US20060162374A1

US20060162374A1 - Apparatus for regulating the temperature of a liquid, in particular wine

Info

Publication number: US20060162374A1
Application number: US10/515,351
Authority: US
Inventors: Edmund Ganser
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-05-22
Filing date: 2002-08-26
Publication date: 2006-07-27
Also published as: EP1509735B1; EP1509735A1; PT1509735E; WO2003104732A1; DE60220722D1; ES2289184T3; JP2005526521A; ATE364823T1; NZ537263A; CA2485905A1; DE60220722T2; DK1509735T3; EA006516B1; HK1076858A1; ZA200409013B; FR2840061A1; FR2840061B1; AU2002368004A1; EA200401511A1

Abstract

The invention concerns an apparatus for regulating by cooling the temperature of a liquid, and more particularly wine. The inventive apparatus consists of a hollow cylindrical refrigerated body (1) designed to be inserted through the neck (9) of a bottle (10), said body being closed at its lower end (2 b) and tipped with grip means (2) at its upper end (2 a), consisting in a piece (3) with a circular section the diameter of which is greater than that of the neck (9) of the bottle (10) and comprising a truncated base (13) whereof the side walls of the base (13) taper inwards to form a cap when the apparatus is inserted into the bottle. The cylindrical body (1) is divided into two parts (1 a) and (1 b), the lower part (1 b) being at least partly filled with a fluid (6) freezing at 0 DEG C. and the upper part (1 a) comprising at least one longitudinal slot (8) extending over its entire length and communicating with outside through a conduit (5) passing through said piece (3) in its centre.

Description

The invention concerns apparatus making is possible to regulate by cooling the temperature of a liquid, and more particularly a wine.
It is well known to all professionals and connoisseurs of quality wines that the temperature at which a vintage is served is decisive to be able to appreciate its special qualities, in particular its flavours.
So, there are various tables of authorities which show the ideal temperature ranges for each type of wine or vintage.
The temperature range varies greatly according to the type of wine concerned and it is not always easy to obtain and then maintain the ideal temperature which would allow a wine to reveal all its qualities, due to many constraints.
The first constraint concerns the conditions in which the bottles are stored and kept which can lead to a temperature which is either too high or too low, at the time the bottle is selected with a view to being served.
In the event of the bottles not being kept in satisfactory conditions, i.e. in a wine cellar, they will more often than not be too warm and it will to say the least be necessary to wait for some time before drinking them, after having cooled them.
The operation which consists in cooling a wine and then keeping it at a temperature below ambient temperature is particularly tricky.
There is indeed a risk of <<breaking>> the wine, i.e. making it lose its own flavours and taste by bringing about a fall in temperature which is too sharp.
Some unscrupulous people resort to empirical and totally reprehensible methods which consist in placing the bottle to be cooled in the refrigerator or freezer for a certain period of time.
It is quite obvious that such methods have destructive effects on the liquid's qualities and that they are absolutely inappropriate.
Now, sometimes, for example in the catering business, things need to be done quickly and this cannot be ignored. Indeed, if an enlightened connoisseur can afford to wait several hours to taste a fine wine in private, the same is not true when the wine is served in a professional environment, particular in the catering business.
For obvious reasons of profitability and credibility, it is not possible for a restaurant owner or his wine cellar steward to ask the customer to wait for several hours to taste the vintage chosen on the wine list. Neither is it possible to take the risk of being discredited by serving a wine which has been cooled very much or too much, by a method which is neither controlled nor progressive.
It is therefore necessary to be able to have means at one's disposal which make it possible to bring the wine to the ideal temperature to savour it and keep it at this temperature without necessarily affecting its organoleptic qualities.
Various solutions have been proposed to cool the liquid relatively quickly in conditions which do not jeopardize its taste.
Publication U.S. Pat. No. 5,651,254 describes a circular shaped recipient inside which provision is made to place a circular sleeve, the upper part of which juts out from the open end of the container to which it can be firmly attached by means of two crossbars.
The space lying between the sleeve and the container is then filled with water and the unit is placed for a certain period of time in a freezer.
When the water has frozen, the unit is taken out of the freezer and the sleeve is removed, which frees a circular shaped space in the container, inside which a bottle or a recipient containing the liquid can be placed.
It is true that this solution makes it possible to cool a liquid relatively quickly. However it takes a long time to implement it and above all its design is not very attractive when being used for example in a restaurant.
Publication U.S. Pat. No. 6,196,017 describes an insert designed to be inserted inside a wine bottle cooling device.
The insert comprises a housing provided to receive a cooling material or fluid and is designed to be placed inside a drink container. The bottle containing the liquid is then inserted inside this drink container, so that the insert is arranged between the wall of the container and one of the sides of the bottle.
This method is not satisfactory either as it is long and difficult to implement, and its design is questionable when not being used in private.
Publication GB 2 340 591 describes a more attractive solution, in which an insert designed to be inserted through the neck of a bottle after having been refrigerated is used.
The insert described is comprised of a cylindrical hollow body which is closed at its bottom end, and its upper part has two side rims at the end which rest on the neck of the bottle and each comprises at least one passing orifice, the whole unit being topped by a circular cap comprising peripheral orifices able to match the orifices arranged in side rims when the cap is in the opening position, so as to allow the liquid in the bottle to pass through.
This device is well suited, for example, to the consumption of drinks in a sports or informal environment. However, using it depends to a large extent on the dimensions of the container and it is not able to be adapted to all types of bottle. Furthermore, for the liquid to flow through the peripheral orifices of the cap, this presupposes a prior rotation of the latter to bring it into a suitable position, with risks of a leak or unwanted effusion on the sides of the bottle, as there remains a residual space between the ends of the insert and the cap.
Furthermore, none of the methods of the known prior art make it possible to accurately control the temperature of the drink at the time it is served, nor to maintain this temperature for a long enough time.
Incidentally, the known devices can lead to unwanted side effects particularly in the catering business, such as the labels which are affixed to the bottle coming unstuck or the liquids wetting or running onto the table linen, which in all cases does not look pleasant at all.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to have apparatus which can be used easily and quickly and individually. It is also to be desired that this device, whilst being able to be used on a table, makes it possible to reach the suitable temperature relatively quickly and keeps it thereafter in a strict range as the wines are consumed. Finally, the apparatus shall have to allow samples of liquid to be taken without any risk of the liquid escaping, oxidizing or being spoiled following prolonged exposure to the air and without it requiring any complicated handling operations.
The present invention proposes to overcome these drawbacks of the prior art as outlined above and to fulfil the objectives stated by proposing apparatus comprised of a refrigerated insert provided to be inserted through the neck of a bottle, comprising grip means forming a plug, and means for the liquid to flow through the insert.
One of the particular advantages of the invention is that it makes it possible to serve the drink without it being necessary to withdraw the insert from the bottle.
The present invention shall be more fully disclosed with reference to the description given below of a non-restrictive form of embodiment, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a cutaway view of the apparatus according to the invention inserted inside a bottle, and
FIG. 2 is a detailed view of the upper part of the apparatus according to the invention.
With reference to the accompanying figures and more particularly FIG. (1), the apparatus according to the invention is comprised of a cylindrical body (1) closed at its lower end (2 b) and with its upper end (2 a) tipped with a piece (3) which acts a grip means (2).
The unit is designed to be inserted in the neck (9) of a bottle (10).
The piece (3) has a circular section the diameter of which is greater than that of the neck (9) and comprises a truncated base (13) at the upper end (2 a) of the body (1), arranged in such a way that it can be fitted onto the neck (9) of the bottle (10) once the body (1) has been inserted into the bottle, to form a plug. With this aim in mind, the side walls of the base (13) will taper inwards.
The cylindrical body (1) is divided into two parts (1 a) and (1 b).
The lower part (1 b) which preferably represents around two thirds of the total length of the body (1) is designed to be at least partially filled with a fluid (6) which freezes at 0° C.
Preferably, the fluid shall consist of a gel inserted in the body at a pressure lying between 12 and 18 bar, so that the walls of the apparatus do not undergo any distortion during freezing.
The parts (1 a) and (1 b) of the body (1) are separated from each other by a fixed joint (7) which is put in place after inserting the gel (6). So, the lower part (1 b) is totally tight and the gel will not be able to flow into the upper part (1 a). The latter, which represents roughly a third of the total length of the body (1), is fixed by its upper end to the piece (3) which constitutes the extension thereof.
The upper part (1 a) of the body (1) comprises at least one longitudinal slot (8) extending over its whole length, and communicating with the outside by means of a conduit (5) crossing said piece (3) in its centre. The conduit (5) emerges around the bottom inside the upper part (1 a) of the body (1) and is associated by its upper end with a cap (4).
Of course, the number of slots (8) will be able to vary without calling into question the way in which the apparatus works.
The cap (4) can according to an alternative embodiment comprise a control mechanism to manually control the flow of the liquid, for example, a handle or a tap (not shown).
A joint (11) will be able to be arranged on the periphery of the base (13) of the piece (3) serving as a plug, in order to ensure that the unit thus formed is entirely tight when the apparatus is inserted inside a bottle.
The apparatus according to the invention is particularly easy to use.
The unit shall be supplied ready to use, i.e. with a body (1) which has already been filled with the gel (6) and the various elements already connected to one another. All the user shall have to do is place the apparatus inside a freezer for a certain period of time, in fact until the fluid (6) hardens, which does not pose any problems in terms of the catering business where a sufficient number of devices will be able to placed in the freezer before each sitting in order to be able to have a unit ready for use at all times without having to wait.
When the gel (6) has hardened inside the lower part (1 b) of the body (1), all that will have to be done is open the bottle (10) and insert the apparatus inside in the neck (9).
Generally speaking, it is customary to taste a small quantity of wine immediately after withdrawing the cork, in order to check that nothing is wrong with it, like phenomena involving maderisation or corking.
This makes it possible to withdraw a small quantity of liquid and to thereby free the space required to allow the apparatus to be inserted without causing excess liquid to be forced back through the neck of the bottle.
Once the apparatus has been inserted in the bottle (10), it is kept in position by slighting pushing the piece (3) inside the neck (9).
If one then wishes to serve wine in a glass, all that will be required is to move the cap (4) which will advantageously comprise a hinge (14).
Indeed, the wine (15) which is placed inside the bottle (10) shall be able to flow through the longitudinal slots (8) to join the conduit (5) crossing the middle part of the piece (3). It will thus be possible to serve the desired quantity of liquid by simply opening the cap (4) which will furthermore make it possible, once it is closed, to protect the liquid, for example from any oxidation.
According to a preferred form of embodiment, the body (1) and its various components shall be made of a high quality steel, which is a completely neutral material with regard to wines of any kind whatsoever.
The apparatus according to the invention makes it possible both easily and ingeniously to ensure that wine is kept at an optimum temperature for enjoying it for at least two hours, which is more than enough when it comes to dining at a restaurant.
Experience has shown that using this apparatus has made it possible to stabilise the temperature in a much steadier and more constant manner than with devices such as ice buckets for example.
The variation in temperature recorded over a two-hour period is less than 2°, which makes it possible to remain in the optimum temperature ranges which are generally recommended for enjoying wines.
The invention is of course not limited to the form of embodiment disclosed above by way of a simple example of implementation.
It shall on the contrary to be able accommodate any variations or modifications which are obvious to the expert without deviating from the framework of the invention.
Furthermore, the apparatus according to the invention can be easily adapted to all types of bottles, whatever their shape or size or the diameter of the neck.
It shall therefore be possible to provide various models of this apparatus which can be adapted to all types of container.
Furthermore, and as shown in FIG. 2, the cap (4) associated with the piece (3) in the upper part of the apparatus shall be able to receive all sorts of shapes, which shall make it possible to give the apparatus a special design which will enhance the glamour of serving the wine.

Claims

1. Apparatus for regulating the temperature of a liquid, comprising a: hollow cylindrical refrigerated body (1) designed to be inserted through the neck (9) of a bottle (10), said body being closed at its lower end (2 b) and tipped with grip means (2) at its upper end (2 a), characterised in that the grip means (2) consist of a piece (3) with a circular section the diameter of which is greater than that of the neck (9) of the bottle (10) and comprising a truncated base (13) the side walls of which taper inwards to form a plug when the apparatus is inserted in the bottle.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that the piece 3 is crossed in the middle by a conduit (5) emerging around the bottom inside the body (1), the upper end of which is associated with a cap (4).

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, characterised in that the cap (4) comprises a mechanism in its upper part to control the flow of the liquid

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, characterised in that the mechanism for controlling the flow of liquid is a taa.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that the body (1) is comprised of two parts (1 a) and (1 b) separated from one another by a fixed joint (7), the lower part (1 b) being filled with a fluid (6) which freezes at 0° C and the upper part (1 a) being fixed by it upper end to the piece (3).

6. Apparatus according to claim 5, characterised in that the upper part (1 a) of the body (1) comprises at least one longitudinal slot (8) extending over its whole length.

7. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that a joint (11) is arranged on the periphery of the base (13) of the piece (3).

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that the body (1) is in steel.