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Methods, apparatuses and systems of fermentation

Methods, apparatuses and systems of fermentation description/claims

The invention pertains to methods, apparatuses and systems of fermentation. The invention further pertains to methods, apparatuses and systems of fermenting juices.

Fermentation is a process defined as a chemical breakdown of a substance by bacteria, yeasts, or other micro-organisms. In the food industry, a simple definition of fermentation is the conversion of sugar to ethanol by using yeast. Ethanol is a form of alcohol, and is the alcohol in alcoholic beverages. Exemplary food industry products formed by fermentation include wine (converting juice into wine), beer (converting grains into beer), bread (converting carbohydrates into carbon dioxide to leaven the bread), and numerous other food products for the food industry.

It should be understood that all fermentation processes produce thermal energy during the chemical breakdown of the substance, whether by using bacteria, yeasts, or other micro-organisms. Accordingly, fermentation is a heat source process wherein the chemical breakdown of the substance releases heat. However, fermentation occurs only within a specific range of temperatures and chemical conditions. Consequently, for the fermentation process to begin and continue, the temperature of the material to be fermented must be in a specific range of temperatures for the fermentation process to progress. If the temperature of the material to be fermented changes to a temperature value outside the specific temperature range, the fermentation process chemically changes, and ultimately the fermentation ceases, both of which are routinely detrimental to the final product. Moreover, the desired characteristics of the product being produced by the fermentation process are optimized if the process is maintained within a specific temperature range. Therefore, controlling and maintaining the temperature of the material during the process is important to continue the process and optimize the characteristics of the final product being produced.

Moreover, gases develop during the fermentation process, and a majority of the gases are detrimental or toxic to the fermentation process. Accordingly, controlling the concentration of gases during the fermentation process, for example carbon dioxide, is important to optimize the characteristics of the final product being produced.

Additionally, an exemplary fermentation process is performed to produce wine. Generally stated, fruit juice is provided in a container or tank and yeast is added to the fruit juice to begin the fermentation process. The yeast reacts with the sugar in the fruit juice to produce wine, carbon dioxide (CO2) gas and thermal energy as heat. The most common fruit used to produce wine is grapes. Some varieties of wine rely on a process of having solid components or portions of the grapes (skins, seeds, pulp and stems) soaking in the grape juice during fermentation to provide the character and quality of the finished wine product. That is, for these particular varieties of wine, the solid components create the final wine product, and establish the quality thereof, through the extraction and release of substances (chemicals or chemistries) from the solid components (particularly the skins) into the grape juice. The solid components of the grapes collect together during the fermentation process which can be referred to as a cap. The cap can include skins, seeds, pulp and stems. However, the stems are routinely removed before the fermentation process begins.

To optimize the wine varieties which rely on the cap during the fermentation process, an ideal goal is to continually move the volume of grape juice to be in contact with a maximum surface area of the cap during fermentation. However, the cap forms a compact collection of the solid components or material within the grape juice which generally floats in the grape juice during fermentation. The compactness of the cap becomes impenetrable during the fermentation. Accordingly, optimizing the quality of the final-wine product is difficult. Moreover, a portion of the cap is routinely extending elevationally above an upper surface of the grape juice during floatation, and therefore, that portion of the cap does not contact the grape juice to release its beneficial chemistry into the juice. Moreover, the portion of the cap elevationally above the juice will tend to dry out which can release a different chemistry into the juice that is detrimental to the final product being produced. These problems impede the goal of maximizing a volume of the cap coming in contact with a maximum volume of grape juice which optimizes release of the beneficial chemistry into the juice during fermentation.

The wine industry attempts to resolve these problems by performing several different methods. One method includes various forms of “plunging” or “punching down” actions by individuals wherein the plunging or punching down of the cap moves the cap below the upper surface of the grape juice. That is, the goal is to submerge an entirety of the cap within the grape juice. Another method includes various forms of “spraying over” or “pumping over” actions wherein the grape juice is distributed or sprayed over the cap during fermentation. The ineffectiveness of these alleged corrective methods are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,125,736 to Marin. For example, the plunging down method promotes disintegration of the cap within the grape juice which “generates an undesired quantity of dregs” being formed in the grape juice (Marin at col. 1, line 47 to col. 2, line 19). “Dregs may give rise to undesirable tastes and require further operations for subsequent cleaning of the wine.” (Marin at col. 2, lines 19-22). Furthermore, the plunging down or punch down method is manually performed which makes the method labor intensive, expensive, inexact and additionally, undesirably exposes the surface of the grape juice to oxygen.

Regarding the “pumping over” method, such relies on gravity to move the grape juice through the cap. That is, the force or weight of a stream of juice is relied upon to force the juice through the compact cap. Gravity is not sufficient to move the juice through a substantially portion of the cap due to the compactness of the cap, and therefore, the penetration is minimal. Only a limited number of paths develop through the cap to allow the grape juice to pass or flow. Moreover, the fermentation process produces carbon dioxide that bubbles up from below the cap to further impede the juice moving to pass through the cap from the top (see, for example, Marin at col. 2, lines 26-32). Consequently, the grape juice simply flows through the same few paths of the cap which developed during a previous pump over action, and therefore, the same volume of the cap is being contacted by the juice. Accordingly, this portion of the cap has already released their beneficial chemistries into the grape juice. That is, subsequently spraying or pumping over the cap is providing a minimal benefit. Additionally, other portions of the cap which are still rich in the beneficial chemistries do not come in contact with the grape juice to release their beneficial chemistries.

Some alleged corrective methods include a combination of the “pumping over” and “punching down.” However, this simply means that a combination of the problems discussed above now exist during the fermentation. Accordingly, the alleged corrective methods of “pumping over” and “punching down” are ineffective for optimizing cap contact with the juice during fermentation, and therefore, the quality of the wine greatly suffers.

Moreover, as suggested previously, these alleged resolutions are “labor intensive” requiring extensive man hours. Accordingly, these methods are expensive, and more problematic, inexact. That is, being labor intensive, there is no systematic monitoring and controlling of the fermentation process. The industry does not understand how quickly the fermentation process can get out of control and how drastically the process can be removed from an optimal process. Accordingly, a system or method to quickly address and resolve problems that develop during the fermentation process does not exist.

Still further, the methods that rely on pumping over and plunging actions do not address the fact that the actions can crush or crack open solid components of the cap which can release detrimental chemistries into the juice. For example, the pumps used in these methods routinely receive solid components of the grapes such as seeds that cause the pumps to malfunction and release the detrimental chemistries into the juice.

Accordingly, there is a need to provide fermentation systems that have the capability to monitor and quickly address problems that develop during the fermentation process. For example, monitoring and quick control and adjustment of temperature of the material being fermented is needed. Moreover, there is a need to provide and develop the capability to control and adjust the concentration of gases produced during the fermentation process. Additionally, there is a need to provide and develop the capability to optimize the grape juice contact with the cap during the fermentation process. Furthermore, there is a need to automate the fermentation process thereby doing away with the expense and inexactness of using labor intensive methods during the fermentation process.

Preferred embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to the following accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an exemplary fermentation system according to one of various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an exemplary fermentation system according to another of various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an exemplary fermentation system according to still another of various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an exemplary housing assembly according to one of various embodiments of the invention.

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