Purifying and Ageing Brandies, Cognac, Whiskey, and Gin, and in Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Feb., 1895-Accepted, 20th Apr., 1895
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Purifying and Ageing Brandies, Cognac, Whiskey, and Gin, and in
Apparatus therefor.
I, FULBERT CALMANT, of 113 Rue St. Charles, Paris, in the Republic of France,
Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
This invention has for its object a process of purifying and hygienic ageing of
brandies, cognac, whiskey, and gin which consists in first causing a gas under
pressure, such as oxygen, ozone or the combined gases according to the nature of
the liquids to be treated, to be dissolved in these liquors, then filtering them also
under pressure through vegetable charcoal, either in lumps or divided, mixed or
not with sand, or through sand alone or through pumice stone, kaolin, animal black
or other analogous products.
This process is carried out by means of an apparatus shown in the annexed
drawings in which
Figure 1 is a view of the whole of the apparatus and
Figure 2 a side elevation of the gasometer D showing the automatic working of
the syphon by means of which a vacuum is formed in the said gasometer by driving
the water it, contains out into the tank E by the pressure of the entering gas.
This water whilst serving to form a vacuum in the gasometer, also shows the
quantity of gas contained in the gasometer and serves to wash the gas.
A is the apparatus for producing gas; a is an agitator for stirring the products
serving to form the gas. a' is a gas furnace. a' is the gas outlet pipe leading to
the refrigerator B. a³ is a gas cooling worm contained in the vessel B.
C is a
water reservoir feeding the refrigerator B. D is a gasometer not under pressure
in which is the dip pipe a'. Dis the level of water in the gasometer D.
E is a
water tank feeding the gasometer D by means of a syphon placed in the rear (see
Figure 2). is a suction tube for the gas communicating with the pump F.
fis a pipe leading the gas into the gasometer G under pressure this gas being
discharged into the cylinders H H¹ which contain the liquors to be treated.
h is a
curved pipe connecting the two cylinders H H¹ and putting them into communication
with the outlet pipe g.
The pipe is provided with two cocks 4, 4' which allow the gas under pressure to
be led alternately into the cylinders. is an inlet pipe for the liquor ending in a
fork also provided with two cocks 3 and 3¹ for alternately feeding either of the
cylinders.
-
H2 H3 are the level indicators,
pressure leading to the battery of filters I.
This pipe is provided in the middle with a three way cock 5. 13 are dip pipes
leading the gas under pressure into the cylinders, I is the battery of filters which
may be composed of any number of filters..
is the outlet pipe for the liquor under gas
are tubes connecting the filters. jjare outlet cocks for the gas.
kk¹² are pressure ganges. ĭare safety valves. 1, 2, 3, 31, 4, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
are cocks.
For continuous working two cylinders are used in order that when one is empty
the other may immediately he put into action and thus no interruption in the working
of the apparatus takes place.

page_text: When the apparatus is first put into action the cocks 1, 2, 3, 31, 4, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
are closed.
The gasometer D is filled with water as far as the height shown in the
drawing.
:
The cylinders or vessels H H¹ are also provided with liquor to be treated..
The liquor before being under pressure should not pass the upper portion of
the levels of the vessels, the space left free is for the elastic power of the gases.
The filters are provided with products suitable for the liquids to be
filtered.
Into the apparatus A are introduced the bodies necessary for the production
of the gas, oxygen for example, which by the effect of the heat of the furnace
is evolved and is led. after having passed by the pipe a², the worm a³ and the
pipe a, into the gasometer D where it is washed expelling at the same time the
water contained therein which flows by the syphon into the tank E.
When the gasometer D is filled with gas a vacuum is formed in the gasometer G
by means of the pump or by means of the same arrangement as for the gasometer D
not under pressure.
The cocks 1, 6, 7 and 8 are then opened, the pump put into action and the gas
compressed into the gasometer G under pressure. This pressure may be from
15 to 20 atmospheres or more as required.
When the pressure in the gasometer has reached the required degree the
cocks 7 and 8 are closed; the cocks 2 and 4 or 4¹ opened according to which
cylinder is in action, and the gas is led by the pipes g and h and ³ or h¹ into the
midst of the liquor.
As soon as the pressure gauge has attained the required pressure the cock 4 or 4¹
is closed the cocks 5 and 9 opened and the liquor passes under pressure into the
battery of filters from which it passes out with a speed regulated according to the
time considered necessary for contact of the liquor and the filtering materials, for
this time, the pressure and the quantity of charcoal whether mixed or not, contained
in the filters vary according to the liquors treated.
The purifying and ageing of brandies and whiskey requires a pressure of from
three to six atmospheres. The filters should contain charcoal which is pure and
not alkaline in small proportion, mixed with washed sand or pumice stone.
This charcoal has for its object the removal of the bad Havour, and serves as
condensing and fixing agent for the oxygen or ozone, upon the liquor to be
oxidised with a view to an intimate chemical reaction upon the essential oils,
aldehydes, ethers & c. in order to obtain rapid and stable ageing of the liquors
treated.
It may be remarked that very porous and divided charcoal in presence of gas
without high pressure acts in an analogous manner to platinum sponge rendering
the reaction more intense and causing oxidations which would not occur without
its presence. The liquor thus treated is completely freed from essential oils,
aldehydes, ethers &c., its condition is perfectly stable and it has acquired the
properties given by natural ageing.
The same treatment is applicable to gin or hollands.
By this process of filtration under pressure through charcoal of special quality
and of a particularly condensing and absorbent nature (although all well carbonised
vegetable charcoals may be used, but with less energy) the liquors are aged by
several years, further they keep indefinitely their acquired qualities which is not
the case with those treated by the numerous processes hitherto known, the effect of
which are more or less ephemerical.
This can be understood for there takes place in the midst of the liquor treated
by my process the same chemical work produced by time; the dangerous toxic
products being transformed by rapid and complete oxidation into non toxic products,
analogous to those giving the flavour and bouquet so much appreciated in old spirits,
thus the alcohol contained in the liquors furnishes aldehydes which with alcoliol

page_text: in presence of oxygen forms acetal (which is a bouquet) the aldehyde (a toxic
body) in oxidising produces acetic acid which reacts upon alcohol to form ethyl
acetate.
These acid reactions are characteristic of old age.
Propyl, butyl, amyl, hexyl, heptyl alcohols as well as fusel oil and other
bodies undergo analogous transformations, the acids derived being partly transformed
into ethyl ether.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that
without limiting myself to the details described in this Specification what I
claim is :-
1. The treatment of the liquors above mentioned, brandies, cognac, whiskey,
gin, with a gas under pressure such as oxygen, ozone, the combinations of these
gases, or any other gas.
2. Filtering under pressure these liquors containing gas under pressure through
vegetable charcoal, sand, animal black, pumice stone &c. either alone or mixed in
any suitable proportions acting as platinum sponge.
3. The hygienic treatment of the liquors above mentioned by the use of simple
or combined gases under pressure in the midst of the liquors and their filtration
under this state of pressure in simple filters or in batteries, containing either
charcoal alone, or charcoal mixed with sand, pumice stone &c., for dividing the
liquors and rendering the chemical action of the gases upon the said liquors more
intimate in order to purify and age them.
4. The use of vegetable charcoal, washed or not, acting as platinum sponge,
under the conditions described above as intermediate chemical agent of fixed higher
oxidation, obtained by contact under pressure more or less prolonged through the
filters according to the liquors to be treated.
5. The apparatus substantially as described and shown in the annexed
drawings.
Dated this 23rd day of February 1895.
CARPMAEL & CO.,
Agents for the Applicant.