushroom, containing a lot of phenolic compounds, are also suitable for seasoning the carbonated beverage and for extending its shelf-life. The carbonated beverage according to the invention is easy to make and produce on an industrial scale as well. Flavoring agents are mixed into a liquid beverage base, preferably water, obtained from said natural products in different ways. The mixed flavoring agents can be in the form of a powder, an extract or a liquid as well, such juices with different concentrations. The carbonation is preferably carried out by using gaseous carbon dioxide but other ways are also feasi ble. Thus, the carbonation can be carried out by using carbon dioxide tablets, liquid or dry ice as well.

The carbonation is preferably performed on a cool or sub stantially cool liquid beverage base. Thus, the temperature of the beverage base is lower than +10 C°, suitably lower than +6 C° and preferably about +4 C° or even lower.

When the carbonation is carried out by using gaseous carbon dioxide, the amount of carbon dioxide added to the liquid beverage base is substantially about 3 to 10 grams/liter, suitably about 4 to 9 grams/liter and preferably about 5 to 8 grams/liter. In a preferred example of carbonation, gase ous carbon dioxide is added to a liquid beverage base, having a temperature of about +4 C°, in an amount of 6 to 7 grams/liquid liter.

As mentioned above, citric acid can be added as a preserva tive if a prolonged shelf-life of the beverage is required. Flavoring agents are dosed and mixed, in a desired propor tion, into water, carbonated water, alcohol, drinks, juice or any liquid beverage and/or beverage base. It is obvious to a person skilled in the art that the dif ferent embodiments of the invention are not restricted to the above examples but may vary within the scope of the following claims. What is essential is that the carbonated beverage according to the invention, in addition to sweet eners, contains a natural preservative obtained from natural products, such as mushrooms and plants. Thus, not only carbon dioxide but also natural products containing phenolic com pounds are mixed into the beverage, to serve as preserva- tives. A good result, in terms of shelf-life, is achieved when the amount of the shelf-life extending phenolic com pounds in the natural products is as high as possible. At the same time, said natural products are used as flavoring agents for seasoning the beverage. Preferably, the natural products are mixed into the beverage in the form of a liquid, an extract or a juice.

It is also obvious to the person skilled in the art that the water serving as the beverage base of the carbonated beverage can be mineral water, preferably natural mineral water, for example .