Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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beverage preserver

protects beverages from exposure to air
 
(+1, -1)
  [vote for,
against]

For wine in particular, but perhaps also for carbonated drinks, and other liquids that can be degraded by exposure to ambient air:

A bottle with a bladder inside the bottle, attached at the inside of the bottle's neck. The beverage to be protected is contained inside the bladder. Between the other side of the bladder and the bottle is a quantity of liquid that is lower in density than the protected liquid (e.g., a food grade oil for aqueous liquids), but denser than air. The quantity of oil is sufficient to float on the surface of the beverage, separated from the beverage by the bladder, and to cause the bladder to close off the beverage from the air.

The linked illustration is probably more descriptive than the text above.

This could be built into any beverage container, such as the soda can you get from the vending machine, but would probably be more commercially viable as a decanter you keep around for preserving sensitive beverages that are not fully consumed after opening.

beauxeault, Jun 19 2003

illustration http://www.geocitie...xeault/decanter.htm
[beauxeault, Oct 05 2004, last modified Oct 17 2004]

Originally conceived as an alternate solution to the problem posed here: http://www.halfbake..._20indicator_20line
[beauxeault, Oct 05 2004, last modified Oct 17 2004]

"A bottle with a bladder inside the bottle, attached at the inside of the bottle's neck" http://www.playtexb...sposablebottles.asp
Like this? "bottle system that uses a collapsible liner" [half, Oct 05 2004, last modified Oct 17 2004]

wine preservation system http://patft.uspto....D+cap)+AND+bladder)
i think more like this (totally baked) [oxen crossing, Oct 05 2004, last modified Oct 17 2004]

[link]






       Boxed wine takes care of the problem nicely (bag in box contracts as wine is let out without letting air in). Sadly, the kind of wine that comes in a box would taste better as vinegar.
AO, Jun 19 2003
  

       The concept is similar to the lined baby-bottles in half's link, except there's a volume of oil between the liner and the bottle. I'd also illustrated a liner that's attached to the bottom of the bottle, to facilitate emptying.   

       The beverage is held inside the liner, the oil is contained outside the liner, but inside the bottle. When empty, the oil rests at the bottom of the bottle. When an aqueous beverage is introduced, the oil is displaced to the upper surface of the beverage, but is still separated from the beverage by the liner. The liner is integral to the bottle, which fills and empties with the beverage just like a standard bottle, without any valves or complex filling of a bladder. Of course, the liner is robust enough to prevent any chance of leaking, so there's no mixing of oil and beverage.
beauxeault, Jun 19 2003
  

       Good idea!
FarmerJohn, Jun 19 2003
  

       Bring on the freeze-dried, reconstitued caviar!
I can imagine all kinds of problems convincing the wine industry to try something new, especially bottling their product in the same container as any kind of oil (unless it's cooking wine packaged with olive oil). And it sounds prohibitively expensive, although I suppose if it keeps a fine wine tasting good for a longer period of time it would be worth it, but I can't see anyone spending extra cash for a bladder-pack Coca-Cola they're just going to guzzle.
Canuck, Jun 19 2003
  

       This concept is very similar to the baked to perfection bladder pressure tank used in well water systems to maintain constant delivery pressure. The only difference is that the bladder is sealed with a tire-like schrader valve on the outside of the tank, so you can adjust the delivery pressure. What you end up with is a tank filled partially with water, and the remaining space taken up by the pressurized bladder. You don't need oil (which I never understood anyway), but you would need a pressure holding valve to dispense the beverage (like a seltzer bottle). You could probably design it so it would work really well. [+]
oxen crossing, Jun 19 2003
  

       um, yeah, keep thinking like that, I'll go explain this to a patent attorney.
oxen crossing, Jun 19 2003
  

       mr_uragonna, rest assured beaux has a patent attorney.   

       I quite like this.
waugsqueke, Jun 19 2003
  

       good, they will show him the patent at the link I just added.
oxen crossing, Jun 19 2003
  

       Not sure why they would. That idea uses an inflatable air bladder. Beaux's uses no such system.
waugsqueke, Jun 19 2003
  

       Beat me to the punch by milliseconds, waugs.
thumbwax, Jun 19 2003
  

       Yeah, this is fun. You're gonna need a pressurized bladder cause no matter how much oil I use, I can't get the bladder to seal up. Photo shortly, I gotta up load to my site.
oxen crossing, Jun 19 2003
  

       Say, you're the dude that argued with WorldG about the crushed fizzy soda bottle over and over, only to finally admit you were talking out of your ass, aren't you? Forgive me if I distrust the integrity of your statements.
waugsqueke, Jun 19 2003
  

       yeah, that's me. my wife won't listen anymore, cause she kept getting busted repeating things I told her were true, only to be proven wrong later. Every once in a while I'm right, though, and then I get to laugh.
oxen crossing, Jun 19 2003
  

       I love a good fallacy ad hominem.
AO, Jun 19 2003
  

       ok screw the photo, you can't see difference between the water and oil anyway. And I'll grant you this will work, but you'll only be able to fill the bottle with about a quarter of its volume of wine, the rest has to be oil. Takes a lot to create enough force to deform the bladder enough to seal (and I used a thin plastic bag which flexes, and tears, easily). And I wasted about 3 cups of good extra virgin olive oil, got it all over my counter. Just for that, I'm changing my vote back to +.
oxen crossing, Jun 19 2003
  

       mr i, I'm impressed that you'd actually try this out. I think the problem is that your liner may need to be a little bigger.   

       With respect to patents, I actually paused for a while before posting this, to consider whether I should keep it to myself for a possible patent and commercialization. But weighing the work involved against the relatively small market for wine-preservation decanters (I agree that there's probably no real commercial value for it in soda cans or even the bottles in which wine is originally packaged), and the competing technologies for achieving a similar end, I decided I might come out ahead here if I could score a little bread for it.   

       That said, I still have 364 days to apply for a U.S. patent on this, so if anyone out there wants to throw away some money - er - invest in this, I'd be happy to get the patent and sell you a significant share of the venture. Time's ticking...
beauxeault, Jun 20 2003
  

       Wine never seems to last very long in an opened state around me...
rapid transit, Jun 20 2003
  

       Before we jump into how much of the other type of bread [beaux] can make on this venture, let's revisit the merits. I think a major hurdle you are going to encounter is the flavor imparted by plastic containers. There is a reason that wine is bottled in glass instead of plastic bottles, and that is that there is a plastic taste and flavor that although slight does exist. Cheap vodka can get away with plastic and cheap beer compromises with aluminum cans, but I think you'll find most other beverages that have high taste value come exclusively in glass.
Worldgineer, Jun 20 2003
  

       Plastic is so... tasteless, yet it leaves an aftertaste.
thumbwax, Jun 21 2003
  
      
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