Today in 1877, US Patent 192292 A was issued, an invention of Jules Alphonse Saladin, for his “Improvement in Malting of Grain.” There’s no Abstract, though it’s described this way in the application:

The object of my invention is the malting of grain, barley for breweries, or any other grains, and consists in causing grain to germinate in very thick layers (one meter or more) and in ventilating and stirring it mechanically, so as to obtain a great saving in manual labor over the old process, although producing with great regularity, and throughout the whole year, a malt of superior quality.

The apparatus and means used are as follows: First, a soaking-tub; second, a germinating-box; third, damp and cool ventilation fourth, a stirring apparatus fifth, a mode of carrying or transferring the grain from one apparatus to the other.

Today in 1885, US Patent 320361 A was issued, an invention of William T. Jebb, for his “Method of Preparing and Treating Starch.” There’s no Abstract, though it’s described this way in the application:

This invention relates to an improvement in the manufacture of beer and ale from barley malt and the starch extracted from Indian corn or maize.

The object of this invention is to utilize the starch contained in the Indian corn for producing a heavy, light-colored wort, without imparting to the malt-liquor an objectionable taste or flavor or impairing its keeping qualities, by extracting from the corn in a simple and inexpensive manner a crude starch which is substantially free from impurities, and then producing a wort from this starch in connection with barley-malt.

Today in 1987, US Patent 4670274 A was issued, an invention of Piroska Ress, Istvan Kiss, Geza Miltenyi, Antal Strahl, Imre Petro, Jozsef Farkas, Peter Biacs, Istvanne Kozma, and Istvan Debreczeny, assigned to Kobanyai Sorgyar, for their “Process For Controlling the Germination of Malting Barley.” Here’s the Abstract:

The present invention relates to controlling germination of barley in the malting process. More particularly, the invention relates to the treatment of malting barley by ionizing radiation prior to the malting process.

Barley field in Colorado.

Today in 1894, US Patent 513694 A was issued, an invention of James White, for his “Apparatus For Drying Barley, Malt, Etc.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

My invention has reference to apparatus for drying barley, malt, oats, wheat or other substances of a granular or pulverulent nature.

The invention mainly consists in the construction within a kiln or drying house of an inclined or vertical channel formed with foraminous sides and divided transversely at suitable intervals into chambers the bottoms of which contain cross passages, which passages When the barley or other material which is supplied to the upper end of said channel is allowed to run or flow from one chamber to that next below, transfer the material that was at and near the respective sides of the upper of the two chambers to the opposite sides of the lower chamber, whereby the material gets well mixed and turned over and is consequently more uniformly dried than if it were merely allowed to slide bodily from chamber to chamber.

The invention further consists in the combination with the said cross passages at bottom of each compartment of a central tongue or board projecting up from between said cross passages, and of a central tongue or board projecting down from between said cross passages, the said tongues serving as guides or dividers for the material as it respectively enters and leaves said passages. The lowest chamber does not require cross passages at bottom but has a slide or shutter at top and another slide or shutter at bottom.- When the apparatus is inoperative the bottom slide is normally kept closed and the upper one open, and the two slides are worked at intervals to allow the material in the several chambers to move down one stage, that is to say to the extent of one chamber. To effect this the upper slide is first closed and the bottom slide is then opened to allow the lowest chamber to empty itself into a chute or receptacle. The bottom slide is then closed and the top slide opened, when every chamber (except the lowest) will empty itself through the cross passages into the chamber next below and become filled from the chamber next above, the top chamber receiving its supply from a hopper or otherwise.