EP3227426A1

EP3227426A1 - Container for raising and storing liquids such as wine

Info

Publication number: EP3227426A1
Application number: EP15821110.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Arnaud Roussac
Original assignee: Rtech Solutions
Current assignee: Rtech Solutions
Priority date: 2014-12-02
Filing date: 2015-12-02
Publication date: 2017-10-11
Also published as: CN107109318A; FR3029176A1; US20170335263A1; FR3029176B1; WO2016087783A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a container (1) for raising and storing wine, which is noteworthy in that it comprises an external metal enclosure (2) comprising at least one body (21) in the overall shape of a hollow cylinder and a rear wall (22) fixed to the longitudinal rear end of said body (21) in order to close it off, an internal wooden enclosure (5) that is able to contain the wine, comprising at least one body (51) in the overall shape of a hollow cylinder and a front wall (52) and a rear wall (53) that close off said body (51) in a leaktight manner, said internal enclosure (5) being inserted into said external enclosure (2) with a tight fit until said rear wall (53) of the internal enclosure (5) butts against the rear wall (22) of said external enclosure (2), and clamping elements (7) that exert a longitudinal force that tends to clamp said internal enclosure (5) against the external enclosure (2).

Description

CONTAINER FOR ELEVATION AND STORAGE

LIQUIDS SUCH AS WINE

Technical area

The present invention relates to the field of containers of liquids and more particularly to a container for breeding and storage of wine. The present invention also relates to a method for cleaning and sterilizing said container for empty storage. Prior art

It is well known to use wooden barrels to raise and preserve wine. These barrels are usually constructed from hot-bent oak staves held by external strapping, the oak being able to provide desirable characteristics during the formation of the wine. Indeed, during the aging process, the wine acquires an appropriate amount of oxygen and tannin passing through the pores of the oak in particular to achieve the desired aroma of oak and tannin.

Therefore, to produce a quality wine, which has a rich taste of oak and tannin, winemakers age their wine in oak barrels placed in cellars.

However, as time goes by, the amount of tannin received by the wine from the pores of the wood inside the barrels decreases deleteriously until it usually requires replacement of the oak barrels.

Traditional barrels, which typically have a capacity of 225 liters, are usually used a maximum of 2 or 3 times before replacement is necessary. For vine growers, the replacement of all or part of their barrel stock represents a very important investment.

Indeed, in addition to the high cost of the manufacture of barrels due in part to the specific labor required especially for the manufacture and bending staves, oak wood becomes rare and therefore very expensive.

Furthermore, traditional barrels require a ventilated storage place, because the wine needs oxygen for its breeding, and whose temperature must be regulated, because the internal temperature of the barrels is dependent on the ambient temperature of said place storage.

Presentation of the invention

The purpose of the present invention is therefore to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks and to propose a container for rearing and storing wine requiring, at equal volume, a reduced amount of oak compared to a traditional barrel while ensuring the exchanges between the wine and the wood necessary for the aromatic supply and the raising of said wine stored in said container. In addition, the container according to the invention makes it possible not to have to bend staves, avoiding the use of a specialized labor, while ensuring the good mechanical strength of said container.

According to the invention, it is therefore proposed a container for breeding and storage of wine, remarkable in that it comprises a metal outer enclosure comprising at least one body in the overall shape of hollow cylinder and a rear wall fixed on the rear longitudinal end of said body to seal, a wooden inner chamber adapted to contain the wine comprising at least one body in the global shape of hollow cylinder and front and rear walls sealingly closing said body, said inner chamber being inserted in a way fitted into said outer enclosure until said rear wall of the inner enclosure abuts against the rear wall of said outer enclosure, and clamping members exerting a longitudinal force tending to clamp said inner enclosure against the rear wall of said outer enclosure.

It is understood that the invention makes it easier to work with wood and significantly reduce the amount of wood required because the internal wooden enclosure containing the wine only fulfills the function of the aromatic input, all mechanical efforts being taken over. by the external metal enclosure.

The outer enclosure is preferably made of stainless steel.

The inner chamber is advantageously made from a mixture of wood species and type of heating said species.

Advantageously, said front and rear walls respectively comprise a peripheral groove to allow the interlocking respectively of the front and rear peripheral edges of said body.

According to a preferred embodiment, the body is formed of staves having a rectilinear neutral fiber and a cross section in the overall shape of isosceles trapezium; said staves being positioned to contact one of their longitudinal faces inclined to each other, while taking care to place their small base inside said body.

The container according to the invention advantageously comprises a seal compatible with wine in the spaces between, on the one hand, said peripheral grooves and the front and rear peripheral edges of said body and, on the other hand, the inclined longitudinal faces. According to a preferred embodiment, the body of the outer enclosure has a polygonal shape whose inner cross section is homothetic and dimensions slightly greater than those of the outer cross section of the body of the inner enclosure.

Advantageously, the container comprises an automatic vinification system embedded.

Said automatic winemaking system comprises at least:

a device for oxygenating the wine,

an autonomous thermoregulation device,

a device for controlling the pressure in the internal chamber, and

- A graphical management interface to control all the devices of the automatic winemaking system and to quickly and simply monitor the progress of the fermentary state of the wine.

Said oxygenation device preferably comprises a member for measuring the consumption of oxygen, a body for controlling the oxygen saturation of the wine and an oxygen supply member.

Said autonomous thermoregulation device comprises a wine temperature measurement probe and a heat exchanger connected to a pipe network disposed over the entire outer periphery of the body of the outer enclosure, said pipes heating or cooling by conduction said outer enclosure.

The said automatic vinification system may also comprise a stirring device and a device for extracting the lees.

The invention also relates to a method for cleaning and sterilizing the container according to the invention for empty storage comprising the following steps:

- brushing the entire inner surface of the internal enclosure,

cleaning with high-pressure water jet of the entire internal surface of the internal enclosure,

- Deep sterilization of the inside of the inner chamber by steam or ultraviolet radiation.

Brief description of the figures

Other advantages and features will become more apparent from the following description of an alternative embodiment of a wine-making, aging and wine-storage container according to the invention with reference to the appended figures in which:

- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wine-making container, breeding and storage of the wine according to the invention;

- Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the container of Figure 1 along the axis II-II 'of Figure 1;

- Figure 3 is a perspective view of the inner chamber of the container of Figure 1;

- Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the inner chamber of Figure 3 along the axis IV-IV of Figure 3;

- Figure 5 is a partial detail view in cross section of the container of Figure 1;

FIGS. 6 to 8 are perspective views showing the various steps of placing the inner enclosure of FIG. 3;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the wine-making, aging and storage container of the wine according to the invention;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a stave of the container of FIG. 9. Best way to realize the technical invention

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the container 1 for vinification, aging and storage of liquid, such as preferably wine, according to the invention, comprises an outer enclosure 2 provided with feet 3 arranged to rest on the ground a cellar, for example, and advantageously covered with a plurality of planks 4 of facing, an inner enclosure 5 inserted in a manner fitted within said outer enclosure 2, and a removable cladding facade 6 capable of closing the external enclosure 2 to mask the internal enclosure 5.

The outer enclosure 2 comprises at least one body 21 in the global shape of a hollow cylinder, a rear wall 22 fixed on the rear longitudinal end of said body 21 to seal it, and a front flange 23 fixed around the front longitudinal end. said body 21. For reasons of mechanical strength and corrosion resistance, the outer enclosure 2 is metallic and preferably made from a stainless steel.

It is recalled that a cylinder (or cylindrical shape) is a surface in the space defined by a line, called a generator, passing through a variable point describing a closed plane curve, called the guiding curve and keeping a fixed direction.

The term "front" is used here to denote the element such as, for example, wall or face which is situated on the side of the user when the container 1 according to the invention is used under normal conditions, namely installed in a cellar. for example, and "back" the element located on the opposite side to said front element.

According to a preferred embodiment, the cross section of the body 21 is a polygonal section.

The inner enclosure 5, which is intended to contain the wine, is made of wood to ensure an aromatic contribution to the wine. The inner enclosure 5 comprises a body 51 in the global shape of a hollow cylinder, a front wall 52 and a rear wall 53, said front and rear walls 52, 53 being able to seal the longitudinal ends of said body 51. is made from rectilinear staves 54.

We know that wine is a complex element whose taste is strongly influenced by the essence of the wood used to make the container and the type of heating applied to the wood. This is why the wood used to make the internal enclosure 5.

However, it is essential to know and master the different types of heating that will all be advantageously achieved with a radiant heating system to control the diffusion of temperature and the heated depth of wood to ensure a homogeneous and repetitive heating.

Thus, the wood used to make the internal enclosure 5 can undergo one of the following types of heating:

- Light warming guarantee a discreet contribution of fruity aromas;

- Medium heat guaranteeing a complex aroma: slightly grilled bread flavor mixing with fruit and cinnamon aromas, the medium heat allowing the tannins to integrate the original structure of the wine;

- average heater ensuring more complex aromas of caramel aromas mix, low roasting and spice, tannin is then thermally degraded ^¬ and coating tannins of the wine;

- Strong heaters guarantee powerful aromas: mixture of roasting aromas, bitter chocolate and cocoa, the tannins then being strongly thermo-degraded this which has the effect of bringing few tannins rounding those of wine.

The configuration of the inner chamber 5 allows a mixture of different types of heating. Thus, it will be possible in the same internal enclosure 5, for example, staves 54 heated according to the type of heater "light heating" and other heated according to the type of heater "strong heater".

Similarly, the configuration of the inner chamber 5 allows a mixture of different types of wood species. Thus, it will be possible in the same internal enclosure 5, for example, staves 54 made from a first species of wood and others made from a first wood species, the wood species being preferably selected from the following group of traditional wood species: oak, acacia, chestnut, ash, hornbeam, acacia, fir, spruce, douglas, maritime pine, Scots pine, poplar, beech, plane tree, aspen, alder, olive, birch.

Thus, by mixing the wood species and the type of heater for the same internal enclosure 5, especially at its staves 54, a complex aromatic color chart is obtained which makes it possible to adapt said internal enclosure 5 to the aromatic requirements of the wine.

With reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the front wall 52 of the inner enclosure 5, which is a disk of generally circular shape having a diameter greater than the overall width of the body 51, seals with said body 51 formed by the staves 54 and also makes it possible to fix the various organs necessary for the various stages of the vinification.

For this, this front wall 52 comprises at least: a bung 521 coming from the upper middle zone of the front face of said front wall 52 and extending towards the top and the front of the internal enclosure 5,

a discharge valve 522 issued substantially perpendicularly from the low median zone of the front face of said front wall 52 and extending towards the front of the internal enclosure 5,

- A peripheral groove 523 arranged on the rear face of said front wall 52 to allow the interlocking of the front peripheral edge of the body 51, and

a plurality of orifices 524 passing through, advantageously regularly distributed along a diameter greater than the overall width of the body 51.

Said plug 55 and valve 56 respectively allow the filling and emptying of the inner chamber 5.

With reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the rear wall 53 of the internal enclosure 5, which is a disk of generally circular shape having a diameter less than or equal to the overall width of the body 51, seals with said body 51. formed by the staves 54 and also makes it possible to fix the various organs necessary for the various stages of the vinification.

For this, according to a preferred embodiment, this rear wall 53 comprises at least:

a first through hole 531 formed in the upper middle zone of the front face of said rear wall 53,

a second through-orifice 532 formed in the central zone of the front face of said rear wall 53,

a third through-orifice 533 formed in the low central zone of the front face of said rear wall 53,

- A peripheral groove 534 arranged on the front face of said rear wall 53 and allowing the interlocking of the rear peripheral edge of the body 51. Said first, second and third orifices 531, 532, 533 are arranged in the area of the rear wall 53 situated inside the groove 534.

The staves 54 have a rectilinear neutral fiber and a cross section in the overall shape of isosceles trapezium. To form the inner enclosure 5, it then suffices, with reference to FIG. 5, to form the body 51 by positioning the adjacent staves 54 so as to bring into contact one of their inclined longitudinal faces 541 while taking care to place their small base 542 inside said body 51. Once the body 51 formed, it is necessary to fit the front and rear peripheral edges of said body 51 respectively in the groove 523 peripheral of the front wall 52 and in the groove 534 peripheral of the rear wall 53.

In order to guarantee perfect sealing of the inner enclosure 5, it is advantageous in the spaces between, on the one hand, said peripheral grooves 523,534 and the front and rear peripheral edges of said body 51 and, on the other hand, the inclined longitudinal faces. 541 a seal compatible with wine, this seal being for example a starch-based seal.

With reference to FIGS. 6 to 8, once the internal enclosure 5 has been constituted, it is inserted through its rear wall 53 into the outer enclosure 2 until this rear wall 53 comes into abutment against the rear wall 22 of FIG. said outer enclosure 2 (see Figure 2)

To ensure the maintenance of the inner enclosure 5, the outer enclosure 2 further comprises clamping elements 7, for example, of the nut and bolt assembly type derived substantially perpendicularly from the front face of its flange 2 and regularly distributed on along a diameter, said clamping elements 7 being able to cooperate with the orifices 524 of the front wall 52 of the enclosure internal 5 in order to exert a longitudinal force tending to clamp said inner enclosure 5 against the rear wall 22 of said outer enclosure 2 and thus to clamp together all the elements constituting said inner enclosure 5.

The outer enclosure 2 has a polygonal shape whose inner cross section is homothetic and dimensions slightly greater than those of the outer cross section of the body 51 of the inner enclosure 5 so as to allow a fitting insertion of the inner enclosure 5 in the outer enclosure 2, that is to say, once the insertion made, there is contact between the inner 5 and outer 2 speakers without the possibility of transverse relative movements of the inner chamber 5 by compared to the external enclosure 2.

Those skilled in the art will have no difficulty in determining the value of the tolerances to be implemented in order to obtain an adjusted insertion of the internal enclosure 5 in the external enclosure 2.

Thus, the outer enclosure 2 contributes to keeping the staves 54 in contact with each other and takes up the mechanical stresses experienced by the internal enclosure 5 due in particular to the increase in pressure in the latter during the alcoholic fermentation of the wine. This configuration makes it possible to reduce the thickness of the staves 54 and thus significantly reduce the cost of the internal enclosure 5.

Moreover, with this configuration of the container 1 according to the invention, to renew the internal enclosure 5 wood after 2 or 3 uses, simply dismount the front wall 52 and one of the staves 54 serving as a " "keystone", the others falling then all alone.

It is understood that this configuration of the container 1 according to the invention allows a renewal its constituent elements so as to significantly reduce its cost and preserve natural wood resources by reducing its need for wood.

According to an alternative embodiment shown in Figures 9 and 10, the staves 54 have a rectilinear neutral fiber and a cross section in the overall shape of isosceles trapezium. To form the inner enclosure 5, it then suffices, with reference to FIG. 5, to form the body 51 of said internal enclosure 5 by positioning the adjacent staves 54 so as to bring into contact one of their inclined longitudinal faces 541 while taking care to place their small base 542 inside said body 51.

However, to increase the mechanical strength of the body 51 thus formed, each stave 54 comprises at least one longitudinal pin 543 and a longitudinal groove 544 formed along each of its inclined longitudinal faces 541 (see Figure 10), said longitudinal pin 543 and longitudinal groove 544 being able to cooperate respectively with the longitudinal groove 544 and longitudinal lug 543 of the adjacent bracket 54 (see FIG. 9).

According to a preferred embodiment, the container 1 according to the invention also comprises an automatic vinification system 10 embedded in the container 1 and preferably disposed behind the rear wall 22 of the outer enclosure 2 to allow in particular to control, the temperature , the pressure, the amount of carbon dioxide and the oxygen supply during the alcoholic fermentation.

For this, the latter comprises first, second and third orifices, not shown, similar to the first, second and third orifices 531, 532, 533 of the rear wall 53 of the inner enclosure 5 and arranged on its rear wall 22 to the right of said first, second and third orifices 531,532,533. These various orifices allow the passage of equipment of the automatic vinification system.

The container 1 further comprises sealing members, not shown, to ensure a sealed connection between the first, second and third orifices of the rear wall 22 and the first, second and third orifices 531, 532, 533 of the rear wall 53 at the moment of failure. the insertion of the inner enclosure 5 into the outer enclosure 2.

The automatic winemaking system comprises at least the following non-represented devices:

a device for oxygenating the wine,

an autonomous thermoregulation device,

a device for controlling the pressure in the internal enclosure 5, and

a graphical management interface making it possible to control all the devices of the automatic vinification system and to control rapidly and simply the progress of the fermentary state of the wine.

The oxygenation device ensures a slow and regular supply of oxygen adapted to each type of wine. Indeed, it is important for the quality of the wine to control its concentration and rate of oxygen consumption, because the wine in contact with oxygen absorbs it continuously until saturation. Without control, there are risks of oxidation, dry tannins, unstable colors and absence of tannic evolution.

To do this, said oxygenation device comprises a member for measuring the consumption of oxygen, a body for controlling the oxygen saturation of the wine and an oxygen supply member passing through a sealed manner, preferably the third respective ports 533 of 22.53 rear walls of the external and internal 2 enclosures 5. The bodies for measuring the oxygen consumption and control of the oxygen saturation of the wine pass preferably through the first orifices 531 respectively of the rear walls 22 , 53 external 2 and internal 5 speakers.

The autonomous thermoregulation device ensures a homogeneous wine temperature independent of the ambient temperature of the winery or cellar.

To do this, said autonomous thermoregulation device comprises a wine temperature measuring probe and a heat exchanger connected to an array of pipes 11 disposed over the entire outer periphery of the body 21 of the outer enclosure 2, said heating pipes 11 or cooling by conduction said external enclosure 2 and thus also the inner enclosure 5 and the wine due to the contact between the inner and outer enclosures 5 and 2.

To promote heat exchange between the pipes 11 and the outer enclosure 2 and prevent losses to the outside of the container 1, the latter comprises an insulating layer 1 between said pipes 11 and the planks 4 facing.

According to an advantageous embodiment, the automatic winemaking system also comprises a stirring device and a lees extraction device, not shown.

The stirring device, which makes it possible to homogenize the wine contained in the inner chamber 5, comprises a rotation shaft connected to an actuator and a stirrer integral with said rotation shaft, the latter preferably passing through the respective second orifices 532. rear walls 22,53 of the external and internal speakers 2 5. The lees extraction device, which makes it possible to extract the lees collected at the lower part of said inner chamber 5 from the inner enclosure 5, comprises a hopper-shaped collector and an extraction screw set in motion. by an actuator and whose rotation causes the lees towards the outside of the inner enclosure 5, preferably through the respective third orifices 533 of the rear walls 22, 53 of the external and internal enclosures 5 and 5.

It is understood that the container 1 according to the invention retains all the advantages of aging in wooden casks, (woody flavors, oxygen supply), while controlling oxygenation and ensuring a homogeneous and stable temperature to the wine throughout the breeding. Similarly, the container 1 optimizes the starting conditions and maintains the malolactic fermentation whatever the temperature of the cellar or cellar.

The present invention also relates to a method for cleaning and sterilizing the container 1 according to the invention for empty storage.

Said cleaning and sterilization process comprises at least preferably the following steps:

- Brushing the entire inner surface of the inner chamber 5,

cleaning with high-pressure water jet of the entire inner surface of the inner enclosure 5,

- Deep sterilization of the interior of the inner chamber 5 by steam or ultraviolet radiation.

It is understood that these steps may not be executed in the indicated order. For example, brushing can be performed after cleaning at high pressure or even simultaneously.

The first two steps require opening the inner chamber 5 and the brushing and cleaning of the front wall 52 and the body assembly 51 and rear wall 53 separately, while the third stage is internal chamber 5 closed, and the steam generator or ultraviolet radiation -violets is introduced by the drain 521 of the front wall 52.

Possibility of industrial application

It is understood that the container 1 according to the invention is particularly suitable for raising and storing wine. However, this container 1 may also apply to any other liquid such as whiskey for example.

Finally, it goes without saying that the example of container 1 according to the invention which has just been described is only a particular illustration, in no way limiting of the invention.

Claims

1 - Container (1) for breeding and storing wine, characterized in that it comprises an external metal enclosure (2) comprising at least one body (21) in the overall shape of a hollow cylinder and a rear wall (22) fixed on the rear longitudinal end of said body (21) to seal it, an inner chamber (5) of wood adapted to contain the wine comprising at least one body (51) in the global shape of a hollow cylinder and front walls (52). ) and rear (53) sealingly sealing said body (51), said inner enclosure (5) being fitly inserted into said outer enclosure (2) until said rear wall (53) of the inner enclosure (5) abuts against the rear wall (22) of said outer enclosure (2), and clamping members (7) exerting a longitudinal force tending to clamp said inner enclosure (5) against the rear wall (22) of said outer enclosure (2).

2 - Container (1) according to claim 1 characterized in that the outer enclosure (2) is made of stainless steel.

3 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the inner chamber (5) is made from a mixture of wood species and type of heating said gasolines.

4 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that said front walls (52) and rear (53) respectively comprise a groove (523,534) peripheral to allow nesting respectively peripheral edges front and rear of said body (51). 5 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said body (51) is formed of staves (54) having a rectilinear neutral fiber and a cross section in the overall shape of isosceles trapezium, said staves being positioned to engage one of their inclined longitudinal faces (541) therebetween, while taking care to place their small base (542) within said body (51).

6 - container (1) according to any one of claims 4 and 5, characterized in that it comprises a seal compatible with the wine in the spaces between, on the one hand, said peripheral grooves (523,534) and the front and rear peripheral edges of said body (51) and, on the other hand, the inclined longitudinal faces (541)

7 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 5 or 6, characterized in that the body (21) of the outer enclosure (2) has a polygonal shape whose inner cross section is homothetic and dimensions very slightly greater than those of the outer cross section of the body (51) of the inner enclosure (5).

8 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it comprises a system (10) automatic onboard winemaking.

9 - Container (1) according to claim 8, characterized in that said system (10) automatic winemaking comprises at least: a device for oxygenating the wine,

an autonomous thermoregulation device,

a device for controlling the pressure in the internal chamber (5), and

- A graphical management interface to control all the devices of the system (10) automatic winemaking and control quickly and simply the progress of the fermentation state of the wine. 10 - Container (1) according to claim 9, characterized in that said oxygenation device comprises a member for measuring oxygen consumption, a body for controlling the oxygen saturation of the wine and a body of oxygen. oxygen supply.

11 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 9 or 10, characterized in that said autonomous thermoregulation device comprises a probe for measuring the temperature of the wine and a heat exchanger connected to a network of pipes (11) arranged over the entire outer periphery of the body (21) of the outer enclosure (2), said pipes (11) heating or cooling by conduction said outer enclosure (2).

12 - Container (1) according to any one of claims 8 to 11, characterized in that said system (10) automatic winemaking comprises a stirring device and a lees extraction device.

13 - Process for cleaning and sterilizing the container (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 12 for empty storage, characterized in that it comprises the following steps:

- Brushing the entire inner surface of the inner chamber (5),

cleaning with a high-pressure water jet of the entire internal surface of the internal enclosure (5),

- Deep sterilization of the interior of the inner chamber (5) by steam or ultraviolet radiation.