Sunday 3 June 2018

Draught Scottish 60/- Pale Ale 1949 - 1959

One of the big difference between Scottish beer and English beer i the immediate post-WW II period was that sytyles were much more formalised.

While English Bitters tended to be all over the shop in terms of OG, from 1028º to 1050º, there was a more rigid system of names and strength North of the border. In England, Best Bitter was a very vague term and really didn't tell you a whole lot about a beer's strength.  If the brewery brewed an Ordinary Bitter, too, then at least you could assume the Best Bitter was stronger. But there were plenty of beers called Best Bitter that were only 1036º or so.

Not so in Scotland. If you ordered a Light (or 60/-) you knew you were going to get a beer of around 3% ABV. Though what colour it was depended on where you were drinking it. Light was, irinically enough, often coloured to be dark brown. But not always.

I always assumed 60/- was just the Scottish version of Dark Mild. Whereas it's really just a weak Pale Ale. Lightly hopped, and dark, it did a pretty good job of impersonating Dark Mild. And did indded fill Mild's slot on the bar. Genuine Mild, however, was pretty well stone dead in Scotland after WW II. William Younger is the only brewery I've come across who brewed one. Presumably because they had tioed houses in England.

70/- next.

Draught Scottish 60/- Pale Ale 1949 - 1959
Year Brewer Beer Price per pint (d) OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation colour
1949 Aitken 60/- 15 1030.5 1007 3.05 77.05%
1958 Bernard No. 3 1031 1010 2.72 67.74%
1949 Campbell, Hope & King 90/-  1031.5 1006 3.31 80.95%
1948 Fowler 54/- Ale 1028 1007 2.72 75.00%
1949 Mackay 90/-  1031 1004 3.51 87.10%
1951 Maclay PA 6d 1031 1012 2.51 61.29%
1953 Steel Coulson P. 60/- 14 1030
1947 Usher PA 60/- 1029.5 1010.5 2.45 64.41%
1959 Wm. Younger XXP Bitter 22 1030.4 1005.7 3.21 81.25% 21
Average 1030.3 1007.8 2.94 74.35%
Sources:
Thomas Usher Gravity Book held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number TU/6/11.
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/002.
T & J Bernard's brewing records held at the Scottish Brewing Archive.
Maclay brewing record held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number M/6/1/1/28
document from the Steel Coulson archive held at the Scottish Brewing Archives

2 comments:

Tandleman said...

Went there a couple of years agoand enjoyed it. Going back again this year too. You going to be there?

Ron Pattinson said...

Tandleman,

do you mean the Berliner Biermeile? If so, yes.