This is a beer of the most old-fashioned type of 60/-. That is, a Scottish Ale of what I call a Shilling Ale. Basically the Scottish equivalent of Mild Ale, but often sold bottled rather than on draught. Though I’ve never seen a 19th-century English Mild as weak as this beer. Down in London, they didn’t brew anything much under 1050º.
As usual, the hop varieties are a guess. The brewing record just lists them as Kent and Sussex. Feel free to change them around, as long as you stick with English ones.
I’m not going to bore you with too much chatter. It’s a simple beer, containing just pale malt and sugar. Which makes it typical of Scottish beer of this period. As does the crappy degree of attenuation.
| 1894 Thomas Usher 60/- | ||
| pale malt | 5.75 lb | 74.19% |
| No. 2 invert sugar | 2.00 lb | 25.81% |
| Fuggles 90 min | 0.50 oz | |
| Fuggles 60 min | 0.50 oz | |
| Goldings 30 min | 0.50 oz | |
| OG | 1040 | |
| FG | 1018 | |
| ABV | 2.91 | |
| Apparent attenuation | 55.00% | |
| IBU | 20 | |
| SRM | 8 | |
| Mash at | 146º F | |
| Sparge at | 170º F | |
| Boil time | 120 minutes | |
| pitching temp | 60º F | |
| Yeast | WLP028 Edinburgh Ale | |
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6 comments:
All that sugar, super low mash temperature, and STILL only 55% attenuation. What were they doing to their yeast?!
Good question. Could it be that 19th century pale malt wasn't very good at converting starches?
CJD: I have no idea how to achieve those attenuations in practice either
Danstar Windsor yeast often attenuates in the lower 60's but not with that much sugar in the wort.
Jo Olluyn: Good point, I hadn't considered that it could be the malt.
David Boshko: Come to think of it, I remember hearing people complain about Windsor having poor attenuation.
J. Karanka: Maybe using a poorly converting malt (as Jo Olluyn suggests) and radically underpitching a poorly attenuation yeast (like the Windsor that David Boshko mentioned) would do it? Or transferring the beer to secondary and cold crashing it as soon as it reaches 55% attenuation?
How the hops can you attenuate that low?!
CJD suggests under pitch and cold crashing, but windsor, or white labs 002, they are going to leave diacytal behind like crazy if you do that!
And where can I get this poorly converting malt? The poorest I can get is straight Marris otter, and this years crop is throwing at least an additional 5 points, and that's over the 50/50 blend Munton's was exporting aast year.
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