The beer had a far more interesting history than I could have imagined. And one that winds in and out of a few obsessions of mine.
Where does the story begin? At the end of the 19th century in Burton, of all places. Allsopp, deciding that Lager was going to be the next big thing, bought a state of the art Lager brewery from the USA. It opened in 1899, just as Allsopp was starting to get into serious financial difficulties. They did have a degree of success with their Lager, especially in export markets, but their Pale Ale trade collapsed. Between 1900 and 1910 Allsopp's sales fell by 40%. By 1911 a receiver had been appointed to run the business.
In 1912, John Calder of Calder's Brewery in Alloa was brought in to run Allsopp. This forged a link between Allsopp and Alloa that was to play a key role in the later formation of Allied Breweries. It also brought Lager brewing to Alloa, for in 1921 Allsopp's Lager plant, which had lain idle in Burton, was moved to Arrol's Brewery, where John Calder was also a director. In 1927 a new beer was brewed in Arrol's Lager brewery - Graham's Golden Lager.
It was a big success. As Arrol's were brewing all their Lagers, it's no surprise that Allsopp's took a controlling interest in the company in 1930, even before their 1934 merger with Ind Coope. Arrol's was completely bought out in 1951 and the brewery converted to a Lager-only plant.
In 1959, Graham's Golden Lager was rebranded ads Skol, though for a while it had the ungainly name of Graham's Skol Lager. It became the main Lager of Ind Coope and later the whole Allied Breweries group. Allied Breweries set up an international consortium in 1964 to brew Skol abroad and soon it was being made in more than a dozen countries. And, though British Skol went to the great cellar in the sky, it's still brewed in several countries.
That's got the history out of the way. Now we can get onto the beer itself. Luckily, I've quite a few analyses from across the years.
Graham's Golden Lager / Skol 1933 - 1994
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Year
|
Brewer
|
Beer
|
Price
|
size
|
package
|
Acidity
|
FG
|
OG
|
colour
|
ABV
|
App.
Atten-uation
|
1933
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Graham's Golden Lager
|
pint
|
bottled
|
1010.5
|
1044.5
|
4.42
|
76.40%
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|||
1939
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Graham's Golden Lager
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1008.6
|
1045.2
|
8.5
|
4.77
|
80.97%
|
||
1950
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Graham's Golden Lager
|
15d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.05
|
1010.6
|
1040.6
|
9
|
3.89
|
73.89%
|
1952
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Graham's Golden Lager
|
15d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1014.3
|
1039.2
|
15
|
3.22
|
63.52%
|
1957
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Graham's Pilsener Lager
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20d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1007.2
|
1035.6
|
9
|
3.69
|
79.78%
|
1957
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Graham's Golden Lager
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1007.3
|
1030.4
|
11
|
3.00
|
75.99%
|
|
1960
|
Alloa Brewery
|
Skol Pilsner Lager
|
18d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1007
|
1033.4
|
8
|
3.30
|
79.04%
|
1961
|
Ind Coope
|
Grahams Skol
|
20d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.03
|
1007.2
|
1033.6
|
9.5
|
3.30
|
78.57%
|
1961
|
Ind Coope
|
Grahams Skol
|
20d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.03
|
1007.2
|
1033.6
|
9.5
|
3.43
|
78.57%
|
1962
|
Ind Coope
|
Skol Export
|
24d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1008.3
|
1035.4
|
8
|
3.52
|
76.55%
|
1962
|
Ind Coope
|
Skol Pilsener
|
19d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1006.4
|
1033.9
|
7
|
3.57
|
81.12%
|
1963
|
Ind Coope
|
Skol Pilsener
|
21d
|
half
|
bottled
|
0.04
|
1006.5
|
1033.6
|
8.5
|
3.52
|
80.65%
|
1972
|
Allied Breweries
|
Skol
|
15p
|
pint
|
draught
|
1007
|
1033.2
|
3.40
|
78.92%
|
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1994
|
Ind Coope (Burton)
|
Skol Lager
|
pint
|
bottled
|
3.60
|
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Sources:
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Thomas Usher Gravity Book document TU/6/11
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Whitbread
Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number
LMA/4453/D/02/001
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Whitbread
Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number
LMA/4453/D/02/002
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Daily Mirror July 10th 1972, page 15
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The Best of British Bottled Beer
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The first thing that strikes me is the gravity. Up until 1952, the gravity is above the average for all beer brewed in the UK. Soon after the complete takeover of Arrols by Ind Coope (coincidence?), the gravity drops below the average and remains around 11% below it.
Skol OG
and average OG
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year
|
Skol OG
|
average
OG
|
difference
|
1933
|
1044.5
|
1039.52
|
11.19%
|
1939
|
1045.2
|
1040.93
|
9.45%
|
1950
|
1040.6
|
1033.88
|
16.55%
|
1952
|
1039.2
|
1037.07
|
5.43%
|
1957
|
1035.6
|
1037.42
|
-5.11%
|
1957
|
1030.4
|
1037.42
|
-23.09%
|
1960
|
1033.4
|
1037.25
|
-11.53%
|
1961
|
1033.6
|
1037.41
|
-11.34%
|
1961
|
1033.6
|
1037.70
|
-12.20%
|
1962
|
1035.4
|
1037.70
|
-6.50%
|
1962
|
1033.9
|
1037.70
|
-11.21%
|
1963
|
1033.6
|
1037.70
|
-12.20%
|
1972
|
1033.2
|
1036.90
|
-11.14%
|
Sources:
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Brewers'
Almanack 1955, p. 50
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Brewers'
Almanack 1962, p. 48
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Brewers'
Almanack 1971, p. 45
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Statistical
Handbook of the British Beer & Pub Association 2005, p. 7
|
To give some idea of just how bad value for money Skol was, in 1962 a half pint bottle of Double Diamond cost 15d, 4d less that Skol though its gravity was 13 points higher at 1047º. remeber that Double Diamond was a heavily-promoted, premium product. A pint of Ind Coope Mild Ale, with a gravity almost exactly the same as Skol, cost just 14d that year. Or less than half the price for the same amount of alcohol. It makes you realise why large breweries pushed Lager and neglected Mild.
Which has prompted me to think of another reason beer styles decline and die. When a style becomes the most popular, it's very difficult to keep selling it as a premium price. It's new types of beer, fashionable ones, that can demand a higher price. So there's a clear financial incentive for brewers to push the new at the expense of the old.
13 comments:
The Skol gravity drop is also post-WW2, which could be relevant.
Bryan, I'd have expected the drop in gravity to be earlier, in the period 1940 to 1949. That's when the gravity of most beers fell significantly.
Kind of a two-stage drop though, isn't it? Around 1045 pre-war dropping to ~1040 post-war, then dropping again to ~1033 once it becomes Skol.
Methinks a graph is needed... (-:
Ron,
I had found some Limited Edition strong Lager Skol QEII 1977 in the basement vaults at the Allsopp's brewery in Burton. Next time were together, let's try it. Wondering if you had any gravities on that brewing? Strong Lager probably in the 8% abv range I am guessing.
Arctic, no, not got that one. Only something called Skol Extra Strength 1080 which was around in the 1990's. That was 8.5% ABV.
I wonder how the QEII is drinking now?
You can see the same phenomenon happening again today, with keg versions of some beers selling for substantially more than the cask version. Can't say I blame the brewers. If I were them I'd also want to be in the segment of the market selling beer for £4.50 a pint rather than the one selling it for £3 a pint.
What I have always wondered is who Graham was?
Barm, according to "Alloa Ale" by Charles McMaster:
"The name 'Graham's' was supposedly derived both from Colonel Graham, who was at that time Allsopp's agent in London and the South East, and Willie Graham, the erstwhile Town Clerk of Alloa!"
Not sure I believe that, but it's the only explanation I have.
Could the name Graham not be that of Charles Graham 1836-1909, a chemist who lectured on the science of brewing ?
Mac, I'd wondered about that. Because he kept banging on a bout how much better Lager was than British-style beers.
Bryan,
Thank you very much!!!
a few days looking for the origin of Skol International Ltd., and it was a labyrinth. Now I can finally know that the origin was a lager produced by Arrol's brewery branded as Graham's Golden Lager and rebranded ads Skol. After that, everything is clear, the union of breweries in Allied Breweries, etc...
Miguel
Hi Ron,
I am looking for old Skol bottle and tray which produced by Alloa or Ind Coope.Do you have or know where to get it?
thank you
andre
Andre,
no, I'm afraid I don't.
Sorry.
It was a natural progression for Allsopps to take over Arrols.
John J Calder was managing director of each as well as that of his own family business, J Calder & Son (1905).
Calder had closed his Shore brewery in Alloa in 1921 and moved ale and stout production up the road to nearby Arrols which he was also de facto boss having been appointed to the board just after WW1.
He had been resurrecting Allsopps since 1912, having been called in by the receiver to save this famous but failing brewery.
He moved the Burton lager plant to Alloa by rail in 1921 and six years later started marketing Grahams Golden Lager as direct follow on from Allsopps lager. So, when the opportunity arose it was Arrols who passed into the history books as Allsopps prevailed - before Ind Coope came into the equation.
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