Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Patent No. 488144A: Beer Cooler

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Today in 1892, US Patent 488144 A was issued, an invention of Wyatt Gibson, for his “Beer Cooler.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

This invention relates to improvements in beer-coolers, the objects in view being to pro- Vide a cheaply-constructed and simple cooling device for cooling beer or other liquids, to so arrange the parts as to permit of an easy handling of the keg containing the beer or other liquid, to permit of ready access to and separation of the parts for the purpose of cleaning the apparatus, and, furthermore, to adapt the same when not in use as a beer or other liquid cooler to serve as an efficient refrigerator or cold-storage chamber for domestic purposes.

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Patent No. 1011147A: Beer Keg Valve

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Today in 1911, US Patent 1011147 A was issued, an invention of Samuel E Bennett, for his beer keg “Valve.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

This invention relates to valves and more particularly to an air valve of that character used in beer drawing apparatus, and the invention has for its primary object to provide a valve of this character consisting of an attaching body adapted for connection to the beer keg and to an air hose or pipe, and a valve carrying casing removably engaged in said body.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved means for mounting the valve member, whereby, in the event that foreign particles of matter should find their way between the valve member and its seat, said valve member and its case may be easily removed without liability of losing the valve member, and such foreign matter removed.

A further object of the invention is to provide an air valve of this character of extremely simple construction, and one which is highly efficient and durable in use.

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Patent No. 121902A: Improvement In Preserving And Using Hops In Brewing

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Today in 1871, US Patent 121902 A was issued, an invention of Jacob Seeger and John Boyd, for their “Improvement in Preserving and Using Hops in Brewing.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

It is well known that the active principle of hops is soon dissipated and the flavor changed or lost upon exposure to atmospheric action, and that, therefore, fresh hops command in the market two or three fold the price of hops grown the year previous. They are also readily injured by dampness, and their shipment by water is, therefore, attended with risk.

We propose by grinding or otherwise pulverizing the hops, and by then packing the same in air-tight packages to secure the following advantages in an improved article of manufacture and trade: First, the bulk is reduced at least fifty per cent. in packing the hops after being pulverized. Second, the hops pulverized and packed in air-tight vessels or packages may be stored for an indefinite length of time without deterioration as to quality, weight, or flavor. Third, the expense and labor of transportation is greatly reduced. Fourth, hops pulverized and packed in air-tight packages may be transported by Water-carriage without risk or damage by dampness. For the purpose of retail trade the pulverized hops are packed in cans or packages holding a pound, more or less, while for the convenience of large consumers, breweries, &c., the packages may be boxes or barrels. In packing pulverized hops the contents of an ordinary bale may be reduced to the dimensions of a flour-barrel, and, therefore, the labor of handling and the expense of transportation will be proportionately reduced.

The large consumer is enabled by our method to store his years supply without danger of deterioration as to quality, flavor, or weight, and with a material saving as to quantity required and space occupied. The dealer is enabled by our method to handle his hops and to ship them to any market without risk from atmospheric causes or dampness, which now makes a material advance in the price in markets remote from the place of production; or he can hold his stock over and wait an advance in price. This latter fact will tend to equalize prices and relieve the market of a glut at one time or a dearth at another.

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Patent No. 530827A: Beer Drawing And Saving Apparatus

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Today in 1894, US Patent 530827 A was issued, an invention of William R. Dales, for his “Beer Drawing and Saving Apparatus.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

The object of my invention is to produce an apparatus which enables beer to be readily drawn to fill a glass or other receptacle, and which has also an arrangement by which the froth may be sucked from the glass and delivered into a receptacle from which, after it settles, it may be withdrawn in the shape of merchantable beer. The apparatus thus provides for selling beer on draft in the usual way, while cans and such articles may be filled from the receptacle into which the froth has been delivered. To these ends my invention consists of certain features of construction and combinations of parts, which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

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Patent No. 8601936B2: Combined Brewing System

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Today in 2013, US Patent 8601936 B2 was issued, an invention of Ian Stuart Williams and Anders Gordon Warn, assigned to Williamswarn Holdings Limited, for their “Combined Brewing System.” Here’s the Abstract:

A combined brewing system for small scale brewing of fermented alcoholic beverages, particularly beer, and to a method of making fermented alcoholic beverages. The brewing system comprises a single pressurizable vessel. The beer is naturally carbonated to the desired level during fermentation. Sediment is collected and substantially separated from within the vessel and removed from the vessel while the vessel is under pressure. Compressed gas is added for maintaining natural carbonation levels, so that the contents of the vessel can be drawn off at a desired pressure. The vessel has a temperature control system to selectively control the temperature during processing.

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Patent No. 551167A: Truck For Barrels Or Other Vessels

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Today in 1895, US Patent 551167 A was issued, an invention of Henry A. Kobold, for his “Truck for Barrels or Other Vessels.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

My invention relates to a device for grasping kegs, barrels, casks, and other vessels having projecting flanges or rims at their ends like the chines of kegs and barrels, whereby the same may be conveniently and readily conveyed from place to place or raised and lowered along skids in loading and unloading without the necessity of touching the hands to them.

My invention has for its primary object to provide a device of this nature which Will be capable of readily grasping the vessel in such a manner that the latter may be easily rolled and guided to the desired place, the cylindrical form of the vessel being utilized in giving it locomotion.

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Patent No. 5694787A: Counter Top Beer Chilling Dispensing Tower

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Today in 1997, US Patent 5694787 A was issued, an invention of Robert K. Cleleand and James M. Cleleand, for their “Counter Top Beer Chilling Dispensing Tower.” Here’s the Abstract:

A counter top beer dispensing tower structure including a thermo insulating jacket structure with a top wall, a flat counter top engaging bottom wall, rear and side walls, a flat vertically and laterally extending front wall and a body insulating material at the inner surfaces of the walls, a metal cold plate within the body of insulating material, a plurality of laterally spaced dispensing valve mounting parts carried by and projecting forwardly from the plate and accessible at the front wall, a plurality of elongate tubular beer conducting coils in the plate, each beer conducting coil has a downstream end portion connected with a related valve mounting part and a vertical upstream end portion depending from the plate and bottom wall to extend through a primary opening in a related counter and to connect with the downstream end on of related beer conducting line, and elongate tubular glycol coil unit within the plate and having vertical upstream and downstream end portions depending from the plate and the jacket structure to extend through the primary opening in the related counter and to connect with downstream and upstream ends of related delivery and return sections of an elongate glycol conducting lines a glycol chiller and, plurality of spaced apart elongate vertically extending threaded mounting studs anchored to and depending from tower jacket structure to extend through secondary openings in the related counter; and, nuts on the studs and engaging the counter to draw the bottom wall in to tight engagement with the top of the counter.

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Patent No. 2863579A: Case Unloader With Bottle Rejecting Head

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Today in 1958, US Patent 2863579 A was issued, an invention of George L.N. Meyer, for his “Case Unloader with Bottle Rejecting Head.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

This invention relates to a case unloader adapted to unload empty bottles from a case and to reject bottles with corks, caps or other obstructions in the neck of the bottle.

In case unloaders used to remove empty beer, carbonated beverage bottles, etc., from cases and deliver them to a bottle washer, or the like, prior to refilling, much trouble has been experienced with bottles that have been re-capped or which have a cork or other obstruction in the neck. Case unloaders heretofore made had no provision for rejecting such bottles and as a result bottles with caps or corks on the necks were processed through the bottle washer. When such bottles reached the inside brush station, or the rinsing station, the brush spindle, or the rinse nozzle, would strike the cap, cork or other obstruction and bend either the spindle or the nozzle, necessitating stopping of the machine to replace the damaged element.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a case unloader for bottles which will reject any bottles having a crown, cork or other such obstruction in the neck, and so prevent such bottles from going through the washing machine.

Another object is to provide a case unloader which will remove only those bottles from the case which have the necks of the bottles free of obstructions.

A further object of the invention is to provide a case unloader for beverage bottles, or the like, which will reduce break-downs in the bottle washing machinery.

A still further object is to provide a case unloader which will reduce the amount of supervision required to load bottles onto a bottle washer.

A still further object of the invention is to reduce the overall cost of washing bottles.

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Patent No. 572708A: Beer Bottling Apparatus

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Today in 1896, US Patent 572708 A was issued, an invention of Charles Meldrum, for his “Beer Bottling Apparatus.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes these claims:

Prior to my invention it has been the usual custom to fill bottles with beer from the keg by employing flexible rubber tubes which are passed down through the open bung-hole into the beer and siphoning the beer through these tubes into the bottles. The disadvantages in bottling beer in this manner are that too much air is admitted through the open bung-hole and the beer is subjected to unnecessary agitation in being siphoned over, all of which results in the liberation and escape of sufficient gas to materially effect the life of the beer. Then, too, any sediment or impurities which may be present in the beer in the keg are carried over into the bottles, which is also a serious objection.

-The object of my present invention is to overcome these defects in a simple and effective manner; and to that end it consists of a passage or conductor one end of which is adapted for tight insertion and removable retention in the bung-hole on the lower side of the keg and provided with a vent-tube which passes up through the beer and into the air-space above, the other end having a chamber across which is placed a strainer and a series of outlet-passages arranged in the wall of the straining-chamber and adapted for engagement with a series of flexible tubes, through which the strained beer passes by gravity into the bottles.

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