Saturday’s ad is another one for Guinness, this one from 1986. The ad shows the United Nations building in New York, with the odd tagline “All This, Just To Drink A Guinness In Peace?” Apparently that’s because the Delegates’s Dining Room on the top floor serves Guinness, though I still don’t think it makes a great deal of sense.
Today in 1933, US Patent 1907994 A was issued, an invention of Edward McManus Charles, assigned to Crown Cork & Seal Co., for his “Cap.” There’s no Abstract, but in the description they talk about an “invention relat[ing] to caps for containers and particularly contemplates a cap wherein a sealing ring or cushion is usually employed.” If you keep reading, it’s explained that this crown works better than previous ones for a variety of reasons, even though it looks pretty much the same as other crowns.
Today in 1871, US Patent 114671 A was issued, an invention of Duby Green, for his “Improvement in the Manufacture of Yeast and in the Application of the Same in Mashing and Brewing.” There’s no Abstract, and in the description there’s never really any simple overview or summation of the invention, Green just dives right it to explaining his formula and how it works. I guess he figured the crazy long title was enough.
Friday’s ad is for Guinness, from 1957. The ad shows two young couples having a picnic within spitting distance of Stonehenge which I imagine was as impossible in 1957 as it is today. Maybe I’m wrong, but I can’t believe they’d let anyone get so close to such a national treasure. I love the wild abandon with which the one dude is eating a chicken leg. I know the other guy is sporting an ascot, but is the chicken man wearing one, too, or did he tuck his tie in his shirt? And the dresses that the women are wearing are pretty fly, too, particularly the grey skirt with the jugs. But a picnic by Stonehenge? It’s true. “Life is worth living after a Guinness.”
Today in 1962, US Patent 3033762 A was issued, an invention of Robert C. Gadsby, Schwaiger Joseph, and Frank H. Schwaiger, assigned to Anheuser-Busch, for their “Straining Tank.” There’s no Abstract, but in the description it’s stated that the “invention relates to an improved straining tank or grain extractor or lauter tub, and more particularly to an improvement in an existing kind of lauter tub presently in widespread use in the brewing industry to remove extract from brewers grains.” They later elaborate a bit more:
This invention relates to an improvement in existing lauter tubs having agitators therein which increases the efficiency or reduces the draw-o time to about two-thirds of the time previously required. This is important because the lautering step in the brewing process has in the past been one of the slowest and one of the bottlenecks in the production of beer. In other words, in the usual brewing operation today, the capacity of the step which uses lauter tubs or straining tanks largely determines the capacity of the brewery.
Today in 1894, US Patent 519513 A was issued, an invention of Harry Torchiani, for his “Apparatus For Racking Beer.” There’s no Abstract, but in the description it’s stated that the “invention relates to that class of. devices that are used in drawing or filling beer from casks into the barrels, half-barrels, kegs, etc.,” adding this. “The object of my invention is to provide an apparatus of this kind, which can readily be adjusted for barrels or kegs of different sizes, and which prevents the spurting of the beer from the apparatus or keg when the apparatus is withdrawn from the keg.”
Thursday’s ad is for Knickerbocker Beer, from 1954. The beer was brewed by Jacob Ruppert. The illustration by Lumen Martin Winter shows a fanciful origin story for the Purchase of the Island of Manhattan, as told in the text. Isn’t that how the kids are wearing their pants these days? Wow, everything old really is new again.
Today in 1968, US Patent 3381841 A was issued, an invention of Howard F. Kusserow, for his “Bung For Barrel.” There’s no Abstract, but in the description it’s claimed that the “invention lies in the general field of container closures. It is directed to re-usable closures which may be readily applied and removed, and more particularly to bungs for beer barrels, although it is not limited to such use.” Apparently, the new bung was to replace wooden ones with a bung made from polyethylene, a “resiliently yieldabie material.”
Wednesday’s ad is for Bass Ale, from 1967. Showing some antique chess pieces with a cool photograph, trying to assert that they’ll appeal to people who “appreciate the best,” suggesting those are also Bass drinkers. Hmm.
The California Craft Brewers Association (CCBA) recently commissioned an economic impact study of the state’s brewing industry for last year. And the news is pretty great. Here’s some of the highlights:
Economic Impact: In 2014 craft beer contributed more than $6.5 billion to the economy of California. That’s up 18% from 2013. That’s a fairly conservative number and they’ll have a more accurate and most likely higher numbers in June when the full report is finished. The craft beer industry in California has a higher economic impact than any other state in the US.
Employment: In 2014 Craft Brewers employed more than 48,000 Californians.
Growth: During 2014 the number of operating breweries grew by over 24% giving us a total of 520 operating breweries in California.
Taxes: In 2014 California craft brewers paid over $56 million in State and federal excise taxes and paid more than $1.3 billion in income and other local, state and federal taxes ($880 million in state and local income taxes and $465 in federal income taxes).
Production Volume: 3.5 Million Barrels
Exports: 1.3 million barrels. (That’s still higher than the total production of all but two other states (PA and CO)).
