Today in 2009, US Patent 20090028999 A1 was issued, an invention of Klaus U. Melisch and Stefan Riedelsheimer, for their “Beer Brewing Kit and Brewing Method to Prepare Wort for the Kit.” Here’s the Abstract:

A kit for home brewed beer which comprises a bottle, wort substantially filling the bottle, and a cap which has venting means to permit escape of gas from the bottle when pressure therein exceeds a predetermined value. There is also disclosed a brewing method wherein lactic acid is added to the wort to reduce the pH to level 4.6 and a predetermined amount of yeast is added to the wort to cause a short fermentation while maintaining the alcohol level below 0.5% by volume.