TOAST BOTTLE

Abstract

The present invention generally relates to a bottle having an attached sleeve for improved gripping comprising of a plastic, metal, or polymeric material. The attached sleeve having straps that form a substantially grid like structure having openings and a sleeve dimple at the bottom of said attached sleeve having at least one ridge or at least one protrusion.

Description

RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/303,946, filed on Feb. 12, 2010, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a beverage container and, more particularly, to a champagne or sparkling wine bottle having a sleeve which encompasses the bottle.

BACKGROUND

Traditionally, a champagne bottle or a sparkling wine bottle is a hollow vessel comprised of a body section, a narrower neck section, an opening on the end of the neck, a cork or crown cap for closure of the opening, and a bottom that is steeply domed or dimpled towards the inside of the container. The champagne or sparkling wine bottles are commonly made from glass but have also been made of other materials such as plastic.

The steeply domed or dimpled containers offer the advantage of making it possible to produce a peripheral bearing region that is flat and above all continuous over the entirety of its extent, so that they afford the containers placed on a substantially flat support a remarkably stable footing. Bottoms of this type are particularly advantageous when the containers are filled with pressurized liquids, such as carbonated beverages, because these bottoms, due to their highly inwardly convex shape, are intrinsically able to withstand the pressure applied to them from the inside, and therefore remain stable.

Some steeply domed or dimpled bottoms of champagne bottles have contained a central pimple usually located at the concave face of the bottom. These central pimples may also have ribs extending from the central pimple. Both of these embodiments were developed to improve the mechanical strength of champagne bottles.

Champagne bottles are commonly held by the base of the bottle during pouring. A pourer usually places his thumb in the domed or dimpled base. However, the prior art champagne bottles are often difficult to grip which can lead to slippage and accidents. Therefore there is a need for a champagne bottle with a domed or dimpled base that is easier to grip during pouring.

Typically a champagne bottle's contents are served cold, such as champagne and sparkling wine. Since the bottle content is cold, condensation is likely to result in the formation of dew on the outside of the bottle. One of the drawbacks associated with pouring a champagne bottle is this dew which causes the champagne bottle to become slippery. This problem is exacerbated when the champagne bottle is stored in an ice bucket where the ice slush clings to the bottle as the bottle is removed from the cooler.

In an attempt to solve this problem many people wrap a napkin or towel around the champagne bottle. However, this is only useful if a napkin or towel is present and even if a napkin or towel is present the use of it will either cause the napkin to be thrown away or the towel to be washed. Therefore there is a need for a champagne bottle with a gripping device already incorporated on the bottle that will allow for safer and more secure handling of a champagne bottle without the need for using another device.

In addition, many champagne bottles are labeled with paper or similar materials. These likely become damp when the bottle suffers from condensation or is placed in an ice bucket. This dampness may cause the labeling to either tear off or become illegible. There is a need for labeling of champagne bottles that are more resistant to water damage and/or condensation damage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a bottle having an attached sleeve for improved gripping comprising of a plastic, metal, or polymeric material. The attached sleeve having straps that form a substantially grid like structure having openings and a sleeve dimple at the bottom of said attached sleeve having at least one ridge or at least one protrusion.

In one embodiment, the attached sleeve contains a cup that is placed under the sleeve dimple to help provide for an easier to grip champagne container. In another embodiment, the cup may have a protruding nub on the top of the cup. The protruding nub helps attach the cup to the sleeve dimple providing for easier gripping, especially when pouring.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Objects and advantages together with the operation of the invention may be better understood by reference to the following detailed description taken in connection with the following illustrations, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exploded view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 4 illustrates a rear view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 6 illustrates a side view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 7 illustrates a top view of a toast bottle.

FIG. 8 illustrates a bottom view of a toast bottle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional changes may be made without departing from the respective scope of the invention. As such, the following description is presented by way of illustration only and should not limit in any way the various alternatives and modifications that may be made to the illustrated embodiments and still be within the spirit and scope of the invention.

A Toast Bottle is illustrated in FIGS. 1-8. A champagne bottle 10 may be encompassed by a sleeve 12 to provide an easier to grip and more aesthetically pleasing champagne container 14.

The champagne container 14 is comprised of a champagne bottle 10 encompassed by a sleeve 12 wherein the sleeve 12 is firmly engaged with the champagne bottle. The champagne bottle 10 is commonly made of glass but may also be made from any composition known in the art such as plastic, a glass-plastic mixture, or any other material known in the art. The champagne bottle 10 may be filled with champagne, sparkling wine, other alcoholic beverages or any other drinking liquid. In one embodiment the, sleeve 12 is comprised of copper which helps maintain a lower temperature when the champagne container 14 is removed from refrigeration. However, the sleeve 12 may also be comprised of any other material known in the art such as plastic, metal, or a polymeric material. In one embodiment, the sleeve may be removeably attached or permanently attached to the bottle. In another embodiment, the sleeve may easily slide on and off bottle.

In one embodiment, the sleeve 12 may be made of a body comprising straps 16 that form a grid like structure as seen in FIGS. 1-3. The straps 16 cross each other and form openings 18 that may be square but may also be any other shape such as a diamond, triangle, rhombus, etc. In one embodiment, the openings 18 may have sides 20 with a length of approximately 0.5 cm. The length of the sides 20, however, is not necessarily limited to such dimensions and may be of any distance. The openings 18 of the sleeve 12 do not have to be of an equal size but some may be of an equal size. The sleeve 12 may have any number of openings 18 created by the straps 16. In one embodiment, the dimensions of the openings may be larger nearer to the bottom of the sleeve than the openings nearer to the top of the sleeve.

In one embodiment, the sleeve 12 has no openings at the bottom of the sleeve 22 near the base of the champagne bottle 10 and the sleeve 12 also has no openings at the top of the sleeve 24 near the opening of the champagne bottle 10. However, a sleeve 12 may have openings 18 at either the bottom of the sleeve 22 or the top of the sleeve 24. The bottom of the sleeve 22 may contain a bottom ring 26 that encircles a portion of the bottom of the sleeve 22. The top of the sleeve 24 may contain a separate top ring 28, which may be smaller in radius than the bottom ring 26, that encircles a portion of the top of the sleeve 24.

The straps 16 and openings 18 may be interrupted by any number or any variation of unopened portion sleeve such as a top label 30, a middle label 32, or a bottom label 34. These interruptions may be blank or contain markings such as the name of the product, location of the product, warning label, or any other label commonly known in the art. The labels on the sleeve 12 may be of any shape or size and may contain any information. The straps 16 and openings 18 may also be interrupted by any other means known in the art.

In one embodiment, the rear label 36 has an enclosure 38 with at least one opening 40 attached to the rear label 36. This enclosure 38 may be located on the left side of the rear label 36 if viewing the champagne bottle container 14 from behind, but the enclosure 38 may be located at any location on the sleeve. The sleeve 12 may contain any number of enclosures located at any place on the sleeve 12. The sleeve 12 may also contain no enclosures. The enclosure opening 40 may contain a feather or any other substance such as a flag, ribbon, or balloon.

In another embodiment, the sleeve 12 may have one or two protruding sides 42 as shown in FIGS. 1-3. In an embodiment with two protruding sides 42 the protruding sides 42 are located approximately 180 degrees from each other on the sleeve 12. The protruding sides 42 may extend from the top ring 28 of the sleeve 12 to the bottom ring 26 of the sleeve 12 but can extend any length along the vertical axis of the sleeve 12. The protruding sides 42 may have indentations 44 as shown in FIG. 3 and may have any number of indentations 44.

In another embodiment, the sleeve 12 encompasses the champagne bottle's punt with a sleeve dimple 46 providing a greater ease for holding the champagne container 14 and pouring the contents of the champagne bottle 10. The sleeve dimple 46 may contain openings 18 which may be located between the sleeve dimple bottom 48 and the sleeve dimple top 50 which rests next to the punt. The sleeve dimple bottom 48 may have a slit located below the openings 18 in the sleeve dimple 46 as shown in FIG. 6 but a slit may be located at any location on the sleeve 12 or the sleeve dimple 46.

In another embodiment, the sleeve dimple bottom 48 may be creased 52 which may provide greater stability, easier gripping, or any other advantages the crease 52 may provide. The sleeve dimple top 50 may contain one or more ridges or one or more protrusions to provide for better gripping.

In another embodiment, the sleeve dimple top 50 contains a cup 54. The cup 54 helps provide for an easier to grip champagne container 14. The cup 54, in its preferred embodiment, is comprised of rubber but may also be comprised of any material known in the art such as plastic, metal, or a polymeric material. The cup 54 may contain a protruding nub 58 at the end located closest to the punt. The nub 58 may help attach the cup 54 to the sleeve dimple 46. However, the cup 54 may be attached to the sleeve dimple by any known means in the art.

The champagne bottle 10 has a liquid dispensing region 56 in which the contained liquid exits the champagne bottle 10. The liquid dispensing region 56 may be closed with a cork but may also be closed with a crown cap or any other means known in the art.

Claims

1. A champagne bottle having a sleeve for improved gripping disposed about the bottle, said sleeve comprising a plastic, metal, or polymeric material and having:

a body forming a plurality of openings; and

a sleeve dimple at the bottom of said sleeve, the sleeve dimple having at least one ridge or at least one protrusion.

2. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve is removeably attached to said bottle.

3. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve is permanently attached to said bottle.

4. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve is comprised of copper.

5. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve has at least one protruding edge that extends vertically along said sleeve.

6. The bottle of claim 5, wherein said sleeve has two protruding edges, wherein one protruding edge is located 180 degrees from the other protruding edge on the sleeve.

7. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve has a label.

8. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve has at least one enclosure protruding from said sleeve, wherein said enclosure has an opening at the top of said enclosure.

9. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve dimple is creased near the outer edge.

10. The bottle of claim 1, wherein said sleeve contains a cup that is located under the sleeve dimple for improved gripping, the cup comprising a rubber, plastic, metal or polymeric material, wherein the top of said cup has a substantially similar shape and size to the top of said sleeve dimple.

11. The bottle of claim 10, wherein said cup has a protruding nub at the top of said cup to attach said cup to said sleeve dimple wherein said protruding nub protrudes from the top of said cup and attaches to said sleeve dimple.

12. A sleeve for improved gripping of a champagne bottle, said sleeve comprising a plastic, metal, or polymeric material and having:

a body forming a plurality of openings; and

a sleeve dimple at the bottom of said sleeve, the sleeve dimple having at least one ridge or at least one protrusion.

13. The sleeve of claim 12, wherein said sleeve contains a cup that is located under the sleeve dimple for improved gripping, the cup comprising a rubber, plastic, metal or polymeric material, wherein the top of said cup has a substantially similar shape and size to the top of said sleeve dimple.

14. The sleeve of claim 13, wherein said cup has a protruding nub at the top of said cup to attach said cup to said sleeve dimple wherein said protruding nub protrudes from the top of said cup and attaches to said sleeve dimple.

15. The sleeve of claim 12, wherein said sleeve is comprised of copper.

16. The sleeve of claim 12, wherein said sleeve has at least one enclosure protruding from said sleeve, wherein said enclosure has an opening at the top of said enclosure.

17. The sleeve of claim 12, wherein said sleeve has at least one protruding edge that extends vertically along said sleeve.

18. The sleeve of claim 17, wherein said sleeve has two protruding edges, wherein one protruding edge is located 180 degrees from the other protruding edge on the sleeve.

19. The sleeve of claim 12, wherein said sleeve dimple is creased near the outer edge