Today in 1992, US Patent 5156283 A was issued, an invention of Susan R. Sampson, for her “Wooden Stein With Responsive Emblem.” Here’s the Abstract:

A beer stein is made of wood, which imparts no disagreeable flavor to the beer, and creates a faint pleasant aroma. The stein has an insert on its front surface which contains some active display reactive to the environment, such as a thermochromic emblem or a swirling snowflake scene.