CERTAIN IM- PROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF KEEPING OR PRESERVING BEER, ALE, AND OTHER FERMENTED LIQUORS
Year: 1830

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
AITKEN, of Carron Vale, in that part of the United Kingdom called Scotland,
Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS His late most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth
did, by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing
date at Westminster, the Thirtieth day of March, One thousand eight hundred
and thirty, in the eleventh year of His reign, give and grant unto me, the said
William Aitken, His special licence that I, the said William Aitken, my
exors, admors, and assigns, and such others as I, the said William Aitken, my;
exors, admors, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times during the term of years therein mentioned,.
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,.
Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF KEEPING OR PRESERVING BEER, ALE, AND OTHER
FERMENTED LIQUORS;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a
proviso, that I, the said William Aitken, shall cause a particular description
of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had,
will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Aitken, do hereby describe the manner in which my said Invention
is to be performed by the following description thereof, that is to say':-
My improvements consist in: particular, means of preserving for use beer,
ale, cyder, wine, or other fermented liquors. All such liquors contain in them
quantities of carbonic acid, and of spirit or alcohol, which quickly escape from
them whenever they are exposed to the air, and are freed from the pressure
of a confining vessel; the first with the appearance of frothing, the second
invisibly, and it is usual therefore. to preserve them in close casks perfectly
'filled, or in well-corked bottles: The latter is the suitable-mode. when they..are.
to be used in small quantities at a time, both because it allows a stronger
pressure to be maintained on the liquor in proportion to the smallness-of the
containing vessel, and because it prevents the loss or deterioration by escape
of the gas from any large quantity of the liquor that might be left unused at
the time. Now any contrivance which with other advantages should save the
great expence of bottling, by allowing brisk liquors to be kept in bulk, so that
portions might at any time be taken away for use without injury to the
remainder, would be of great importance. This is the character of the new
means which constitute, my Invention. Were it possible to cause a cask or
bottle to diminish when part of its contentent were removed, so as to remain-
still full, and to compress the remainder as strongly as it originally compressed
the whole, the end would be answered, and this may really be done by making
the cask or, vessel cylindrical, like a common, pump barrel, with a close fitting
piston, to follow the remaining liquid on any being drawn off, so as always to
maintain the same pressure; but as there are many objections to such an
apparatus, as of expence, difficulty of execution, &c., I obtain the same result
by using common vessels of unchangeable size, into which, as liquid is with+
drawn from them, I either force something of equal bulk with such liquid, 'or
I use the carbonic acid gas generated in the liquid itself, so as to answer the
purpose. The following are my contrivances:
First, having a containing vessel, which is air-tight, with a syringe or other
suitable means I force carbonic acid gas into it, in bulk equal to the liquid
at any time withdrawn through the cook. The carbonic acid gas is prepared
beforehand in any of the cheap modes commonly used, and is kept in- an
air-tight bag or other convenient gasholder.
:
Second, where a sufficiency of carbonic acid is formed by continued-
fermentation in the liquor itself, instead of allowing it to escape, as is usually
done, I retain it, guarding against too great an internal pressure, by adding
to this form, as to the other forms of my apparatus, a safety valve for

page_text: the vessel. The valve may be kept closed by a spring, or a weight, or other
force; or it may be a liquid column, like that of the mercurial guage of a steam:
engine, or, in fine, it may be any convenient form of safety valve.
Third, or I produce the pressure by injecting, instead of carbonic acid
gas, common or other air, which I, however, prevent from coming into contact
with the liquid to injure it by any suitable float on the surface of the liquor,
or by making it enter an air-tight bag or sack of suitable material (as that
of which air pillows are now made) previously introduced into the véssel.
Fourth, or instead of forcing in air to press upon the liquor, I force in
some liquid, as water, which is received' into such a bag or sack, as last
described, and is thereby prevented from mixing with the precious liquor.
Fifth, and instead of using a syringe or pump to inject the compressing fluid,
I make, it enter by the pressure of a liquid column, as when water descending,
to occupy a cask from which beer is being gradually,drawn, comes from a
reservoir above by a pipe of the height required to give the necessary pressure.
Sixth, in open vessels, as in brewers' tuns or store vessels, I make the requred
pressure by a sack, bag; or heavy floate filled with water or other liquid, and
resting on the surface of the fermented liquor.
.
"
Seventh, when I désirel to know and to regulate' èxactly the pressure.<in
any vessel, I use a sinall.guage, as that employed by engineers or experimenters
in their air-consending apparatus.
Eighth, while liquor is passing from one vessel to another from the brewers'
tun, for instance; to the jar or vessel of the consumer, I keep up any desired.
pressure upon it by first injecting fluid into the smaller vessel, and then making
the liquor entering from one vessel to the other by a connecting pipe force it
out again.
:
Ninth, to strengthen when necessary my containing vessel, whether of wood,
stone ware, or other material, I-enclose it in an outer vessel or case of cast
iron or other fit material, and I fill the interval between the two with some
fluid strongly forced in.
Tenth, in cases where it is desirable to remove from the liquor the sediment
which falls during its standing, and which may afterwards favor the occur-
rence of the acetous fermentation or of any other destructive change, I use
a vessel of shape which may collect as much as possible of the sediment at
one point of its bottom; a vessel, for instance, with a conical or funnel-shaped
bottom, and I place a cock at that point by which from time to time the
sediment may be withdrawn.
From the adoption of these means I anticipate a vastly increased use of
fermented liquors, particularly of beer and ale, for draught liquors will thereby

page_text: be rendered at least as good as those which are bottled, and besides great
saving of expence, there will be many remarkable.conveniences.
In describing the several parts of my aforesaid Invention and improvements
I have purposely avoided' the statement of exact forms or dimensions, because
they must vary with the circumstances in which they are used; and my
Invention does not consist in the particular forms or proportions of the things
described, but in the new.combination and arrangement of parts, most of which
are already well known, for the production of new and beneficial purposes to
which such things have not been so employed before, or, at any rate, not in so
efficient and beneficial a manner;and I accordingly claim as mine, the arrange.
ments and Inventions herein-before described; and now alluded to.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Aitken, have hereunto.set my
hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of September, in the year of our Lord