Wednesday 21 October 2020

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1911 Heineken Lagerbier

A slight change of pace today, as I go with a Lager recipe. Just for a change. And a Dutch Lager, at that.

As well as expensive beers like Pils and Beiersch, Heineken also had some more attractively priced products.

Just as you had Gerste as a cheap Dark Lager, so you had Lagerbier as a low-budget Pale Lager. You can see all Heineken’s prices here:


Heineken wholesale prices 1904 - 1914
beer type cents per litre
Gerstebier 8
Lager 8
Rotterdamsche Gerste 11
Münchener 14
Export 14
Beiersch (donker) 13
Pilsner (licht) 13
Bock 15
Source:
1904-1914 - "Korte Geschiedenis der Heineken's Bierbouwerij Maatschappij N.V. 1873 - 1948" (p.218)

The Gerste whose recipe is a few pages back was the more expensive Rotterdamsche Gerste. You can see that this beer, as just 8 cents a litre, was one of Heineken’s cheapest.

Its successor, Licht Lagerbier was brewed in the interwar years but looks like it was killed off by WW II. After the German occupation, the gravities of Heineken’s beers rapidly fell and by October 1943 it had an OG of just 3.9º Plato (1016º).

It’s another very uncomplicated recipe, just pilsner malt and hops.

1911 Heineken Lagerbier
pilsner malt 2 row 8.25 lb 100.00%
Hallertau 90 mins 1.25 oz
OG 1037
FG 1011
ABV 3.44
Apparent attenuation 70.27%
IBU 19
SRM 3
Mash double decoction  
Boil time 90 minutes
pitching temp 48º F
Yeast WLP830 German Lager

 This, and many other wonderful Lager recipes, features in Let's Brew!

http://www.lulu.com/shop/ronald-pattinson/lets-brew/paperback/product-23289812.html 


 



1 comment:

StuartP said...

It may have been cheap, but they did it right with a double decoction. Nice.