IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PREPARATION OF DISTILLERY MASH
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PREPARATION OF DISTILLERY MASH." A communi-
cation from abroad by Alexis Petrovitsch Zarin, of Moscow, in the Empire of
Russia
Sealed the 16th June 1876, and dated the 25th January 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 25th January 1870.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PREPARATION OF DIS-
TILLERY MASH." A communication.
This Invention relates to a process of preparing distillery mash directly from grain
or raw potatoes.
In practicing the said Invention of preparing mash from grain, the quantity of
grain wanted for mashing is washed in order to remove all unsound grain, dust,
dirt, and other impurities. This washing may be effected in different manners,
although I prefer to employ for this purpose the machine used in sugar refineries
for washing animal charcoal. The washed grain is put in water, and allowed to
remain therein, according to the degree of its dryness, from twenty-four to thirty
hours. After the expiration of this time, when the grain is sufficiently soft, it is
again washed with water, and then bruised by suitable apparatus, as, for instance,
the ordinary grain bruiser employed for crushing green malt. On this bruised grain
water is again poured in such quantity as to produce for every one-third of a
hundredweight of grain employed for the mash about eleven gallons of the whole
compound. This second operation of soaking is performed during three or four
hours, either in the mashing vat, or preferably in tubs placed above the mashing
vat, the mass being continually agitated by a stirring apparatus, of any suitable
construction, placed in the tubs or by hand ladles. By this soaking the starch of
the grain is completely separated and cleansed from the husk; the liquid then
resembles a thick milk, that is to say, clean corn starch is obtained. After the
second soaking of the bruised mass the same is put into the mashing vat mixed
with malt, preferably green malt, in the proportion of fifteen per cent. to the
weight of the dry grain employed, and with water, the quantity of which depends

page_text: on the different proportions of water used in distilleries for the same quantity or
grain; it is then boiled in the ordinary manner of boiling mash.
In preparing mash from potatoes according to this Invention the raw potatoes
are washed and then grated by the apparatus commonly employed in potato starch
manufactories. On the grated mass water is poured for removing the peel. The
raw potato starch thus obtained and diluted in water is put into the mashing vat,
together with bruised green malt in the same proportion as for the grain, counting
each hundredweight of grain equal to three hundredweight of potatoes, and then
boiled, as is commonly done with mashes.
The temperature of water for soaking the grain, the bruised mass thereof, the
second soaking, and the grated potatoes, must not exceed 61° (sixty-one) to 62°
(sixty-two degrees) Fahrenheit, to prevent the formation of organic acids, acting very
injuriously during the further process of formation and fermentation of the wort.
For the better separation of the starch from the husks of the grain and for
crushing the starch grains, the soaked mass of bruised grain or grated potatoes and
bruised green malt before entering the mashing vat must pass through a preparatory
mashing machine.
in order
As the mashing mass contains a great quantity of starch it is necessary,
to avoid leaving a part of the latter unboiled, to boil such mass as slowly as
possible, raising the temperature to 149° (one hundred and forty-nine) to 152° (one
hundred and fifty-two) degrees Fahrenheit, with several intervals, namely:-First,
the temperature of the mash is speedily raised to about 127° (one hundred and
twenty-seven degrees) Fahrenheit, whereupon the boiling is suspended for about
fifteen minutes; then the temperature is gradually raised to 143° (one hundred and
forty-three degrees) Fahrenheit, and then the boiling is again interrupted for an
equal space of time; lastly, the temperature is raised to about 152° (one hundred
and fifty-two degrees) Fahrenheit, whereupon the boiling is finished. The motion of
the mashing machine is stopped about five minutes after the, boiling is completed,
and the mash left undisturbed for about an hour, in order that the process of
saccharisation may be completely accomplished. It is however to be observed that
the before-mentioned mode of boiling mash may be altered according to the quality
of water employed.
Before letting the mash into the cooler it must again be stirred, because during the
last repose all the bran contained in the same will come in thick mass to the top of
the tub. The wort thus boiled comes out much cleaner and clearer, and contains
incomparably more grape sugar or glucose than wort of an equal quantity of flour.
Being filtered through a fine sifter or coarse linen, this mash leaves nothing else
except the husks of the grain; completely free from any starch, which is not alone
not obtained but not even expected of flour or potato mash prepared after the
methods existing to the present time.
In consequence of the abundance of sugar in the wort boiled in the aforesaid
manner, by employing good strong yeast, and by regular fermentation, more than
fifty per cent. of alcohol can be obtained for every one-third part of a hundred-
weight of rye thrashed in dry weather.
This improved method of preparing mash is particularly useful for distilleries
producing dry yeast, and where considerable proportions of water are used, for the
same quantity of grain.
The aforesaid method for preparing distillery mash is equally adapted for dis-
tilling alcohol from rice, maize, and generally all species of grain and rhizocarpic
plants containing starch."
The principal advantages of this Invention are its simplicity and cheapness,
rendering superfluous all corn kilns, mills, corn cleaning and sorting machines, and
potato boilers. Moreover it completely prevents the formation in mash of flour
clods, as well as raw agglomerations of potatoes, and the sticking of raw particles of
starch to the corn husks, which commonly spoil the wort and obstruct the distilling
apparatus.
In employing this Invention for preparing distillery mash the bran may be

page_text: totally and completely separated from the wort. For this purpose it is sufficient to
cover the outlets of the fermenting vat with metallic strainers before the wort
passes into the distilling apparatus, and all bran will remain in the fermenting vat.
For preventing loss of alcohol the bran remaining in the said vat must be washed
through with water. The washed grain being free from dirt, unsound grains and
overheated starchy particles ordinarily found in flour, the alcohol obtained by my
method appears pure and free or nearly free from fusel oil.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th
July 1876.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PREPARATION OF DIS-
TILLERY MASH." A communication to me from abroad by Alexis Petrovitsch Zarin,
of Moscow, in the Empire of Russia.
This Invention relates to a process of preparing distillery mash directly from
grain or raw potatoes.
In practising the said Invention of preparing mash from grain the quantity of
grain wanted for mashing is washed in order to remove all unsound grain, dust,
dirt, and other impurities. This washing may be effected in different manners,
although I prefer to employ for this purpose the machine used in sugar refineries
for washing animal charcoal. The washed grain is put in water, and allowed to
remain therein, according to the degree of its dryness, from twenty-four to thirty
hours. After the expiration of this time, when the grain is sufficiently soft, it is
again washed with water, and then bruised by suitable apparatus, as, for instance,
the ordinary grain bruiser employed for crushing green malt. On this bruised grain
water is again poured in such quantity as to produce for every one-third of a
hundredweight of grain employed for the mash about eleven gallons of the whole
compound. This second operation of soaking is performed during three or four
hours, either in the mashing vat, or preferably in tubs placed above the mashing
vat, the mass being continually agitated by a stirring apparatus, of any suitable
construction, placed in the tubs or by hand ladles. By this soaking the starch of
the grain is completely separated and cleansed from the husk; the liquid then
resembles a thick milk, that is to say, clean corn starch is obtained. After the
second soaking of the bruised mass the same is put into the mashing vat, mixed
with malt, preferably green malt, in the proportion of fifteen per cent. to the
weight of the dry grain employed, and with water, the quantity of which depends
on the different proportions of water used in distilleries for the same quantity of
grain; it is then boiled in the ordinary manner of boiling mash.
In preparing mash from potatoes according to this Invention the raw potatoes
are washed and then grated by apparatus commonly employed in potatoe starch
manufactories; on the grated mass water is poured for removing the peel. The
raw potatoe starch thus obtained and diluted in water is put into the mashing vat,
together with bruised green malt, in the same proportion as for the grain, counting
each hundredweight of grain equal to three hundredweight of potatoes, and then
boiled as is commonly done with mashes.
The temperature of water for soaking the grain, the bruised mass thereof, second
soaking, and the grated potatoes, must not exceed 61° (sixty-one) to 62° (sixty-two)
degrees Fahrenheit, to prevent the formation of organic acids, acting very injuriously
during the further process of formation and fermentation of the wort.
For the better separation of the starch from the husks of the grain, and for
crushing the starch grains, the soaked mass of bruised grain or grated potatoes and
bruised green malt before entering the mashing vat must pass through a preparatory
mashing machine, such as are known to distillers..

page_text: As the mashing mass contains a great quantity of starch it is necessary in order
to avoid leaving a part of the latter unboiled to boil such mass as slowly as possible,
raising the temperature to. 149 (one hundred and forty-nine) to 152 (one hundred
and fifty-two) degrees Fahrenheit, with several intervals (namely, first, the tempe-
rature of the mash is speedily raised to about 127 (one hundred and twenty-seven)
degrees Fahrenheit, whereupon the boiling is suspended for about fifteen minutes;
then the temperature is gradually raised to 143 (one hundred and forty-three).
degrees Fahrenheit, and then the boiling again interrupted for an equal space of
time; lastly, the temperature is raised to about 152 (one hundred and fifty-two)
degrees Fahrenheit, whereupon the boiling is finished. The motion of the mashing
machine is stopped about five minutes after the boiling is completed, and the mash.
left undisturbed for about an hour, in order that the process of saccharisation
may be completely accomplished. It is however to be observed that the afore-
mentioned mode of boiling mash may be altered according to the quality of water
employed.
Before letting the mash into the cooler it must again be stirred, because during the
last repose all the bran contained in the same will come in a thick mass to the top of
the tub. The wort thus boiled comes out much cleaner and clearer, and contains
incomparably more grape sugar or glucose than wort of an equal quantity of flour,
namely, by experiments was found that wort prepared according to the fore-
going method contains 28 (twenty-eight) per cent. grape sugar, according to the
saccharometer of Balling, while mash made even of first quality of fine rye flour
did never contain more than twenty per cent. of grape sugar. Being filtered
through a fine sifter or coarse linen, this mash leaves nothing else except the husks
of the grain, completely free from any starch, which is not alone not obtained, but
not even expected of flour or potatoe mash prepared after the methods existing to
the present time.
In consequence of the abundance of sugar in the wort boiled in the aforesaid
manner, by employing good strong yeast and by regular fermentation, more than
fifty per cent. of alcohol can be obtained for every one-third part of a hundred-
weight of rye thrashed in dry weather.
This improved method of preparing mash is particularly useful for distilleries
producing dry yeast, and where considerable proportions of water are used for the
same quantity of grain.
The aforesaid method for preparing distillery mash is equally adapted for dis-
tilling alcohol from rice, maize, and generally all species of grain and rhizocarpic
plants containing starch.
The principal advantages of this Invention are its simplicity and cheapness,
rendering superfluous all corn kilns, mills, corn cleaning and sorting machines, and
potatoe boilers. Moreover it completely prevents the formation in mash of flour
clods, as well as raw agglomerations of potatoes, and the sticking of raw particles
of starch to the corn husks, which commonly spoil the wort and obstruct the
distilling apparatus; therefore the mash prepared by my method must necessarily
yield a considerably greater quantity of grape sugar, and consequently also of
alcohol, than mashes prepared in any other manner.
In preparing distillery mash the bran may be totally and completely separated
from the wort. For this purpose it is sufficient to cover the outlets of the fermenting
vat with metallic strainers before the wort passes into the distilling apparatus, and
all bran will remain in the fermenting vat. For preventing loss of alcohol the
bran remaining in the said vat must be washed through with water. The washed
grain being free from dirt, unsound grains, and overheated starchy particles
ordinarily found in flour, the alcohol obtained by my method appears pure and free
or nearly free from fusel oil.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim the process of obtaining a starchy solution directly from grain or raw
potatoes at a low temperature (about 61° Fahrenheit),.and at the ordinary atmo

page_text: spheric pressure, and the preparation of distillery mash therefrom, as above
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
111 DODT TR
W. ROB LAKE. (L.S.)