Today in 1955, US Patent D176022 S was issued, an invention of Ronald Victor King, for his “Beer Can.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The ornamental design for a beer can, substantially as shown and described.
Saturday’s ad is for Grolsch, from 1951. Ik Drink Bier, or “I Drink Beer,” is a pretty simple slogan, but apparently if you drink eleven glasses of beer you can lift a pink elephant by its trunk, which is pretty impressive, and a rather bold claim. The ad was done by famous illustrator Ib Antoni, a Danish artist. It’s actually based on a previous poster he’d done where the kid only had three mugs of beer with the letter “M” on them, so it appears he adapted it for Grolsch. Across the bottom was also an addition for the ad: “Bier moet. Bier doet je goed.” Which Google translate tells me is “Beer should. Beer is good for you,” but I feel like “should” is probably not right and there’s some idiomatic use I’m missing.
Today in 1961, US Patent D191695 S was issued, an invention of Harold Austin, for his “Holder for Beer Foam Scrapers or the Like.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The ornamental design for a holder for beer foam scrapers or the like as shown and described.
Today in 2000, US Patent PP11615 P was issued, an invention of Gene Probasco, assigned to John I. Haas, Inc., for his “Hop Plant Named ‘H900325-5.'” Here’s the Abstract:
A new and distinct variety of hop, Humulus lupulus L., characterized by a semi-dwarf stature and named `H900323-5`, has an unusually high percentage of alpha-acids in its resin, early maturity and a resonable projected cone yield on low trellis. The new variety was cultivated as a result of a cross at a greenhouse in Yakima, Wash., United States, and has been asexually reproduced in Yakima, Wash., United States.
Friday’s ad is for Heineken, from 1951. I’ve always found this ad super creepy, but maybe it was effective, who knows. It certainly gives beer goggles a new angle, pint goggles, though I do like that the eye itself has become a drop of beer inside the glass looking out. And of course he’s wearing a bow tie.
Today in 1979, US Patent 4173295 A was issued, an invention of Dieter Steinmann, assigned to the European Design Corporation, for his “Barrel Dispensing Support.” Here’s the Abstract:
A one way beer barrel dispensing support is provided to facilitate dispensing a beverage from the barrel by gravity flow. The support has a circular area on its upper surface for receiving the bottom end of a beverage barrel. A conduit is mounted in said circular area and has an inlet which enters the barrel when the barrel is placed on the support. The end of the conduit remote from the inlet has a valved spigot to control dispensing.
Today in 1990, US Patent D311868 S was issued, an invention of Kenneth J. Armstrong, for his “Beer Keg Cap.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The ornamental design for a beer keg cap as shown and described.
Thursday’s ad is for Zynda’s Bock, from who knows when. John Zynda operated a brewery in Detroit, Michigan, at least until he closed in 1947. Before prohibition, his brewery was known as the White Eagle Brewery, but during prohibition he went underground, literally, and kept brewing beer under the name, John Zynda & Sons Brewery. Here’s a story about they kept making bee through prohibition, from Found Michigan:
Trouble was brewing for Michigan beer companies—big and small—in the spring of 1917, when Michigan jump-started the Prohibition era with its own statewide ban on alcohol nearly three years before the 18th Amendment made drinking a national taboo. Just a handful of Michigan brewers would survive through to the end of Prohibition in 1933, and those that did had to get creative. Several of the bigger companies began making and promoting the still-legal canned hopped malt syrup (the key ingredient needed for homebrewing); Stroh’s turned to making ice cream; and Detroit beer tycoon John Zynda even took his operation underground—literally. In order to avoid the cops, he dug a tunnel from his bottling shop to a garage across the street, rolling the beer to safety a half barrel at a time. When a shipment was ready, he’d then send an empty delivery van away as a decoy, while the real thing made its way off to customers in a car waiting the next block over. Detroit brewers like Zynda, however, had an even harder time making a go of it as of 1927. That year, Canada ended its partial Prohibition, and many Detroit beer makers found it hard to compete once a legal draft at a Windsor saloon was just a boat ride away.
After prohibition ended, and they were legal once again, their name changed to the Zynda Brewing Co. When they brewed Zynda’s Bock, is something I wasn’t able to answer, and although it looks like it’s from the late 1800s, I can’t say for sure.
Today in 1974, US Patent 3846397 A was issued, an invention of John H. Ernster, for his “Process For Utilizing Barley Malt.” Here’s the Abstract:
Grain residues from mashed barley malt are separated from wort thereby produced and heated in an alkaline solution to solubilize protein. The alkaline solution is separated from the unsolubilized grain residues and acidified to precipitate water soluble protein. Beer is brewed from the wort and the unsolubilized grain residue can be used as animal feed.
Today in 1912, US Patent 1043683 A was issued, an invention of Jacob A. Fieser, for his “Hose-Coupling.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
I have invented certain new and useful Improvements in hose-couplings; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which its improvements in swiveled couplings for hose pipes forming means whereby the different sections of the pipe may be turned to prevent twisting.
The invention consists further of other details of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts which will be hereinafter fully described, shown in the accompanying drawings and then specifically defined in the appended claim.
