Today in 1959, US Patent 2877790 A was issued, an invention of Emil Clemens Horst, for his “Self-Closing Valve for Tap Bushings of Kegs.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The present invention relates to self-closing valves, and more particularly to valves used with tap bushings of beverage kegs for sealing off the interior of the kegs except during such time that said kegs are on tap for dispensing the contents therefrom.
Wednesday’s ad is another one for the Pennsylvania State Brewers Association, from 1916, No. 93 in series they did from 1915-17 called “Facts Versus Fallacies.” I have no idea how many were done but some of the them are numbered into low triple digits, suggesting there were a lot of them, all in an effort to stop Prohibition from happening and win over support for beer. This ad, marked “93,” is about the prohibitionist claims that drunkenness is ruining marriages and the leading cause of divorce. Like almost everything they sue to promote their cause, it’s exaggerated to suit their aims, much like today’s anti-alcohol organizations. In the ad, statistics available for 1914 from the city of Chicago clearly show that while there are relationships ruined by one of the parties’ overindulging, it’s in far less numbers than the prohibitionists argue. In fact, for Chicago, of the four leading causes of divorce, drunkenness is last and is just 1.5% of the total.
Today in 1915, US Patent 1132011 A was issued, an invention of Emil Clemens Horst, for his “Hop Separator.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
This invention relates to hop separators employing upwardly traveling endless separating belts; and the objects of the invention-are first, to provide a simple, substantial, easily regulated apparatus in which the hops may be quickly separated from the leaves and trash with which they are commingled after being stripped from the vines; second, to provide an adjustable deflecting plate between the separator and the source of supply by which a portion of the hops may be deflected out of reach of the separating apparatus, and third, a plurality of tackle is operable in connection with the separator to prevent any hops from passing through the separator with the leaves.
Tuesday’s ad is another one for the Pennsylvania State Brewers Association, from 1916, No. 92 in series they did from 1915-17 called “Facts Versus Fallacies.” I have no idea how many were done but some of the them are numbered into low triple digits, suggesting there were a lot of them, all in an effort to stop Prohibition from happening and win over support for beer. This ad, marked “92,” is about who was for and against prohibition. According to the ad, it was the working man, and labor organizations, who were steadfastly against taking away their after-work beer. Samuel Gompers, the president of the AFL at the time, is quoted. “I have see more Real Drunkenness in “DRY” States than any other place in the world.” He recounts that traveling the country for work it was evident everywhere he looked that prohibition was a bad idea and would not work.
Today in 1988, US Patent 4730463 A was issued, an invention of Ted M. Stanfill, for his “Beverage Dispenser Cooling System.” Here’s the Abstract:
A beverage dispensing system further cools the beverage where it is dispensed at a considerable distance from the beverage storage container. The beverage conduit between the storage and dispensing sites is carried in a bundle located within an insulated jacket conduit. The bundle also contains parallel chilled liquid lines through which chilled liquid is circulated. A concentric coil is located at the dispensing site. A manifold connects the parallel beverage and chilled liquid lines to the concentric coil and to the dispensing valve.
Monday’s ad is another one for the Pennsylvania State Brewers Association, from 1916, No. 91 in series they did from 1915-17 called “Facts Versus Fallacies.” I have no idea how many were done but some of the them are numbered into low triple digits, suggesting there were a lot of them, all in an effort to stop Prohibition from happening and win over support for beer. This ad, marked “91,” is about a problem still with us today, which is that the anti-alcohol organizations paint everyone involved in the alcohol trade with the same broad brush and believe every one of us to be pure evil. But as the ad reminds them, “There are Good and Bad People in Every Business and Profession” and “The Good Saloons far Outnumber the Bad Ones.” That this is true should be obvious, but there are still people today who believe that one drop of alcohol can turn you into an alcoholic, and you can thank fanaticism and propaganda by prohibitionists for that.
Sunday’s ad is another one for the Pennsylvania State Brewers Association, from 1916, No. 90 in series they did from 1915-17 called “Facts Versus Fallacies.” I have no idea how many were done but some of the them are numbered into low triple digits, suggesting there were a lot of them, all in an effort to stop Prohibition from happening and win over support for beer. This ad, marked “90,” is about King George, the king of England, who apparently had a riding accident. He recovered, but it took some time, and one of the things that he was prescribed to help him get better was a daily amount of alcohol, which they referred to as “a little stimulant daily during convalescence.” This story is told to drive home the point that drinking isn’t the problem, over-drinking is what’s leading people to agitate for a prohibition. As a sign on the ad declares: “Moderate Drinkers Are The TRUE Disciples of Temperance.” I’m not sure why that slogan didn’t catch on.
Today in 2014, US Patent 20140072691 A1 was issued, an invention of Ludwig Scheller, Rudolf Michel, and Patrick Bahns, for their “Method and Device for Adding Hops in Beer Manufacture, and Also Hop Product.” Here’s the Abstract:
The invention relates to a method for adding hops in beer manufacture, having the following process steps; a) separation of a sub-quantity (07 a) of water and/or wort (07) and/or beer as an aqueous fluid, b) addition of hop extract (10) in liquid or pasty form to the separated aqueous fluid (07 a), c) production of a macroemulsion (13) of the hop extract by emulsifying the hop extract (10) in the aqueous fluid (07 a), d) increasing the pressure in the macroemulsion (13) of the hop extract to a feed pressure of in particular higher than 100 bar, e) production of a microemulsion (17) of the hop extract by feeding the pressurized macroemulsion (13) through a gap or a valve (16) or by feeding the pressurized macroemulsion against a baffle plate, f) at least partial return of the microemulsion (17) of the hop extract to the beer manufacturing process.
Today in 1934, US Patent 1950714 A was issued, an invention of Ernest Joseph D’Aoust and Herbert Lawrence Dickens, for their “Container and Cooler.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The invention relates to a container and cooler, as described in the present specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawing that forms part of the same.
The invention consists essentially of the unit combining the means for refrigerating and the container as pointed out in the claim for novelty following a description in detail of the parts making up the unit.
The objects of the invention are to cool liquids such as beer, especially contents being continually drawn upon thereby making it possible to maintain the volume of liquid in constant use in a palatable condition while a considerable volume remains unchilled, which are ideal conditions for dispensing beer and many liquids, especially where they are sold by the glass; to facilitate the transport of beer and some other beverages, particularly those beverages liable to deterioration from changes of temperature and therefore deliver the container with its contents in as fit a state as when it left the brewery, factory or other production centre; to utilize dry ice, artificial ice, natural ice or chemical refrigerants to the best advantage for cooling containers and introduce the cooling medium with ease; and generally to provide for restaurants, hotels, merchants, dwellings and places of entertainment, a convenient form of container from which the beverage will be delivered in a wholesome condition and which will not materially add to the cost of the invention to the consumer.
Today in 1917, US Patent 1218724 A was issued, an invention of William F. Vosseler, for his “Beer Cooler.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
My invention relates to beer coolers of the type in which a coil is provided through which the beer must pass in the presence of a cooling medium.
The simplest Way of cooling beer as it is pumped from a barrel to a faucet is to send it through a coil which is packed in ice. In coils for this purpose, there must be as little obstruction to the flow of beer as possible. There must be also as much of an exposure to the ice as possible.
Accordingly in the Patent No. 1,099,329, of June 9th, 1914, to William Vosseler, is described a device in which an open coil is mounted in an ice box so that ice can be packed down inside the coil as well vas around it. This is the best way of quickly and adequately cooling the beer as it passes through a cooler, but it opens the way to a number of difficulties. The first of these is that to make a strong coil which will Withstand the jamming down in it of ice, it is hard to provide against agitating the beer during its passage through the coil. In the next place, it is difficult to hold the coil in place in the box against these strains, and finally it is requisite to make the whole structure as inexpensive as possible.
It is the object of my invention herein to provide against these difficulties so as to have an open coil of great durability and cheapness, in which there is little or no obstruction to the flow of the beer to cause it to foam out of the faucet, which is very undesirable.
