Single serving beverage container

A beverage container, comprising:

• a body having a large open first end and a relatively smaller closed second end opposite the first end, the body defining an interior cavity of a predetermined volume, the first end comprising a first mounting structure disposed along an external surface of the body;
• a removable barrier element sealingly engaging the body at the first end so as to form a liquid-tight seal therewith;
• an end cap having a second mounting structure for mating with the first mounting structure to detachably mount the end cap to the first end of the body when in a first assembled condition, and having a third mounting structure for detachably mounting the end cap to the second end of the body when in a second assembled condition;
• wherein, when in the first assembled condition, the base cap covers the removable barrier element and the third mounting structure is disposed external to the interior cavity of the body.

A beverage container, comprising:

• a body having a first end and a second end that is relatively smaller than the first end, the second end being opposite the first end, the first end being open and having a circumferential rim defined around a perimeter thereof, the second end closed, and the body defining an interior cavity of a predetermined volume;
• a protective film removably mounted to the rim at the first end and extending across the open first end, the protective film forming a liquid-tight seal with the rim;
• and,
• an end cap having a central axis extending along a first direction, the end cap comprising a first mounting structure for detachably mounting the end cap to the first end of the body when in a first assembled condition, and having a second mounting structure for detachably mounting the end cap to the second end of the body when in a second assembled condition, the end cap being dimensioned along the first direction such that the first mounting structure is disposed entirely to one side of a plane, P, normal to the central axis, and the second mounting structure is disposed entirely to an opposite side of the plane.

A method of preparing a beverage for being consumed from a single serving container, comprising:

• detaching an end cap from a first end of the single serving container, so as to expose a removable barrier element that is sealed to the first end in a liquid-tight fashion;
• mounting the end cap to a second end of the single serving container, the second end being opposite the first end;
• and,
• removing the barrier element from the first end of the single serving container, so as to provide access to the beverage that is contained within the single serving container.

A method of packaging a beverage in a single serving container, the single serving container having a large open end defining a rim and having a small closed end, the method comprising:

• relatively positioning the single serving container adjacent to a beverage dispensing member, such that the large open end of the single serving container is oriented upward and the small closed end is oriented downward;
• dispensing via the beverage dispensing member a predetermined volume of the beverage into the single serving container;
• removably affixing a barrier element to the large open end, so as to form a liquid-tight seal therewith;
• and,
• detachably mounting an end cap adjacent to the large open end, the end cap defining a mounting structure for receiving the small closed end, and wherein the mounting structure does not extend through the large open end into the interior of the single serving container.

A beverage container, comprising:

• a body having a first end and a second end that is relatively smaller than the first end, the second end being opposite the first end, the first end being open and having a circumferential rim defined around a perimeter thereof, the second end closed, and the body defining an interior cavity of a predetermined volume;
• a protective film removably mounted to the rim at the first end and being stretch-fit across the open first end, the protective film forming a liquid-tight seal with the rim;
• and,
• an end cap comprising a first mounting structure for detachably mounting the end cap to the first end of the body when in a first assembled condition, and a second mounting structure for detachably mounting the end cap to the second end of the body when in a second assembled condition,
• wherein the end cap does not interfere with the stretch-fit protective film when the end cap is mounted to the first end of the body in the first assembled condition.