Brookston Beer Bulletin

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A Beer Can Timeline

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Today is Beer Can Appreciation Day, because on this day in 1935, the first cans of beer were sold. Cans of “Krueger Cream Ale” were sold by the Kruger Brewing Company in Richmond, Virginia, with other breweries following suit the very same year. Here’s some fun resources about the history of the beer can. First, there’s a History of the Can (that’s all cans) while Rusty Cans has a more beer-centric timeline. Keglined has An Illustrated History of the American Beer Can and Timeline has another history that goes back to ancient times. And CraftCans has this infographic timeline showing “8 Decades of Canned Beer.”

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Click here to see the timeline full size.

Patent No. 5384135A: Process For The Manufacture Of An Alcohol-Free Beer Having The Organoleptic Properties Of A Lager Type Pale Beer

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Today in 1995, US Patent 5384135 A was issued, an invention of Henri J. J. Caluwaerts, assigned to Brasserie Du Cardinal Fribourg S.A., for his “Process for the Manufacture of an Alcohol-Free Beer Having the Organoleptic Properties of a Lager Type Pale Beer.” Here’s the Abstract:

A process for the manufacture of an alcohol-free pale beer (AFB) whose organoleptic properties are those of a lager beer, comprising the manufacture of a lager type alcoholic pale beer from pale malts containing 20 to 30% of brown malts, mashed to obtain a wort whose attenuation is of the order of 50% and the dealcoholization of the alcoholic pale beer, by evaporation, under high vacuum, of at least about 50% of the volume of this beer. The concentrate obtained by evaporation may be rediluted with water, flavored and sweetened until a concentration of 4° Brix is obtained in order to produce the AFB. The concentrate may also be subjected to a second vacuum evaporation at a temperature of less than 60° C. until a concentrate assaying between 45° and 65° Brix is obtained which is storable for several months before the redilution into an AFB.

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Patent No. 4070133A: Pump Compressor Unit For Use With Pumping Draft Beer

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Today in 1978, US Patent 4070133 A was issued, an invention of Homer McCormick, for his “Pump Compressor Unit for Use with Pumping Draft Beer.” Here’s the Abstract:

An air supply unit provides high pressure moisture-free air in the dispensing of beverages. Components are housed in a portable cabinet and include a compressor and an automatic air pressure switch to switch on the compressor and begin air flow when system pressure falls below a pre-set level. A check valve is located in the high pressure line adjacent the compressor to maintain line pressure when the compressor is off. A small air bleed opening is located between the check valve and the compressor to allow compressed air to move through the air line yet bleed residual pressurized air to prevent stalling of the compressor which could occur if high pressure air was present in the compressor when it is restarted. The high pressure air discharge line includes a dump-check valve to permit high pressure air to be manually bled from the system before the air lines are disconnected and to prevent back flow of fluid into the air supply unit.

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Patent No. 1015585A: Keg Rinser

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Today in 1912, US Patent 1015585 A was issued, an invention of George D. Prentice, for his “Keg Rinser.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

My invention relates to improvements in machines for rinsing kegs, and it pertains to that class which are adapted to be used with water under pressure.

The object of my invent-ion is to provide a machine by which a water controlling valve is automatically opened by the gravity of the keg to be rinsed, and the water supply is used for the two fold purpose of rinsing the kegs and removing them from the machine, whereby the operator has simply to place a”keg upon the machine when a water controlling valve will be automatically opened and the keg will be rinsed and automatically removed, whereby the manual labor of cleansing kegs is reduced to the minimum.

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Patent No. 810745A: Method Of Pasteurizing Beer

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Today in 1906, US Patent 810745 A was issued, an invention of Hugo Gronwald, for his “Method of Pasteurizing Beer.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

I have invented a new and Improved Method of Pasteurizing Beer in Barrels, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The hitherto-known method of pasteurizing beer in the barrels in which it is to be transported had the disadvantage that when the barrels were provided with a separate expansion-chamber the natural carbonic acid contained in the beer was`partly lost and the germs or barm at times contained in this chamber could not be killed, so that the beer frequently overflowing into this chamber was not entirely free from germs, while when the necessary space for expansion was provided by not filling the barrel complete y it had to be filled up with beer from another source. These disadvantages are removed according to my improved method by dividing the quantity of beer required for completely filling the barrel between two connected vessels-namely, a lower detachable vessel, hereinafter called receiver, equal in capacity to the required space for expansion and a barrel communicating with and arranged above this vessel in such a manner that the receiver is completely filled, while in .the barrel an empty expansion-space is left equal to the capacity of’ the receiver. The beer is then pasteurized in the barrel and receiver and cooled in the usual way, after which the carbonic acid disengaged during the pasteurizing and which as risen into the. expansion-space in the barrel can be returned Without loss to the beer-‘for instance, by shaking the barrel. T he pasteurizing apparatus being then turned upside down, the beer runs into the barrel from the receiver, while the excess of carbonic acid mounts into the receiver, so that by this simple exchange of the contents of the vessels a filling up of the beer-barrel from another source is rendered unnecessary and loss of carbonic acid is avoided.

Various apparatus or plant may be used for carrying out my said method, provided the barrel and receiver are connected into a combined apparatus.

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Patent No. 3074678A: Beer Can Holder

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Today in 1963, US Patent 3074678 A was issued, an invention of John Michael Mele, for his “Beer Can Holder.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

My invention relates to holders for cans containing beverages and more particularly to beer can holders.

As the pouring out of the cold beer into a glas will raise the temperature of the beer and also will reduce its gas content, it is considered preferable by many persons to drink the beer directly from the can through an opening cut in the cover of the can.

One of the important objects of my invention is to provide a convenient handle for the holding of the beer can and thereby eliminate the inconvenience of a direct contact between the fingers and the cold and moist beer can.

Another important object of my invention is to provide a beer can holder which collects the beer which may be accidentally spilled when cutting the opening in the cover of the can, thereby preventing the soiling of the table cover.

A further object of my invention is to provide a beer can holder which is very simple in construction, economical in manufacture, and which offers a very secure clamping of the beer can in the holder, eliminating the possibility of the rotation of the beer can in the holder and the resultant displacement of the discharge opening of the cover in relation with the handle.

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DWB: Driving While A Brewery

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Late last year, a judge in Buffalo, New York, dismissed a case against a 35-year old teacher who was stopped and charged with a DWI. When Hamburg Town Police originally arrested the teacher, her blood alcohol was measured to be .33 percent, more than four times higher than the state’s legal limit. The first question is how on earth was she still alive? The second, is how is that possible? It turns out she suffers from a rare condition known as auto-brewery syndrome, or gut fermentation syndrome. The condition manifests itself “in which intoxicating quantities of ethanol are produced through endogenous fermentation within the digestive system. One gastrointestinal organism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a type of yeast, has been identified as a pathogen for this condition.” It can also give a false positive for being drunk, and has been used several times as a defense in drunk driving cases.

And that’s exactly what happened in this case, as reported by the Buffalo News reported in late December, Woman’s body acts as ‘brewery,’ so judge dismisses DWI. If that sounds about as realistic as a pregnant woman trying to get out of a fine for driving in the commuter lane (which has actually happened) it’s apparently a real thing, though is extremely rare. So don’t get any ideas.

This Guy Brewed Beer in His Stomach and the Mad Science Blog also tackled Auto-Brewery Syndrome. And even NPR has reported on the phenomenon. According to a report on CNN:

Also known as gut-fermentation syndrome, this rare medical condition can occur when abnormal amounts of gastrointestinal yeast convert common food carbohydrates into ethanol. The process is believed to take place in the small bowel, and is vastly different from the normal gut fermentation in the large bowel that gives our bodies energy.

First described in 1912 as “germ carbohydrate fermentation,” it was studied in the 1930s and ’40s as a contributing factor to vitamin deficiencies and irritable bowel syndrome. Cases involving the yeast Candida albicans and Candida krusei have popped up in Japan, and in 2013 Cordell documented the case of a 61-year-old man who had frequent bouts of unexplained drunkenness for years before being diagnosed with an intestinal overabundance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, or brewer’s yeast, the same yeast used to make beer.

So while you may laugh — or I might at least — it’s apparently no fun for ABS sufferers. Better to raise your blood alcohol via the traditional way, ingesting beer brewed by a professional.

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Patent No. 2414446A: Illuminated Beer Tap

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Today in 1947, US Patent 2414446 A was issued, an invention of Carl Vincent Carbone, for his “Illuminated Beer Tap.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in beer taps, the principal object being to provide a beer tap having illuminating means for illuminating advertising imposed thereon.

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Patent No. 2626200A: Dispensing-Type Barrel Enclosure

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Today in 1953, US Patent 2626200 A was issued, an invention of Arthur Herbert Patch, for his “Dispensing-Type Barrel Enclosure.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

This invention relates to apparatus for storing and cooling beer or other brews, and more relates to dispensing-type enclosures or boxes for refrigerated barrels, e. g. structures for receiving a barrel or keg which is ‘which are mounted inside .the keg itself, and through which the cold water or other coolant is circulated. In such installations the barrels are conveniently placed behind the bar or otherwise near the locality where the beverage is dispensed, and are screened only by the bar or in some cases are covered by simple metal shells that can be lifted away when an exhausted barrel is to be replaced with a filled one. The heavy wooden walls of the barrel ordinarily afford good thermal insulation, preventing undue transfer of heat to the contained liquid and affording efficient cooling action without untoward effects.

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Weird History: Russian Army’s Beer Rescue

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Here’s an odd one from recent history. On January 20, 2004, the BBC had a headline that read: Russian army rescues kegs of beer. Subtitled “Russian troops have retrieved 10 tonnes of beer trapped under the Siberian ice after a week-long operation,” you know you’re in for something special. Here’s the story:

A lorry carrying the beer was lost while crossing the frozen River Irtysh, near the city of Omsk, about 2,200 kilometres (1400 miles) from Moscow.

The driver managed to jump out after the ice gave way, but the lorry and its cargo sank.

Six divers, 10 men with electric saws and a tank pulled the beer kegs – but not the truck – to safety.

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Beer going cheap

With temperatures reaching -27C, the rescue mission was fraught with problems.

Russia’s Tass news agency reported that the recovery team eventually managed to pull the vehicle through a hole in the ice.

They retrieved the kegs of beer but the rope snapped and the truck slipped back under the water.

The Rosar brewery in Omsk said the freezing temperatures probably kept the quality of the beer from deteriorating and said it will still take the delivery.

It plans to sell the beer at a discount.

As many people commented at the time, at least the Russian Army had their priorities straight.

The Tass News Agency added the same day:

Russia has sent in the army to bolster a week-long struggle to rescue 10 tons of beer trapped under Siberian ice, Itar-Tass news agency said Tuesday. A lorry carrying the beer sank when trying to cross the frozen Irtysh river, and a rescue team of six divers, 10 workers and a modified T-72 tank from the emergencies ministry have so far failed to save the load.

“The situation hasn’t developed according to our ideal scenario,” the deputy head of the Cherlaksky region, told the agency. Temperatures were around minus 27 degrees Celsius (minus 17 degrees Fahrenheit) in the region, near the Siberian city of Omsk and around 1,400 miles from Moscow.

A week-long effort to cut a 100 yard corridor to the river bank to pull the truck to dry land failed when the vehicle was swept away from the rescue site, Tass said.

But it said the soldiers were confident it would take them just a day to retrieve the beer.

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