Thursday 12 May 2016

Call for cheaper beer

I think that’s something we could all agree on. Who wouldn’t want cheaper beer?

But this article isn’t what it first appears to be. It’s not si much a call for cheaper beer as weaker beer. I’ll explain why after.

CALL FOR A CHEAPER BEER
At a special meeting yesterday the board of the Licensed Victuallers’ Central Protection Society of London was agreed to recommend to the brewers the brewing of standard 6d. mild ale instead of a 7d. beer, which it was felt would generally beyond the reach of the working man.

In those areas where a lower-price beer was in demand it was recommended that Beer should brewed for sale at 5d. per pint.”
Portsmouth Evening News - Wednesday 16 September 1931, page 3.

You have to understand the context. This is just after the disastrous Snowden emergency budget of 1931. It put the price of beer up by about 1d a pint,. The strongest type of Mild Ale, which sold for 6d a pint, went up to 7d. Or would have, if brewers hadn’t cut the strength so they could still charge the old price.

Do I have any evidence of this? Of course I do. Lots of it.

This is how Milds looked in 1930:

Mild Ale in 1930
Year Brewer Beer Price OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation
1930 Leney & Co L.A. 4d 1025 1007.4 2.28 70.40%
1930 Buddon Bigg Ale 4d 1026.5
1930 Mackeson L.A. 4d 1027 1005.4 2.80 80.00%
1930 Portsmouth & Brighton Breweries L.A. 4d 1027 1001.9 3.27 92.96%
1930 Whitbread LA 4d 1027.2 1010.0 2.28 63.27%
1930 Style & Winch Ale 4d 1028.2
1930 Shepherd Neame Ale 4d 1028.5
1929 Barclay Perkins A 4d 1028.7 1007.5 2.80 73.83%
1930 Mason Ale 4d 1030.4
1930 Tamplin L.A. 4d 1031 1007.4 3.06 76.13%
1930 Isleworth Brewery RA 4d 1032 1011.2 2.69 65.00%
1930 Kemp Town L.A. 4d 1034 1006.7 3.55 80.29%
1930 Fremlin Ale 4d 1035.7
average 4d 1029.3 1007.2 2.84 75.24%
1930 Hammerton Ale 5d 1033.7
1930 Wells Watford Ale 5d 1033.7
1930 Courage X 5d 1035 1009.5 3.30 72.86%
1930 Wenlock Ale 5d 1036.1
1930 Cannon Ale 5d 1039.7
average 5d 1035.6 1009.5 3.30 72.86%
1930 Truman X 6d 1042 1008.9 4.30 78.81%
1930 Whitbread X 6d 1042.4 1010.0 4.28 76.40%
1929 Barclay Perkins X 6d 1042.6 1012.5 3.98 70.65%
1930 Mann Crossman X 6d 1044 1007.2 4.80 83.64%
1930 Taylor Walker X 6d 1044 1013.3 3.98 69.77%
1930 Watney X 6d 1044 1011 4.28 75.00%
1930 Hoare X 6d 1046 1014.4 4.09 68.70%
average 6d 1043.6 1011.0 4.25 74.71%
Sources:
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/001.
Whitbread brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numberLMA/4453/D/01/096.
Truman Gravity Book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/252
Barclay Perkins brewing records


And this is what they were like in 1932:

Mild Ale in 1930
Year Brewer Beer Price OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation
1932 Wells Watford Ale 4.5d 1028.7
1932 Truman Ale 4d 1029.07
1932 Whitbread LA 5d 1026.0 1006.5 2.58 75.00%
1932 Watney Ale 5d 1028.8
1932 Fullers Ale 5d 1030.1
1932 Ind Coope Ale 5d 1030.7
1932 Young & Co Ale 5d 1032.8
average 5d 1029.6 1006.5 2.58 75.00%
1932 Hammerton Ale 6.5d 1032 1006.4 3.32 80.00%
1932 Whitbread X 6d 1032.6 1009.0 3.12 72.39%
1932 Cannon Brewery X 6d 1034 1012.2 2.82 64.12%
1932 Taylor Walker X 6d 1034 1013.4 2.66 60.59%
1932 Watney X 6d 1034 1010.2 3.08 70.00%
1932 Charrington X 6d 1035 1011 3.11 68.57%
1932 Courage X 6d 1035 1012.2 2.95 65.14%
1932 Mann Crossman X 6d 1035 1009.6 3.29 72.57%
1932 Meux X 6d 1035.5
1932 Barclay Perkins X 6d 1036 1009.3 3.46 74.17%
1932 Truman X 6d 1036 1008.8 3.53 75.56%
1932 Hoare X 6d 1038 1008.9 3.78 76.58%
1932 Wenlock X 6d 1038 1012.2 3.34 67.89%
1932 Mann Crossman X 6d 1041 1010.4 3.97 74.63%
average 6d 1035.4 1010.3 3.26 70.94%
1932 Whitbread XX 7d 1039.0 1012.5 3.51 67.95%
1932 Taylor Walker XXX 9d 1048 1015.4 4.22 67.92%
Sources:
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/001.
Whitbread brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numberLMA/4453/D/01/098.
Truman Gravity Book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/252


You can see that in 1932 the average gravity of 5d Milds was virtually identical to the average gravity of 4d Milds in 1930. And a 1932 6d Mild was the same as a 1930 5d Mild.

Note how few examples there are of 7d Mild – just one. Though top marks to Taylor Walker for having a Mild almost of pre-EWW I strength.

2 comments:

Lady Luck Brewing said...

Haven't seen a Taylor Walker recipe. Do you ever come across those logs?

Ron Pattinson said...

Lady Luck,

I don't think any Taylor Walker records survive.