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A rectangular or cylindrical container made of stainless steel or another liquid-impervious material has a plurality of openings formed in the side wall(s). Wooden boards, made of scarce white oak or other wood used for aging and flavoring beverages, are fitted into the openings and sealed so that t

A rectangular or cylindrical container made of stainless steel or another liquid-impervious material has a plurality of openings formed in the side wall(s). Wooden boards, made of scarce white oak or other wood used for aging and flavoring beverages, are fitted into the openings and sealed so that their inside surfaces contact the liquid in the container. The inside surfaces have cross-grain cuts such as saw cuts or holes, which are used to enhance the infusion of beverage liquid into the wood to age the beverage rapidly and flavorfully. When one batch is finished, the used boards are removed and new ones are fitted into the openings and used to treat another batch. Thus, the use of wood, which can be scarce and expensive, is minimized.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A container for storing and aging beverages, said container comprising, in combination, (a) at least one liquid-impervious side wall, and a liquid-impervious bottom wall and a liquid-impervious top wall, said top wall and said bottom wall being secured to said side wall at joints made of solid li

1. A container for storing and aging beverages, said container comprising, in combination, (a) at least one liquid-impervious side wall, and a liquid-impervious bottom wall and a liquid-impervious top wall, said top wall and said bottom wall being secured to said side wall at joints made of solid liquid-impervious material,(b) said side wall having a plurality of spaced-apart openings, each of said openings having an area substantially less than the area of said side wall,(c) a plurality of wooden boards, each having a size and shape to fit into one of said openings and being fitted into one of said openings and forming a liquid-tight seal with said side wall,(d) a securing structure releasably holding said boards in liquid-sealing relationship to said side wall,(e) each of said boards having an inside surface and an outside surface when positioned in one of said openings,(f) said inside surface of at least one of said boards having a plurality of cross-grain cuts extending part-way through said board and being positioned to be contacted by a liquid in said container, and said outside surface being exposed to the atmosphere around said side wall. 2. A container as in claim 1 in which said side wall comprises a plurality of flat panels, each having side edges, bottom edges, and top edges, said panels being secured together at joints, said container being rectilinear in shape, said joints between said side panels being made of solid liquid impervious material. 3. A container as in claim 1 in which said cross-grain cuts are selected from the group consisting of linear cuts and holes. 4. A container as in claim 1 in which each of said boards is elongated and has a recess around its edge so as to form a flange and dimension said board to fit into one of said openings with said flange engaging said side wall. 5. A container as in claim 1 in which said side wall, said top wall and said bottom wall each is made of a liquid-impervious material selected from the group consisting of stainless steel, glass, plastic, and another liquid-impervious material. 6. A container as in claim 1 in which said side wall, said top wall and said bottom wall are made of stainless steel, said side wall comprising four stainless steel side wall panels welded together or bent to form joints of solid metal, said container being of rectilinear shape. 7. A container as in claim 1 in which said openings and said boards are elongated, and said securing structure comprises a plurality of cross-bars secured to the outside of said side wall and spanning said boards and said openings transversely of the longitudinal directions of said boards and said openings, with threaded fasteners drawing said cross-bars and said boards together so that said boards are held in sealing relationship to said openings. 8. A container for use in storing beverages, said container comprising (a) a vessel having at least one side wall, a top wall and a bottom wall, each of said walls being made of a liquid-impervious material,(b) said side wall being secured to said top and bottom walls at liquid-impervious joints,(c) said side wall having a plurality of openings, each having an area substantially less than the area of said side wall,(d) a plurality of wooden panels, each sized to fill and cover one of said openings,(e) a fastening structure for holding each of said panels against said side wall in covering relationship to one of said openings to cover and seal said opening, each of said panels having a first surface facing the inside of said vessel, and a second surface exposed to the atmosphere outside of said vessel. 9. A container as in claim 8 in which said vessel is rectilinear in shape and has four side wall panels with corners between adjacent ones of said side wall panels, each of said side wall panels having a plurality of said openings, with one of said wooden panels covering each of said openings, said corners being bent or made of fused liquid-impervious material. 10. A container as in claim 8 in which at least one of said wooden panels has a surface facing towards the interior of said vessel, and a plurality of cross-grain cuts in said surface, said cuts extending partway through the wood of said wooden panel. 11. In or for a container having a side wall made of liquid-impervious material and having multiple openings in said side wall, (a) a panel made of wood for use in aging and/or flavoring a liquid in said container, said panel being sized and shaped to cover one of said openings and maintain a seal with said side wall to inhibit leakage of said liquid around said panel,(b) said panel having first and second broad opposed surfaces,(c) a recess around the periphery of said first one of said broad surfaces, said recess forming a flange around the periphery of said second one of said broad surfaces,(d) the dimensions of said first broad surface being less than those of said opening in said side wall of said container,(e) the dimensions of said panel at said flange being greater than that of said opening so that said flange bears against the side wall of said container when it is held in place covering said opening. 12. A panel as in claim 11 in which the one of said first and second broad surfaces that is to contact said liquid in said container when said panel is installed in said opening has a plurality of cross-grain cuts extending partway through said panel. 13. A panel as in claim 11 in which the dimensions of said first broad surface are set to give clearance for a gasket between the edge of said opening and the edge of said recess. 14. A panel as in claim 12 in which said cross-grain cuts are selected from the group consisting of linear cuts and an array of holes.