Patent ID: 7556230

Claim:
A beverage container holder comprising: a supporting member configured to laterally and axially support a beverage container in a generally upright position within the beverage container holder, the supporting member including an inner wall that forms a cavity having an opening so that a beverage container can be placed into the cavity through the opening, the inner wall being configured to restrict the beverage container within the cavity from moving laterally, a base coupled to the inner wall within the cavity, the base being configured to substantially support the weight of the beverage container within the cavity; and the inner wall having a taper such that an inner dimension of the cavity continuously decreases from a maximum value at a top to a minimum value at a bottom of the cavity; and a stabilizing member configured to stabilize the beverage container holder with respect to a surface on which the holder rests, the stabilizing member having an outer dimension that is greater at a lower end of the stabilizing member than at an upper end of the stabilizing member; the upper end of the stabilizing member being coupled to the top of the supporting member, the stabilizing member stabilizing the cavity with respect to a surface on which the beverage container holder rests; wherein the beverage container further comprises a handle opening formed through a side of the beverage container, such that when a handled beverage container is inserted into the cavity of the beverage container holder, a handle of the beverage container projects through the handle opening to an exterior of the beverage container holder, the handle opening formed generally vertically through both the supporting member and the stabilizing member, the handle opening beginning in a generally vertical direction at the top of the supporting member, and including opposed handle opening sides, each handle opening side connecting the supporting member to the stabilizing member, the opposed handle opening sides converging towards each other along the handle opening from the top of the handle opening at the top of the supporting member towards the bottom of the handle opening such that the distance between the opposed handle opening sides is greater at the top of the handle opening than at the bottom of the handle opening; and wherein a void is formed between the supporting member and the stabilizing member, such that the beverage container holder can be stacked on another similarly shaped beverage container holder by inserting the base of the beverage container holder into the cavity of the other beverage container holder and advancing the supporting member of the beverage container holder into the cavity of the other beverage container holder, causing the handle opening of the beverage container to nest within the handle opening of the other beverage container holder.