IMPROVEMENTS IN BREWING BEER, ALE, AND PORTER, ALSO IN SEPARATING BREWERS' WORTS FROM GRAIN, AND BEER, ALE, AND PORTER FROM YEAST AND OTHER MATTERS, AND ALSO IN APPARATUS USED FOR THESE AND LIKE PURPOSES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Patrick Robertson, of Sun Court, Cornhill, in the
City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREWING BEER,
ALE, AND PORTER, ALSO IN SEPARATING BREWERS' WORTS FROM GRAIN, AND
BEER, ALE, AND PORTER FROM YEAST AND OTHER MATTERS, AND ALSO IN
APPARATUS USED FOR THESE AND LIKE PURPOSES."
Sealed the 3rd August 1860, and dated the 4th February 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Patrick Robinson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 4th.
February 1860.
I, PATRICK ROBERTSON, of Sun Court, Cornhill, in the City of London,
do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREWING.
BEER, ALE, AND PORTER, ALSO IN SEPARATING BREWERS' WORTS FROM GRAIN, AND
BEER, ALE, AND PORTER FROM YEAST AND OTHER MATTERS, AND ALSO IN APPARATUS
USED FOR THESE AND LIKE PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in brewing beer, ale, and
porter, also in separating brewers' worts from grain, and beer, and ale, and
porter from yeast and other matters, and also in apparatus used for these and
like purposes. For these purposes, in brewing beer, ale, or porter, the wort
when drawn off or separated from the "grains" is, before being boiled, caused
to come in contact with and be acted on by charcoal, preferring animal
charcoal.

page_text: And in order to separate brewer's worts from grains, the worts having
been run off, as heretofore, the grains are then placed in a centrifugal
apparatus and the remaining wort will be separated therefrom more advan-
tageously than by subjecting the grains to pressure, and when as much wort
has come off as can readily be obtained by the centrifugal action, hot water is
poured on to the grains, and the same are further subjected to the centrifugal
action by which a further extract will be obtained.
In order to separate beer, ale, or porter from yeast which has been
skimmed or removed in the ordinary manner the yeast is introduced into a
centrifugal apparatus through the sides of the vessel, of which the fluids
cannot pass by reason of the sides being close in place of reticulated; and
I find in using such a construction of centrifugal apparatus that it is desirable
to employ upright ridges or projections at intervals on the inner surface of
the sides of the rotating vessel, and such ridges or projections may in some
cases be hollow and perforated, but I generally use the close or solid. By the
application of such an apparatus the yeast will be found to accumulate all
round on the interior surface of the sides, and the beer, ale, or porter pre-
viously contained in the yeast will remain in the interior of the vessel, and
may be run off therefrom in any convenient manner. And I find that it is
desirable to have a projecting internal flanch at the upper part of the vessel
perforated with numerous small holes, or made with fine wire cloth coated with
a suitable felting or close fabric by which as the fluid rises up the close sides of
the vessel some of the fluid passes through the flanch or inward projection,
and to facilitate the conveyance of such fluid to a suitable receiver the flanch
is made hollow or is otherwise formed to receive and conduct off the fluid
which passes through. This apparatus is also applicable for the separating
other fluids from other more solid matters.
And in order to separate the beer, ale, or porter from the deposits or
bottoms" taken from casks or other vessels, I subject the same to the action
of centrifugal apparatus.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Patrick Robertson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
4th August 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 Fourth day of February, in the year of our

page_text: Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-third year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and graut 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 of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREWING BEER, ALE, AND PORTER, ALSO IN SEPARATING BREWERS' WORTS
FROM GRAIN, AND BEER, ALE, AND PORTER FROM YEAST AND OTHER MATTERS, AND
ALSO IN APPARATUS USED FOR THESE AND LIKE PURPOSES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Patrick Robertson, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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 manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the fol-
lowing statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in brewing beer, ale, and
porter, also in separating brewers' worts from grain, and beer, and ale, and
porter from yeast and other matters, and also in apparatus used for these
and like purposes. For these purposes, in brewing beer, ale, or porter, the
wort when drawn off or separated from the "grains" is, before being boiled,
caused to come in contact with and be acted on by charcoal, prefering animal
charcoal.
The wort is run off from the grain in the usual manner, and into a cistern
fitted with a perforated false bottom; on this bottom a layer about three feet
thick of animal charcoal is placed; the charcoal being such as is employed for
the filtration of solutions of sugar, and it is prefered that the animal charcoal
should be mixed with a quarter of its bulk of spent hops, to facilitate the per-
colation of the wort. This process improves the color of beer and ale, and it
also causes beer, ale, and porter brewed from it to keep better than beer brewed
from wort not so treated.
In order to separate brewers' worts from grains, the worts having been run
off as heretofore, the grains are then placed in a centrifugal apparatus, and the

page_text: remaining wort will be separated therefrom more advantageously than by sub-
jecting the grains to pressure; and when as much wort has come off as can
readily be obtained by the centrifugal action, hot water is poured on to the
grains, and the same are further subjected to the centrifugal action, by which
a further extract will be obtained.
The centrifugal apparatus which I employ consists of a drum mounted on a
vertical axis and covered at its periphery with metal perforated with fine holes:
This apparatus is similar to those heretofore employed in many manufacturing
processes. The grains, when the wort has been run off from them, are placed
in the drum, which is then caused to revolve with considerable velocity; say,
if the drum be 40 inches in diameter, five or six hundred revolutions per
minute. When the grains are dry they are washed with hot water, as above
mentioned.
In order to separate beer, ale, or porter from yeast which has been skimmed
or removed in the ordinary manner, the yeast is introduced into a centrifugal
apparatus, through the sides of the vessel of which the fluids cannot pass by
reason of the sides being close in place of reticulated; and I find in using such
a construction of centrifugal apparatus, that it is desirable to employ upright
ridges or projections at intervals on the inner surface of the sides of the
rotating vessel, and such ridges or projections may in some cases be hollow and
perforated; but I generally use the close or sold. By the application of such
an apparatus the yeast will be found to accumulate all round on the interior
surface of the sides, and the beer, ale, or porter previously contained in the
yeast will remain in the interior of the vessel, and may be run off therefrom in
any convenient manner. And I find that it is desirable to have a projecting
internal flanch at the upper part of the vessel perforated with numerous small
holes, or made with fine wire cloth coated with a suitable felting or close fabric,
by which, as the fluid rises up the close sides of the vessel some of the fluid
passes through the flanch or inward projection; and to facilitate the convey-
ance of such fluid to a suitable receiver, the flanch is made hollow or is other-
wise formed to receive and conduct off the fluid which passes through. This
apparatus is also applicable for the separating other fluids from other more
solid matters.
The drum which I employ is somewhat similar to the centrifugal apparatus
I employ for separating wort from grains; I usually make it about 40 inches
in diameter at the bottom, and I drive it at a velocity of about five or six hun-
dred revolutions per minute; the periphery of the drum, however, is not
perforated, its height is about twenty inches, and it is smaller in diameter at
the top than at the bottom, the sides inclining inwards at an inclination of

page_text: about one in six; the drum has within it three ridges or projections passing
vertically from top to bottom of the drum, and projecting radially inwards from
the periphery about four inches towards the centre; in some cases I make
these partitions perforated and double with a space of about half an inch wide
within each. The top of the drum has a perforated flange fixed on it, which
projects several inches inwards towards the centre of the drum, and inclines
somewhat downwards; this perforated flange is lined within the drum with
filtering cloth, which is attached by nipping its edges under strips of metal
screwed down to the drum. If perforated and hollow partitions are employed
as before mentioned, holes are made through the top flange communicating
with the interior of the partitions. The yeast to be separated is put into this
drum, which is then set in motion, by which the yeast will be caused to adhere
to the sides of the drum; a portion of the liquid will escape through the per-
forated flange and over the top of the drum, where there is a suitable trough
or casing to receive it. A portion of the liquid also will remain in the drum,
and when it is stopped will run to the bottom of it, and is then drawn off by
removing a plug fitted for the purpose in the bottom of the drum. The yeast is
afterwards removed by a scraper from the sides of the drum.
In order to separate the beer, ale, or porter from the deposits or "bottoms"
taken from casks or other vessels, I subject the same to the action of centri-
fugal apparatus. I use for this purpose centrifugal apparatus, such as I have
described for separating wort from grains; when the apparatus is to be used
for this purpose, however, it should be lined with filtering cloth. The beer,
ale, or porter separated, it is preferred to mix with worts and pass it again
through the process of fermentation.
In witness whereof, I, the said Patrick Robertson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fourth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
PAT ROBERTSON. (L.s.)