Wednesday 14 March 2012

England vs Scotland, part 3e: early 1850's Imperial Mild Ale

Does this series seem never ending? I thought so. Don't despair. I'm finishing up with Mild this time. At least for the early 1850's.

Imperial Mild. There's a name to conjure with (maybe turn it into a rabbit or something). The name has been used by others, but I'd like to set its definition in stone so future generations will be able to cherish it. A bit like other style guidelines. Didn't the head prophet at the BJCP bring down stone tablets of beer style definitions down from Mount Sinai? Though obviously there were more than 10. Must have been a real struggle carrying 100-odd lumps of stone.

My definition of Imperial Mild - get your chisel ready - is this: Mils ale with a gravity over 1100º. Do you think I'm being too specific? At least you don't have to do much carving.

Why am I being so jovial? Have to find something top write about. You'll see what I mean when you look at the table:


England vs Scotland early 1850's Mild >1100º
Date Year Brewer Beer OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation lbs hops/ qtr hops lb/brl boil time (hours) boil time (hours) boil time (hours) Pitch temp max. fer-ment-ation temp length of fer-ment-ation (days)
19th Oct 1850 Truman XXX Ale 1102.8 12 5.59 58
5th Oct 1850 Truman XXX Ale 1102.8 12 6.24 59
18th Feb 1851 Truman XXX Ale 1105.8 10 5.19 58
4th Sep 1850 Truman XXX Ale 1108 14 8.14 59
19th Aug 1850 Truman XXX Ale 1108 1029.1 10.44 73.08% 14 8.48 59 77 10
Average 1105.5 1029.1 10.44 73.08% 12.40 6.73 58.6 77.0 10.0
1st Nov 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1100 1040 7.94 60.00% 6.00 3.00 1.25 1.5 55 68 8
10th Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1101 1040 8.07 60.40% 6.95 3.52 1.25 1.33 58 69 8
5th Nov 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1101 1041 7.94 59.41% 5.00 2.47 1.33 1.25 55 69 9
16th Apr 1853 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1102 1039 8.33 61.76% 8.26 4.75 1.25 56 70 8
19th Apr 1853 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1102 1033 9.13 67.65% 8.70 5.56 1.25 55 67 7
13th Dec 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1103 1040 8.33 61.17% 10.00 5.50 1.25 54 68 9
23rd Jul 1852 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1103 1040 8.33 61.17% 7.81 4.03 1 1.08 59 70 8
27th Jul 1852 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1103 1040 8.33 61.17% 7.14 3.85 1.08 1.17 59 69 8
7th Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1039 8.60 62.50% 5.24 2.86 1.5 1.25 56 69 9
15th Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1040 8.47 61.54% 5.00 2.65 1.25 1.25 56 68 9
25th Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1040 8.47 61.54% 5.00 2.79 1.25 1.25 58 68 9
6th Nov 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1040 8.47 61.54% 5.00 2.65 1.33 1.25 56 69 10
17th Nov 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1042 8.20 59.62% 5.00 2.53 1.25 1.5 55 68 9
27th Nov 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1042 8.20 59.62% 5.00 2.62 1.25 1.75 55 68 10
24th Mar 1852 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1041 8.33 60.58% 5.00 2.56 1.25 1 56 68 9
25th Mar 1852 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1104 1042 8.20 59.62% 5.00 2.50 1.17 1.08 55 68 10
25th Apr 1853 Younger, Wm. 120/- 1104 1046 7.67 55.77% 9.00 6.25 1.5 54 68 8
31st Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1105 1042 8.33 60.00% 5.00 2.59 1.25 1.5 54 69 10
4th Dec 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1105 1042 8.33 60.00% 5.66 2.82 1.25 55 69 9
26th Apr 1853 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1105 1039 8.73 62.86% 9.09 6.15 1.25 55 70 7
24th Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1106 1045 8.07 57.55% 5.00 2.95 1.25 1.33 56 69 8
12th Nov 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1106 1041 8.60 61.32% 5.00 2.58 1.25 1.25 56 69 8
26th Feb 1852 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1106 1042 8.47 60.38% 4.49 2.38 1.17 1 55 68 11
8th Oct 1851 Younger, Wm. 100/- 1108 1041 8.86 62.04% 5.24 2.89 1.33 1.17 55 69 9
Average 1103.8 1040.7 8.35 60.26% 6.19 3.44 1.26 1.27 55.8 68.6 8.8
difference -1.6 11.6 -2.09 -2.24% -6.21 -3.29 1.26 1.27 -2.9 -8.4 -1.3
Sources:
William Younger brewing record document number WY/6/1/2/5 held at the Scottish Brewing Archive
Truman brewing record document number B/THB/C/132 held at the London Metropolitan Archives


See what I mean? So many details are missing from the London beers that there's not much to compare. I'll limit myself to those items where there's enough information to work with.

Hopping rates. Now isn't this confusing. Younger's are on average much lower, which isn't what we saw in the other classes of Mild. And the spread amongst the Younger's beers is enormous: from 2.38 to 6.25 lbs per barrel. I can make no sense out of them. A couple are hopped in a way similar to the London beers, others at a much, much lower rate. For once, I don't know what to say.

Fermentation temperatures. We've only got enough data for pitching temperature. I love this. Lovely and clear, all the data nicely clumped together. I'm oozing confidence as I say: in the early 1850's Younger's Imperial Mild Ales were pitched on average about 3º F cooler than equivalent London beers.

Bit disappointing that. Not really anything much to say.

5 comments:

Barm said...

I've seen the same thing in some Tennent's logs. Hopping rates jumping about wildly with no apparent reason to it.

It makes me suspect there was some re-use of hops going on. Why else would you be using 2.5 pounds a barrel for one brew and 6 pounds for the next?

Ron Pattinson said...

Barm, I know Younger did re-use hops. But it's clearly indicated in the records. Some of their Stouts had no fresh hops at all.

I suspect some of Younger's shilling Ales were brewed as Stock Ales and others as Mild Ales, which would explain the difference in hopping rates.

Another thing to bear in mind is that the hopping rate was usually increased in the summer.

Barm said...

Now that would make sense. I'll look at the Tennent's stuff and see if what they were doing is congruent with Stock and Mild Ale.

Increased in the summer, yes, but more than doubled?

Derek Hyde said...

Summer hopping...

Doubling to compensate for the staling of hops would not be out of the question.

At 20° C (68 F) for 6 months with no barrier packaging, EKG loose 45% and Fuggles loose 37%.

Table:
http://www.brewingtechniques.com/library/backissues/issue2.1/garetztable.html#1

Full article:
http://www.brewingtechniques.com/library/backissues/issue2.1/garetz.html

Ron Pattinson said...

Derek, thanks for the information. Thing is, they kept the hops tightly packed and in a cool storeroom.