How do railroads keep beer from freeziing?

I assume that you could run the reefer unit in reverse to keep the beer warm...its been so freaking cold that a warm beer sounds better then a cold one

No such thing as "running the refrigerator unit in reverse". Mechanical reefers can, however, be set to maintain whatever temp is desired.

Usually the alcohol content in beer was enough to prevent freezing when the beer was shipped in insulated boxcars - but not always.

Usually the alcohol content in beer was enough to prevent freezing when the beer was shipped in insulated boxcars - but not always.

Guess the trunk of my car doesn't count as "insulated"

lvrr325 wrote:Relates to railroading in New York how?

At one time a considerable amount of beer did move by rail in New York. When Ontario Midland Railroad began, one of its significant customers was Spartan Beverage in Webster. They accounted for 252 carloads in the shortline's first year. Unfortunately, the beer distributor had been at odds with the village about a proposed warehouse expansion, and upon losing that battle had purchased land in Henrietta for a whole new facility. OMID was told "If we had known how much of an improvement you folks would be over the service we had been getting from Conrail, we probably would have found a way to stay here. But it's too late to change back now."

As for freezing, I recall a carload of Fyfe and Drum Ale which was headed for Genesee Brewing. If I recall, they were going to produce that in Rochester but had some made elsewhere until they could get that product up and running. Whatever the story was, they had a car of glass bottles of beer which froze, thawed, and froze again. The bottles busted in the first freeze, and after the second one there were "beercicles" hanging off the car. I don't care for beer and did not try any, but the general consensus among the crews was they tasted like crap and were a big disappointment.

I think this is an interesting question that could relate to many different liquid products shipped by rail in cold climates.

General Discussion: Locomotives, Rolling Stock, and Equipment Moderator's Note:

Cleaned up the O/T discussion of how this thread got here. Thanks, Otto