Today in 1896, US Patent 568133 A was issued, an invention of Alfred E. Feroe, for his “Apparatus For Barreling and Bunging Beer.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
My invention relates to an apparatus for barreling and bunging fermented liquors, and the object and purpose of my invention is to produce a means whereby carbonated liquors may be barreled and confined by any kind of bung without the loss of liquor or gas during the operation.
Today in 1916, US Patent 1197922 A was issued, an invention of Julian O. Ellinger, for his beer “Barrel.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
This invention relates to improvements in barrels or kegs and one of the principal objects of the invention is to provide means for securing a head in a barrel or keg in such manner that said head may be securely held in place when the barrel is subjected to rough usage in handling, and so that the head may be readily removed.
Today in 1889, US Patent 410994 A was issued, an invention of Charles Sommer, for his “Stave Dressing Machine.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
My invention relates to improvements in that class of machines by which staves used in the manufacture of cooperage, such as beer kegs, barrels, etc. are dressed. Its object is to dress the staves on both sides at once, giving them at the same time the desired curve corresponding with the curve of the keg or barrel and providing at the two ends additional thickness, allowing depth for the croze.
Today in 1893, US Patent 504610 A was issued, an invention of Andrew W. Oppmann, for his “Barrel Registering Machine.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
This invention relates to machines for registering barrels, half barrels, and kegs, the nature and objects of which will fully appear from the subjoined description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in Which- Figure l is a perspective view of my new registering machine as seen arranged over an elevator, for receiving the barrels from below. Fig. 2 is a like perspective view of the same as seen for receiving the barrels through an opening in a well from a room on the same floor. Fig. 3 is a view of an office or room located above or in another part of the building having electric bells connected with the machine for the purpose of announcing the delivery and registration of barrels or kegs by the said machine.
Today in 1896, US Patent 566898 A was issued, an invention of Alfred E. Peroe, for his “Racking Apparatus for Barreling Beer.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
My invention relates to what is termed “racking apparatus” used for barreling beer or fermented liquors under pressure and my improvements upon this class of devices relate to a method of constructing them by which the air or gas escaping from the barrel as replaced by the entering beer or liquor will be conducted from the barrel, so as not to interfere with or impinge upon the entering beer or liquor.
Today in 1873, US Patent 141944 A was issued, an invention of John W. Moose, for his “Improvement in Apparatus For Preserving Beer on Draft.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
This invention relates to means for introducing air into casks to take the place of the liquid drawn out; and it consists in the combination, with a flexible bag or air holder, of a valve and bellows mechanism of a novel construction, as will be hereinafter more fully described. It further consists in the employment of a perforated tube for withdrawing the air from the flexible bag.
Today in 1951, US Patent 2564163 A was issued, an invention of Jean Emile Lucien Leperre, for his “Receptacle With Elastic Bag Insert and System For Filling and Emptying the Same.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
it is submitted between the brewery and the consumer. Numerous laboratory experiments have shown that beer samples removed with all the required care directly from the brewery tanks keep well. The case is no longer the same when the beer has passed through different casks and various drawing means.
The different causes of contamination are as follows:
In the case of wooden casks, these casks are always infected by the beer dregs remaining inside the casks emptied at the retailers. Once the cask is contaminated it is not possible to sterilize it again completely and the infection is continued by each new filling with beer.
Laboratory experiments of a very complete character have shown that when it is possible to superficially sterilize a cask, the infection begins again as soon as the cask has been put again under pressure.
It is a well-known fact that the dissolution of air in beer is also a cause of the lack of stability of said beer.
Moreover, the beer containers of the drawing 01! means where the beer has always a tendency to become hot. and to lose a part of its carbonic gas, the return into said containers of the froth and of the counter-pressure gases, as well as the presence of the plunging tubes of the drawing oil means, are several of the factors causing alteration of the beer.
As to the dealing out of the beer, it is a known fact that as long as a cask is not broken into, the beer retains generally its quality but once it has begun being dealt out the beer loses in a few hours most of its quality.
On the other hand for breaking into his cask. the retailer introduces into his beer a plunging tube which has generally been left about in the cellar and at the same time he drives into it the stopper of the cask which is unavoidably contaminated.
The present invention has for its object to remove these multiple drawbacks, and it comprises chiefly a special container having a yielding receiver mounted inside a rigid receiver with means being provided for allowing the liquid under pressure to enter inside the inner yielding receiver and also for allowing a counter-pressure fluid to be introduced between this inner yielding receiver and the outer rigid receiver.
A further characteristic feature of the invention consists in that the recess formed by the inner yielding receiver is reduced to zero for the filling of the cask with beer under pressure so that said recess is consequently completely emptied of its air, this being produced by a counter-pressure exerted between said receiver and the rigid outer receiver, the former increasing gradually in volume through the introduction of beer under pressure inside it while said counter-pressure gas progressively escapes from the outside of the yielding receiver.
According to a still further feature of the invention, there is provided a rigid receiver containing a yielding removable fluid-tight receiver, pouch or pocket into which the liquid under pressure is introduced while means are provided firstly for allowing the latter to communicate with the outside and secondly for adjusting the pressure of the fluid contained between the two receivers.
Today in 1902, US Patent 706884 A was issued, an invention of Dillon Beebe, for his “Valved Bung and Connection For Beer Barrels.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
The objects of this invention are to provide a valved bung for service more particularly in connection with packages of beer, ale, or carbonated beverages; to provide locking means for the valve and cooperating key means for operating said locking means; to enable what is termed a slip-rod, such as commonly used by saloon-keepers, to open the valve after the same has been unlocked by the forcing of said slip-rod through the said bung; to secure impervious closure; to protect the working parts, and to secure other advantages and results, some of which may be referred to hereinafter in connection with the description of the working parts.
The invention consists in the improved bung for barrels or other packages adapted to contain beer, ale, or other carbonated beverages or liquids under pressure and in the arrangements and combinations of parts of the same, all substantially as will be hereinafter set forth and finally embraced in the clauses of the claim.
Today in 1942, US Patent 230815 A was issued, an invention of James C. Mullen, assigned to the Verdi Bros Cooperage Company, for his “Beer Barrel.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
This invention relates to barrels, vats and the like and more particularly to the type of barrels employed in the shipment and dispensation of malt-liquors and similar products.
This invention specifically relates to barrels made up of ply Wood laminations.
It is a common practice that barrels, used for the purposes referred to, are preferably built up of barrel staves of which their end portions are made much heavier than their middle portions, whereby to resist the severe handling in shipment.
When employing ply wood laminations in the manufacture of barrel staves, a thickening and thereby strengthening of their end portions introduces however certain mechanical difficulties.
One of the objects of this invention is to provide a practical barrel stave comprising wood ply laminations and of which the physical contour of said stave, approximates or duplicates those of the conventional one-piece, oaken staves.
A further object is to provide a stave adapted for the manufacture of barrels, and of which the wood ply lamination utilized therein are formed and arranged in a manner to give to the barrel all of the desirable characteristics of the conventional oaken barrel, while being cheaper to manufacture, stronger in construction and therefore more enduring.
Today in 1885, US Patent 322853 A was issued, an invention of Robert Reilly and Francis King, for their “Combined Bung and Faucet for Ale and Beer Barrels.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:
Our invention relates to a combined bung faucet for beer, ale, and other casks.
The object of the device is to provide a bung normally closed by a spring-valve and the gaspressure of the contained liquid, and only opened by the introduction of the faucet.
