Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Patent No. 2679346A: Filling System

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Today in 1954, US Patent 2679346 A was issued, an invention of Rudolph H. Breeback, assigned to Crown Cork & Seal Co., for his “Filling System.” There’s no Abstract, though it’s described this way in the application, “The present invention relates to filling systems and, more particularly, to filling systems used in the bottling of carbonated beverages.” And that’s pretty vague, but there’s no other simple sentence or even paragraph that explains it in a nutshell way. Basically, you have to read the whole application.
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Beer In Ads #1565: When Picnicking Gives You A Thirst For Beer …

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Sunday’s ad is another one for Falstaff, this one also from 1950s. In this ad, a well-dressed couple is having a waterside picnic. But they brought a fairly large, and undoubtedly heavy, red cooler filled with ice and Falstaff cans. But it’s all big smiles now as the man is opening a beer, but without watching what he’s doing, as if he was doing a magic trick.

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Patent No. 103498A: Improved Apparatus For Preserving Beer

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Today in 1870, US Patent 103498 A was issued, an invention of Charles Pohlmanx, for his “Improved Apparatus For Preserving Beer.” There’s no Abstract, though it’s described this way in the application:

The nature of my invention consists in an elastic bag, formed in a shape to accommodate itself to the inside of a barrel, to which it is applied, in such a manner that, when the bag is filled with air, and supplied with air under pressure, the bag will gradually expand, and exert a pressure upon the liquid in the cask in which it is placed.

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Beer In Ads #1564: After The Game …

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Saturday’s ad is still another one for Falstaff, this one from 1950s. Yesterday’s ad copy, “When it’s Time to Watch the Ball Game … Bring on the Falstaff,” was for before and during the game, whereas this ad is about “After the Game.” It’s quite a spread they’ve put out, but what the hell are those things on the football field serving platter? Are they deviled eggs wearing uniforms? And check out the guy in the background. “Put down the pillow.”

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Patent No. 20130126009A1: System For Cleaning Beer Lines And Recovering Draft Beer

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Today in 2013, US Patent 20130126009 A1 was issued, an invention of Tracey M. Killarney and Lawrence A. Kent, for their “System for Cleaning Beer Lines and Recovering Draft Beer.” Here’s the Abstract:

A beer recovery system which uses CO2 to blow unused beer backwards through the beer lines and back into a beer keg is disclosed.

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Patent No. 4927335A: Pump For Transferring Liquids, In Particular Beer Or Carbonated Beverages

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Today in 1990, US Patent 4927335 A was issued, an invention of Carlo M. Pensa, for his “Pump For Transferring Liquids, in Particular Beer or Carbonated Beverages.” Here’s the Abstract:

The present invention relates to a pump for transferring liquids, in particular for beer or carbonated beverages, characterized in that it is constituted by two mutually opposite and integral pistons sliding inside two cylinders which generate, with their reciprocating motion, four variable-volume chambers inside two of which the fluid, through suitable valves, is alternatively intaken and delivered by a gas whose pressure is modulated by a suitable pressure regulator, in which it is the pressure of the same delivered liquid to counteract the calibration force, with said gas alternatively going to act, by means of suitable control means, inside the chamber behind the delivery chamber, so that the delivery pressure of the same liquid remains constant and predetermined, wherein said delivery pressure is obtained as the sum of the thrust of the liquid intaken from the opposite chamber, plus the modulated gas pressure, which acts on the rear face of the delivery piston.

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Beer Excise Taxes By State 2015

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Back in 2009, I wrote a post about Beer Excise Taxes By State, based on data from by the Tax Foundation, and they also created a nice map of the 50 states with the individual beer excise tax brewers in each state has to pay in addition to the federal excise taxes, too.

They’ve now updated that map with more recent tax rates as of January 1, 2015. As they note, “[t]ax treatment of beer varies widely across the U.S., ranging from a low of $0.02 per gallon in Wyoming to a high of $1.29 per gallon in Tennessee.” They also acknowledge that “taxes are the single most expensive ingredient in beer, costing more than labor and raw materials combined,” citing an economic analysis that found “if all the taxes levied on the production, distribution, and retailing of beer are added up, they amount to more than 40% of the retail price.”

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Our Centenary Session Searches For Lost Styles

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What a long, strange trip it’s been. The upcoming Session will be our 100th monthly outing, and our host will be Reuben Grey, who writes the Tale of the Ale. For this momentous occasion he’s sending us all on a quest to find the ark of the holy grail filled with lost beer styles, or something like that. Actually, for the June Session, the topic is “Resurrecting Lost Beer Styles,” which he describes below.

There are many [lost or almost lost beer styles] that have started to come back in to fashion in the last 10 years due to the rise of craft beer around the world.

If you have a local beer style that died out and is starting to appear again then please let the world know. Not everyone will so just write about any that you have experienced. Some of the recent style resurrections I have come across in Ireland are Kentucky Common, Grodziskie, Gose and some others. Perhaps it’s a beer you have only come across in homebrew circles and is not even made commercially.

There are no restrictions other than the beer being an obscure style you don’t find in very many places. The format, I leave up to individuals. It could be a historical analysis or just a simple beer review.

So that’s your quest: to find the holy grail of lost beer styles.

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So don your fedora, grab your tasting whip, and get cracking. To participate in the June Session, leave a comment to the original announcement, with whatever you’ve uncovered during your adventures, on or before Friday, June 5.

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Patent No. 3035603A: Beer Barrel Tapper

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Today in 1962, US Patent 3035603 A was issued, an invention of Walter H. Despres and Phillip D. Jamieson, for their “Beer Barrel Tapper.” There’s no Abstract, though it’s described this way in the application:

This invention relates to a new and improved beer barrel tapper, that is, a device for tapping beer kegs or barrels and has particular reference to a device of the type set forth wherein a compressed gas is introduced into the barrel or the like for removing the liquid contents, such as beer, under pressure.

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