Saturday 24 August 2013

Bottled beer in the 1840's

Northern Liberator, Saturday 12 December 1840, page 8.
I been done me some thinking again. It was that article of Lott about bottled beer. The types of Ale that he said were bottled. "I've got a spreadsheet of details taken form price lists. Let's see what bottled beers are in there." That was my thought. Nothing that's going to rewrite human history. But it's mine.

The spreadsheet has over 3,500 entries. Best I cut it down into more digestible chunks by limiting it by date. So we're going to start with the first bottled beers I have, from the 1840's. And what a fascinating bunch they are. That tell quite a story.

I don't have a huge number of examples, only 50-odd in total. And quite a large number of those are for a single brewery, Aitchison. Though that in itself tells a story.  It's no coincidence that a Scottish brewery should feature so prominently in the table. Because Scotland was the part of Britain where bottled beer became common the earliest.

Surprisingly, much Scottish was already being packaged in bottled form in the 18th century. More than 100 years before the rise in popularity of bottled beer in England.

But my mean reason for putting together the table below was to see which styles were being bottled. It provides some confirmation of Lott's assertion that the only Ales bottled were IPA, Mild Ale and Strong Ale.

First, I need to explain a little about the styles I've assigned to the beers, in particular those of Aitchison. I've ended up calling most of them "Edinburgh Ale", though some could equally well be classified as Strong Ale and others as Mild Ale. The problem is that it's not always possible to tell which group a beer belongs in by the description. Is "Superior Ale" a Mild Ale or a Strong Ale? I've no idea. Of course, it could be both.

 Newcastle Courant, Friday 17 April 1840, page 1
You can see that there was still a certain fluidity in the name given to IPA, with Pale India Ale, Pale Export India Beer and India Ale being used as well as the later standard India Pale Ale and East India Pale Ale. There's an intriguing set of brewers for the IPA's - Bass and Allsopp from Burton, Hodgson & Abbott of London, plus the Scottish brewers Aitchison and Tennent. It's an indication of just how quickly some Scottish brewers started brewing IPA.

There are, indeed, quite a few Strong Ales in the table. Especially when you consider many of the ones I've classified as Edinburgh Ales are also Strong Ales. Even more confusingly, the only beers identified as Mild Ales are also pretty strong, as shown by the prices of 5 and 7 guineas per hogshead. That makes them 105 shillings and 147 shillings respectively. In 1847, William Younger's 100/- had an OG of 1090º and their 140/- one of 1112º*. I assume Aitchison's Mild Ales were of a similar strength.

As I would have expected, there are several Stouts, including Guinness. Their beers were mostly sold in bottled form in England. By the 1840's, Guinness was already selling over 40,000 barrels of Stout annually in England. Sales grew exponentially in the second half of the 19th century, as this table shows.


Guinness Extra Stout sales 1840 - 1890 (barrels)
1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900
GB 42,209 44,410 82,690 178,556 207,695 352,109 458,630
Ireland 25,021 26,979 52,594 93,854 201,348 261,359 437,613
Total 67,230 71,389 135,284 272,410 409,043 613,468 896,243
Source:
A Bottle of Guinness, Please by David Hughes, pages 276-279.

The most unexpected beers are the Scottish Table Ale and Dinner Ale. These would have been very low gravity beers for the period. William Younger's Table Ale was between 1033º and 1037º in 1847*. I would be surprised if Aichison's were over 1040º. Scottish brewers had a good reputation for Table Ale and sold quite a lot of it in England. Part of the description probably explains why such a weak beer could be bottled successfully: "highly hopped."

I think that's me all explained out. There's nothing left for me but to leave you with the table:

Bottled beers in the 1840's
Brewery Place year beer style price per dozen size source
S. Bloxsome & Company Bristol 1849 Alloa Scotch Dinner Ale Dinner Ale 2s 6d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Aitchison Edinburgh 1840 Edinburgh Ale, strongest and best made Edinburgh Ale 8s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 17 April 1840. page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1840 Strong Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 6s reputed quart? Northern Liberator - Saturday 12 December 1840, page 8.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1840 Superior Ale Edinburgh Ale 4s 6d reputed quart? Northern Liberator - Saturday 12 December 1840, page 8.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1842 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 4s quart Morning Post (London) - Monday 04 April 1842, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1842 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 6s quart Morning Post (London) - Monday 04 April 1842, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1842 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 8s quart Morning Post (London) - Monday 04 April 1842, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Splendid Edinburgh Ale, Strongest Edinburgh Ale 6s reputed quart? Newcastle Journal - Saturday 06 May 1843, page 2.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Fine Pale Edinburgh Ale  Edinburgh Ale 4s 6d reputed quart? Newcastle Journal - Saturday 06 May 1843, page 2.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Splendid Ale Edinburgh Ale 4s 6d reputed quart? Newcastle Journal - Saturday 05 August 1843, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Strongest Ale Edinburgh Ale 6s reputed quart? Newcastle Journal - Saturday 05 August 1843, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Prime Strong Ale (Old Bottle 1) Edinburgh Ale 6s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 22 December 1843, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Prime Strong Ale (Old Bottle 1) Edinburgh Ale 4s 6d reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 22 December 1843, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1844 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 3s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 10 May 1844, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1844 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 4s 6d reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 10 May 1844, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1844 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 6s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 10 May 1844, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1846 Rich Flavoured Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 4s 6d reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 19 June 1846, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1846 Strongest and Best Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 6s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 19 June 1846, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1848 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 3s 6d pint Hampshire Advertiser - Saturday 25 November 1848, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1848 Edinburgh Ale Edinburgh Ale 6s quart Hampshire Advertiser - Saturday 25 November 1848, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1840 Highly hopped and attenuated India Ale IPA 3s reputed quart? Northern Liberator - Saturday 12 December 1840, page 8.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1842 Pale India Beer IPA 4s quart Morning Post (London) - Monday 04 April 1842, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 India Pale Ale, much esteemed  IPA 3s reputed quart? Newcastle Journal - Saturday 06 May 1843, page 2.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Superior India Pale Ale IPA 3s reputed quart? Newcastle Journal - Saturday 05 August 1843, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1843 Pale India Ale IPA 3s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 22 December 1843, page 1.
Allsopp Burton 1845 India Pale Ale IPA 5s quart Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Allsopp Burton 1845 India Pale Ale IPA 2s 6d pint Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1845 Pale Export India Beer IPA 3s quart Newcastle Courant - Friday 09 May 1845, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1846 Pale Export India Beer IPA 3s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 19 June 1846, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1848 Pale India Ale IPA 3s 6d pint Hampshire Advertiser - Saturday 25 November 1848, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1848 Pale India Ale IPA 6s quart Hampshire Advertiser - Saturday 25 November 1848, page 1.
S. Bloxsome & Company Bristol 1849 East India Pale Ale IPA 3s 6d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Bass Burton 1849 East India Pale Ale IPA 4s "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Hodgson & Abbott London 1849 India Ale IPA 4s 6d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Tennent Glasgow 1849 India Pale Ale IPA 4s quart Glasgow Herald - Friday 22 June 1849, page 3.
Tennent Glasgow 1849 India Pale Ale IPA 2s 6d pint Glasgow Herald - Friday 22 June 1849, page 3.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1845 Mild Ale (5 guineas a hogshead) Mild Ale 4s 6d quart Newcastle Courant - Friday 09 May 1845, page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1845 Mild Ale (7 guineas a hogshead) Mild Ale 6s quart Newcastle Courant - Friday 09 May 1845, page 1.
S. Bloxsome & Company Bristol 1849 Dursley Pale Ale Pale Ale 2s 6d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Unknown Dublin 1845 XX Dublin Porter Porter 4s quart Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Unknown Dublin 1845 XX Dublin Porter Porter 2s pint Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Unknown London 1849 Brown Stout Porter Porter 2s 9d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Georges Bristol 1849 Strong Old Porter Porter 4s "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Guinness Dublin 1845 Extra Stout Stout 5s quart Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Guinness Dublin 1845 Extra Stout Stout 2s 6d pint Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Unknown London 1849 Extra Brown Stout Stout 4s "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Unknown Dublin 1849 Extra Stout Stout 3s 4d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Allsopp Burton 1845 Burton Strong Ale Strong Ale 6s quart Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
Allsopp Burton 1845 Burton Strong Ale Strong Ale 3s pint Glasgow Herald - Monday 20 October 1845, page 2.
S. Bloxsome & Company Bristol 1849 Strong October Beer Strong Ale 4s 6d "Chilcott's descriptive history of Bristol", by John Chilcott, 1849
Aitchison Edinburgh 1840 Edinburgh Table Ale, highly Hopped, an excellent Stomachic Table Ale 3s reputed quart? Newcastle Courant - Friday 17 April 1840. page 1.
Aitchison Edinburgh 1840 High hopped Table Ale Table Ale 3s reputed quart? Northern Liberator - Saturday 12 December 1840, page 8.






* William Younger brewing record held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number WY/6/1/2/3.

2 comments:

kaiserhog said...

Wasn't a lot of export ale from Scotland destined for the Southern Ports of Charleston, Savannah and Mobile? Indicating that the landed gentry of the South retained a taste for Ale or were slow to attain a taste for lager.

Ron Pattinson said...

KAiserhog,

Scottish beer went all over the world. Large quantities were exported to Australia towards the nd of the 19th century.