Pasteurization

Louis Pasteur, France, patents from 1865, US 135,245 of 1873. Gentle heat that made milk, wine, and beer safe.

Overview

Pasteur patented heating and cooling to stop fermentation spoilage, applying his germ theory. His 1873 US patent covered improving brewing beer and ale. The process named for him saved wine for France and later milk for cities, cutting tuberculosis and scarlet fever. Dairy pasteurization became law city by city in the early 1900s. Pasteur grew rich, then funded the institute that bears his name. Beer, cheese, juice, and eggs ride his thermal curve daily.