Questions and Answers - La Brasserie de Tahiti

Your Questions, Our Answers

Beers

Who created the Hinano vahine? In what year?

It was in 1953 that the Swedish painter, Pierre Heyman, created the famous vahine

Why is Hinano called Hinano?

Yves Martin was looking for a name for his beer; he wanted a word with a Polynesian sound that would be easy to pronounce in common languages: Tahitian, French, and English. He chose Hinano, the Tahitian name for the pandanus flower, but also a name for a vahine (woman in Polynesian).

What does the term “premium” mean?

In the United States, the term “premium” is used for a lager: a quality beer, with low fermentation, and generally blonde.

Where is Hinano beer distributed?

Hinano beer is sold throughout French Polynesia. Abroad, it is mainly distributed in France (in hypermarkets), Japan (bars and supermarkets) and in New Caledonia.

How can one obtain Hinano promotional items?

Hinano promotional items are distributed in French Polynesia and Hawaii. The Hinano website also does not allow online purchases at the moment.
Soft drinks

Is Coca-Cola sweeter in French Polynesia?

Coca-Cola has the same sugar content in all countries around the world. The difference in taste that may occur comes from the type of sugar used (in this case, cane sugar, which is more flavorful).

Can there be a form of dependence on the caffeine contained in Coca-Cola?

According to the World Health Organization, there is no dependence on caffeine. Coca-Cola contains 24mg of caffeine per 240ml, which is roughly one-third of the caffeine found in a coffee.

What is Aspartame?

Aspartame is a sweetener that provides a sweet taste without any caloric content.

Technically, aspartame is a protein primarily made up of aspartic acid and phenylalanine, which are also found in certain foods such as dairy products, eggs, and meat. Once consumed, aspartame is used by the body in the same way as the protein found in the aforementioned foods.

Are soft drinks the cause of obesity?

Obesity is linked to several factors:

– A genetic predisposition
– An imbalanced diet and excessive calorie intake
– A lack of physical exercise

A person is at a higher risk of obesity if their calorie intake exceeds their energy expenditure. To avoid the risks of obesity, it is important to prioritize an active and healthy lifestyle through a balanced diet and regular physical activity.

Are light drinks suitable for diabetics?

Yes, light drinks are suitable for diabetics because they do not contain sugar.
Fruit juices

What sugar is contained in fruit juices?

The sugar found in fruits is fructose. It provides the same sweet taste with fewer calories and is absorbed more slowly than glucose and sucrose.

What is the difference between 100% freshly pressed juice, 100% juice from concentrate, nectar, and a fruit drink?

100% juices are directly extracted from pressed fruits, with no added ingredients, like the Païnapo pineapple juice produced by Jus de Fruits de Moorea.

Juices from concentrate are partially dehydrated for transportation and then reconstituted with the same amount of water. Their fruit content is 100%.

Nectars are made from fruit pulp or purée to which water and sugar are added, with a fruit content ranging from 25% to 50%, depending on the type of fruit.

Fruit drinks have a minimum fruit content of 10%.
Waters
What is the difference between natural spring water and natural mineral water?

Both come from an underground water source. The only difference lies in the mineral content, which must remain constant for mineral water.

What is a dry residue?

It is the measurement of the total amount of mineral matter. This dry residue is obtained after evaporating the water at 180°C. It provides an indication of the water’s mineralization level.

What types of tests are conducted on Eau Royale and by whom?

More than 5,000 microbiological and physico-chemical tests are conducted each year. Additionally, organoleptic tests (on appearance and taste) are carried out at every stage of the bottling process. Brasserie de Tahiti follows the metropolitan regulations from the Public Health Code. Furthermore, the Public Health and Hygiene Center also performs external microbiological and physico-chemical tests throughout the year.

Definition: Microbiological tests check the purity of the water and the hygiene of the machines and bottles. Physico-chemical tests ensure that the water’s characteristics remain consistent. Organoleptic tests verify that the taste of the water does not change, especially after bottling. (Note: the order of tests is microbiological, physico-chemical, and organoleptic.)

Can the industrial and human activity in the Arue area lead to infiltrations that could pollute the Eau Royale source?

The capture of Eau Royale takes place in a protected enclosure and passes through impermeable layers of clay and solid basalt. At a depth of 63 meters, it reaches a preserved spring water table, with the catchment area located between 1,400 meters and 2,000 meters in altitude, at the heart of Mont Aorai, far from any industrial or human activity.
What is the difference between the drilling of Premium Tahiti water and the Eau Royale spring?

In both cases, it is a drilling into an underground water table. Premium water is extracted at a depth of 140 meters in the Punaruu valley (on the Brasserie de Tahiti site), while Eau Royale is sourced at a depth of 63 meters in Arue (on the Bain de la Reine site).

Why are there differences in taste between waters?

All waters have a different taste, which depends on their mineral content.

How to read a label:

The product name indicates which category the drink belongs to,

The ingredients list shows the composition of the drink,

The nutritional values indicate the amount of carbohydrates/proteins/fats and the energy content per 100ml of the drink,

The storage recommendations provide advice on how to maintain the quality of your drink,

The DLUO: Best Before Date.
General questions
Do your production sites offer tours?

The production sites in Punaruu (beers, soft drinks, fruit juices, Premium Tahiti water) and Arue (Eau Royale and O’Tahiti) can be visited upon request by contacting the production site at 40 47 16 00.

Can a product be consumed after its DLUO (Best Before Date)?

For drinks, the DLUO is only an indicative value, marking the point beyond which certain properties (such as carbonation or flavor) are no longer guaranteed. It is not dangerous to consume a drink after the DLUO.

What is PET?

PET (polyethylene terephthalate) is a plastic used in the manufacturing of carbonated drink bottles. It has the advantage of being lightweight, unbreakable, and recyclable.
What do you do with your waste?

-The wastewater from the Punaruu production site is stored in a tank before being sent to the wastewater treatment plant in the municipality of Punaauia. It is regularly tested at the BDT laboratory to check the neutrality of its environmental impact. Samples are also taken from the tank by Polynésienne des Eaux, and the results are sent to SEM Assainissement des Eaux de Tahiti, which operates the treatment plant.

The broken glass at Punaruu is transferred by TSP to Tahiti Agrégats, which has a territorial authorization to operate a Class III waste disposal site, exclusively reserved for inert waste.

Aluminum cans are compacted and sold to a company that exports them for recycling.

All inert and recyclable materials are reused or recycled through the CRT (Recycling and Transfer Center) of Motu Uta.

Oils, inks, and solvents are shipped outside the territory for treatment.

The spent grain (residue from malt after brewing) is collected by farmers who use it as livestock feed.

Other fermentable materials are sent to the Paihoro waste disposal site (CET) or treated by a company.

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