IMPROVEMENTS IN TEE MANUFACTURE OF BEER, ALE, PORTER, AND SPIRITS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Patrick Robertson, of Sun Court, Cornhill, in the
City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TEE MANUFACTURE
OF BEER, ALE, PORTER, AND SPIRITS."
Sealed the 22nd November 1859, and dated the 28th July 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Patrick Robertson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 28th
July 1859.
I, PATRICK ROBERTSON, of Sun Court, Cornhill, in the City of London, do
hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
PACTURE OF BEER, ALE, PORTER, AND SPIRITS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture of beer,
ale, porter, and spirits, and consists in employing centrifugal machines to
separate from yeast the beer, ale, or porter which it may contain. For this
purpose the yeast is placed in a centrifugal machine such as is commonly
used in sugar manufactures, the drum of the machine being lined with a close
fabric through which the yeast is unable to pass. When the drum is caused
to rotate rapidly, the beer, ale, or porter, is quickly separated from the
yeast. The same process is applicable for the separation of wash from yeast
which has been produced by the fermentation of wash from which spirit is to
be distilled. The yeast-when separated from the beer, ale, porter, or wash,
may be dried by means of heated air.
I also employ centrifugal machines in a similar manner to separate wort
from the malt from which it is made, and also to separate distillers' wash from

page_text: the malt used in its manufacture, and further I employ centrifugal machines
to separate wort from hops which have been boiled with wort in the manu-
facture of beer, ale, or porter.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Patrick Robertson in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 28th January 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, PATRICK
ROBERTSON, of Sun Court, Cornhill, in the City of London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Patrick Robertson, Her special licence that I, the said Patrick
Robertson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Patrick Robertson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time, and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BEER, ALE, PORTER, AND SPIRITS," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Patrick Robertson, my exe-
cutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be
performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Patrick Robertson, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what mauner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture of beer,
ale, porter, and spirits, and consists in employing centrifugal machines to
separate from yeast the beer, ale, or porter which it may contain. For this
purpose the yeast is placed in a centrifugal machine such as is commonly
used in sugar manufactories. The drum of the machine being lined with a

page_text: close fabric through which the yeast is unable to pass; when the drum is caused
to rotate rapidly, the beer, ale, or porter, is quickly separated from the yeast.
The same process is applicable for the separation of wash from yeast which
has been produced by the fermentation of wash from which spirit is to be
distilled. The yeast when separated from the beer, ale, or porter, may be
dried by means of heated air, and further I employ centrifugal machines to
separate wort from hops which have been boiled with wort in the manu-
facture of beer, ale, or porter.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, I will proceed more fully
to describe the manner of performing the same. I line an ordinary centri-
fugal machine with a close fabric such as is used for filters, and in addi-
tion to such lining, I find it desirable also to use a moveable bag or
lining of a like fabric, but this is not essential. Into this bag or internal
lining the yeast which has been skimmed or removed from the beer, ale, or
porter, or from distillers wash is put, by which means I separate the
yeast from the liquid very quickly in place of allowing the yeast to stand
during the time the beer, ale, porter, or wash is draining off therefrom,
and the yeast will be obtained in a comparatively dry state. When it is
wished to have the yeast positively dry, I subject it to currents of warm or
heated dry air. And in like manner to that above described, I separate
wort from hops which have been boiled with worts in the manufacture of beer,
ale, or porter, and it is found desirable after as much wort as possible has
come off by the action of the centrifugal process, to run in a quantity of hot
water, and again to act by centrifugal force on the hops by which the most
complete separation of the wort is accomplished.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I make no claim to the
apparatus herein described; but what I claim is, the separating from yeast
the beer, ale, or porter it may contain, and also the wort from boiled hops, by
subjecting the same to a centrifugal action.
In witness whereof, I, the said Patrick Robertson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
PAT ROBERTSON. (L.S.)