Optimization of Formula and Process for Functional Sports Beverage with Astragalus-Fructose Compound Beer Flavor

1. Research Background

The growing popularity of the national fitness concept has increased consumer demand for natural, mild, and palatable functional sports drinks. Commercially available traditional sports drinks are mainly based on single sugars or compound artificial additives. Their functions are limited to rapid energy increase, inorganic body adjustment, and fatigue relief. Long‑term drinking has the disadvantages of excessive additives and a single taste [1].

Astragalus and licorice are both medicinal and edible Chinese herbal medicines [2]. Astragalus can supplement qi and benefit health, anti‑oxidation, relieve fatigue and improve body metabolism, regulate human energy metabolism, and reduce the body’s exercise oxidative damage; licorice has the functions of reconciling medicinal properties, soothing the body and improving the taste, which can offset the bitterness and astringency of Chinese herbal medicines and meet the needs of adding into functional beverages. The combination of astragalus and licorice may play a comprehensive role in alleviating exercise fatigue, supplementing exercise physical fitness, and assisting health care. It is a good traditional Chinese medicine resource for the development of natural functional sports drinks [3, 4]. Astragalus contains astragalosides, astragalus polysaccharides, and a variety of amino acids, which can dilate blood vessels, resist free radicals, resist oxidative damage, and regulate immunity. Fructose is a special energy supply agent, which can directly enter muscle and bone cells to supply energy or transform into muscle glycogen without insulin action. Using both together might have some potential effects on muscles and bones [5]. There are many studies on single‑component drinks such as Astragalus membranaceus and licorice, but there are few studies on the formulation optimization and extraction process standardization of Astragalus membranaceus‑fructose compound beer‑flavored sports functional Chinese medicine drinks, and there are few studies on the combination of Astragalus membranaceus and fructose. The auxiliary intervention effect of the drink on exercise fatigue and the application of the recovery effect on exercise physical fitness have not yet been systematically investigated [6].

Therefore, under the authorization of Professor Wu Tie’s related invention patent [7], we took Astragalus membranaceus and licorice as the main functional raw materials, used crystalline fructose and soda water as the base, added citric acid, cola flavor and edible phosphoric acid to adjust the taste, and used single factor test and orthogonal test combined with sensory evaluation to test and explore the product formula and raw material extraction technology. A new type of medicinal diet with good taste, stability, elimination of exercise fatigue, and promotion of physical recovery was prepared [8]. The purpose of this study is to improve and summarize the preparation process of traditional Chinese medicine compound sports drinks, and to develop and apply the medicinal and food resources of Astragalus membranaceus in depth, so as to provide an experimental basis and application guidance for the development of natural functional sports nutrition products.

2. Experimental Materials and Methods

2.1 Experimental Materials and Reagents

Astragalus membranaceus 10g and licorice 4g (commercially available high‑quality Chinese medicinal materials, all produced in Dingxi, Gansu Province, no mildew, no impurities, all in line with the quality standards of medicine and food homologous food); crystalline fructose 4.8g, edible soda water 137.5mL, citric acid 0.6g, cola flavor 0.9g, caramel color 0.1g (all food grade, in line with the national food additive use standard); the experimental water was purified water.

Preparation method: Add 10g of astragalus and 4g of licorice to 500mL of 90°C water for the first batch, 250mL for the second batch, and 125mL for the third batch, then combine and boil to get a total of 875mL of decoction. Take 500mL of this to make the base syrup, then add 0.6g of citric acid, 0.9g of cola flavoring, and 4.8g of fructose. Finally, add 137.5mL of soda water to make the final product.

2.2 Experimental Platform and Technical Support

This study is based on the experimental platform of the 201 Drug Research and Development Center of No.1 Experimental Building of the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhanjiang University of Science and Technology, and has been authorized by Professor Wu Tie’s research team as the basic technical framework. During the experiment, guidance on the experimental design and technical issues was provided by Professor Wu Tie and Associate Professor Jie Xinmin.

2.3 Experimental Methods

2.3.1 Extraction Process Design of Huangqi and Licorice

A stepwise hot‑water extraction process at 90 °C was adopted. Based on the dissolution characteristics of active components of Chinese medicinal materials, the segmented gradient water addition and temperature control extraction mode were set up. The extraction temperature, extraction time, and solid‑liquid ratio were optimized by single‑factor tests. The extraction parameters were screened using the sensory quality of the concentrate as the evaluation criterion.

2.3.2 Single Factor Test of Beverage Formula

The basic extraction process was fixed, and the effects of the amount of astragalus, licorice, crystalline fructose, citric acid, cola essence, edible phosphoric acid, and soda water on the color, transparency, clarity, flavor, taste, and stability of the beverage were investigated respectively. The suitable addition range of each raw material was screened to provide a reasonable parameter range for the orthogonal test.

2.3.3 Orthogonal Experimental Optimization Formula

On the basis of the single‑factor test, the ratio of raw materials that had a significant effect on the sensory quality of the product was selected as the investigation factor, and the sensory comprehensive score was used as the evaluation index. An orthogonal experiment was subsequently conducted to optimize the beverage formulation.

2.3.4 Sensory Evaluation Methods

A sensory evaluation group consisting of 36 volunteers (47.22% males and 52.78% females, with no taste or olfactory disorders) was established. The seven dimensions of beverage color perception (10 points), aroma and smell (10 points), taste (10 points), flavor coordination (10 points), organizational stability (10 points), overall acceptability (20 points), and comprehensive total score (30 points) were scored, and the total score was 100 points. The weights of each dimension were distributed proportionally, and the average value was taken as the final sensory score after eliminating the abnormal scores.

2.3.5 Product Stability Verification

The static stability test at room temperature was carried out on the beverage prepared by the optimal formula to observe whether there were stratification, precipitation, crystallization, and other phenomena.

3. Experimental Results and Analysis

3.1 Determination of Optimal Ratio of Medicinal and Edible Raw Materials

Through systematic flavor evaluation and sensory analysis, the concentrated solution of different Astragalus and licorice ratios was comprehensively scored. The results showed that the optimal ratio of Astragalus and licorice was 5: 2. Under this ratio, the concentrated solution is sufficiently sweetened, which reduced the bitterness and astringency associated with Astragalus membranaceus and licorice, laying a good foundation for the flavor of the finished beverage and adapting to the public drinking taste.

3.2 Optimization Results of Three‑Stage Leaching Process

In this study, a three‑stage gradient extraction process was adopted. The extraction temperature was constant at 90 °C, and the method of segmented water addition and time‑sharing extraction was adopted. In the first stage, 500 mL of water was added, and the extraction was performed for 1.5 h. In the second stage, 250 mL of water was added, and the extraction was performed for 45 min. In the third stage, 125 mL of water was added, and the extraction was performed for 15 min.

3.3 Optimization Analysis of Auxiliary Material System Proportions

In the optimization experiment of excipients, it was found that higher levels of citric acid addition were associated with prominent sourness and astringency of the finished products, cover up the sweetness of herbs, and the flavor was thick and single. This study confirmed that the combination of bubble soda water + crystalline fructose can effectively neutralize the astringency and bitterness of Chinese herbal medicine raw materials, and greatly reduce the dependence on artificial sour agents, while giving it a beer flavor.

The results of this preliminary experiment showed that crystalline fructose was the core flavor control excipient, and an appropriate increase in the amount of fructose could accurately balance the proportion of sour and sweet drinks and effectively cover the bitter and astringent odor of traditional Chinese medicine. At the same time, when the volume ratio of bubble water to plant concentrate is 0.275:1, the refreshment of the beverage is significantly improved, which can effectively neutralize the excess sour taste, form a unique beer refreshing flavor, and greatly improve the sensory acceptance of the product. It is the core process parameter to optimize the flavor of the product.

3.4 Determination of Optimal Formula through Orthogonal Experiment

Combined with the parameter interval screened by single factor test, through the comprehensive analysis of orthogonal test sensory score, the optimal formula of Astragalus‑fructose compound functional sports beverage was finally determined as follows: Astragalus 0.896%, licorice 0.359%, crystalline fructose 0.753%, citric acid 0.0941%, cola essence 0.141%, soda water base addition 137.5 mL.

The overall quality of the prepared product is good; the color is clear and transparent, and there is no turbid impurity. The aroma has both a light herbal fragrance and a pure beer flavor. The taste is refreshing, sour, and sweet, and there is no bitter, sour, or astringent feeling. The system is uniform and stable. No stratification, precipitation, or crystallization was observed after 72 h of storage at room temperature, and the physical and chemical stability is good.

4. Discussion

Different from the traditional extraction method, the three‑stage gradient extraction process adopts the mode of segmented time control and gradient water addition, which resulted in improved flavor characteristics of the concentrated solution. It not only improves the utilization rate of raw materials, but also solves the technical problem of the loss of active ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine extract. We used the method of single‑factor combined with orthogonal test; it was concluded that the raw materials were added at appropriate proportions, without too many additives, to neutralize the odor of traditional Chinese medicine with natural excipients, and achieved good results [8].

5. Experimental Conclusion

In this study, Astragalus membranaceus and licorice were used as the core functional raw materials [1], and crystalline fructose and soda water were used as the base excipients to successfully develop a beer‑flavored functional sports drink with good flavor, a stable system, and promotion of physical recovery [6]. Through single factor test and orthogonal test optimization, the optimal formula of the product was determined as follows: astragalus 0.896%, licorice 0.359%, crystalline fructose 0.753 %, citric acid 0.0941 %, cola essence 0.141 %, soda water 137.5 mL; at the same time, the optimal preparation process of three‑stage gradient extraction at 90 °C was established, which effectively guaranteed the stability of product quality [8].

The finished beverage has a clear color, refreshing taste, unique flavor, and stable system, which can quickly restore the body’s physical fitness [3, 4]. It has good sports nutrition function and market application prospect [1]. This study innovated the deep processing and application mode of Astragalus membranaceus medicinal and food resources, completed the process research of Astragalus membranaceus‑fructose compound beer flavor sports drink, and provided theoretical support for the development of functional sports food of traditional Chinese medicine and the natural intervention and regulation of exercise fatigue. It can provide a high‑quality carrier for the follow‑up study of the molecular mechanism of muscle and bone protection and the clinical transformation of basic research [5, 7].

Funding

Research Project of Faculty of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhanjiang University of Science and Technology [Research and Development of Taste of Astragalus and Licorice Sports Beverage], Guangdong Guangyao Medical Research Institute, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.