Let's Brew Wednesday - 1941 Barclay Perkins Dark Lager

The people have spoken once again. After an early lead, Bock wasn't able to hold off a late run from Dunkles.

Good news for me, as it gives me a chance to preview (use a recipe I've already written) a recipe from "Blitzkrieg!". Though for any of the four options I could have found a recipe in the book. For a book about UK brewing in WW II, it has quite a lot of Lager recipes. 37 in all. Though there are well over 500 recipes in total. Not that huge a percentage, really.

Lucky old Dark Lager has seen its gravity increase by 0.5º compared with the previous year.

The grist is essentially identical to the previous year’s. Except the lager malt is now from two different English maltsters.

They weren’t brewing a great deal of Dark Lager. This was gyle 101 overall, but only the second brew of Dark that year. 2% of their Lager output wasn’t a huge amount of beer.

The mashing scheme remains much the same, though it isn’t specified when the grain was added. Perhaps they didn’t need to, as it was now all going in at the start. As in the case of Sparkling Beer.

mash in	129º F	30 minutes
raise to	158º F	30 minutes
raise to	170º F
hold at	170º F	35 minutes
Sparge at	175º F

It looks like stocks of Bohemian Saaz had finally been exhausted. There are still Belgian Saaz from the 1939 crop and Fuggles, also from 1939. Both cold stored. 

1941 Barclay Perkins Dark Lager
lager malt	10.00 lb	78.43%
crystal malt 80 L	2.50 lb	19.61%
roast barley	0.25 lb	1.96%
Fuggles 90 mins	0.75 oz
Saaz 30 mins	0.75 oz
OG	1056
FG	1017
ABV	5.16
Apparent attenuation	69.64%
IBU	15.5
SRM	19
Mash at	158º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	46º F
Yeast	Wyeast 2042 Danish lager

DDR Dunkles

When I was hanging around in the DDR in the 1980s, I mostly only came across a few styles of beer. Helles, Pilsner and the occasional Bock. And in Berlin, Berliner Weisse.

Other types of beer did exist. I know that both from label images and from the DDR standards for beer. The standards document, TGL 7764, is wonderfully useful for seeing the full diversity of beers brewed. Even though, I might add, I never saw most of them.

DDR beer styles 1987 - 1990
Type	OG Plato	ABV	App. Atten-uation	CO2 Content	Isohumulon Content	EBC colour
	%	%	%	% min.	Mg/l
Dunkel (Einfachbier)	5.7 - 6.2	1.84	55 - 65	0.35	3 - 11	min 79
Alkoholfreies Bier	6.5 - 7.0		10 - 15	0.42	22 - 28	max 12
Weissbier	7.0 - 8.0	2.90	min 75	0.60	nothing specified	9 - 15
Extra	8.5 - 9.0	3.41	min 75	0.45	22 - 34	max 12
Hell	9.5 - 10.0	3.82	min 75	0.40	16 - 26	max 14
Edel-Bräu Hell	10.5 - 11.0	4.23	min 75	0.42	16 - 28	max 14
Dunkel (Vollbier)	10.0 - 10.5	4.02	min 75	0.40	16 - 26	min 79
Doppel-Karamelbier	11.7 - 12.2	0.63 - 1.5	nothing specified	0.42	3 - 10	min 93
Schwarzbier	11.7 - 12.2	4.12	60 - 70	0.42	20 - 34	min 160
Deutsches Pilsner	10.5 - 11.0	4.23	min 75	0.40	22 - 34	max 12
Diabetiker-Pils	10.0 - 10.5			0.42	22 - 34	max 13
Lagerbier Hell	11.5 - 12.0	4.65	min 75	0.42	20 - 34	max 31
Lagerbier Dunkel	11.5 - 12.0	4.65	min 75	0.42	14 - 26	min 40
Lagerbier Spezial	11.5 - 12.0	4.65	min 75	0.42	20 - 34	max 31
Lagerbier Dunkel Spezial	11.5 - 12.0	4.65	min 75	0.42	14 - 26	min 40
Deutsches Pilsator	11.5 - 12.0	4.83	min 78	0.42	26 - 39	max 12
Deutsches Pilsner Spezial	11.5 - 12.0	4.83	min 78	0.42	26 - 39	max 12
Spitzenbier	12.0 - 12.5	4.86	min 73	0.45	28 - 40	max 18
Märzen	13.5 - 14.0	5.13	min 70	0.42	20 - 34	max 110
Weißer Bock oder Bockbier Hell	15.0 - 15.5	5.86	68 - 75	0.40	14 - 26	21 - 43
Dunkler Bock oder Bockbier Dunkel	15.0 - 15.5	5.62	65 - 72	0.40	10 - 25	min 83
Deutscher Porter	17.5 - 18.0	6.10	min 64	0.42	35 - 50	min 160
Source:
TGL 7764

The isohumulon content is pretty much the same as IBU. Which is interesting to know.

The sharp-eyed amongst you might have noticed that there were in fact three types of Dunkles: Dunkles Vollbier, Lagerbier Dunkel and Lagerbier Dunkel Spezial. Though the specs for the last two are identical.

I think that the odd Dunkles is still brewed in the former DDR. But they aren't very common. Schwarzbier seems to be the most popular type of Dark Lager in the East currently. Despite having been a very obscure style before 1990.

I'll finish with some lovely labels. You might notice something unusual about them. They come in a variety of colours. Usually, the colour of the label was specified in the standards. But not for Dunkles, leaving it a free for all.

 

Dark Lager Day

No, not a new celebratory day for one of my favourite types of beer. Rather, a requirement imposed on publicans in wartime Holland. Yes, I'm back with that again. Using, as ever, the CBK minutes as my source.

I do love a good Dark Lager. As a Mild drinker, I sought out the darker-hued beers in my first forays into Bavaria. There's a very specific flavour in a good Bavarian Dunkles for which I've never come up with a good description. It's sort of nutty, but not quite. I've always assumed it came from a specific type of dark malt, but I could be wrong. I haven't the palate of a professional brewer.

I wish Augustiner would serve their Dunkles the "Bayerischer Anstich" way (straight from the cask). Don't get me wrong, I like the keg version. Knowing how much the old-fashioned dispense improves their Helles, cask Dunkles would be a knockout.

The robustly simple Dunkles brewed by Frau Hofmann out in the Franconian sticks.  What a great afternoon that was with Andy and Jeff Bell in - wow was it that long ago? - 2007.

Apologies for the digression. Just some great memories came back I when started thinking about Dark Lager.

Back to the imposition of Dark Lager Day in Rotterdam. Its March 1941. Nazi forces have occupied the country for almost a year. Time to make Rotterdam suffer some more. I don't mean that. Just wondering why specifically Rotterdam was singled out. Why not Amsterdam and The Hague as well?

Let's see what the CBK (Dutch brewers' organisation) planned:

"VI. SALE OF LIGHT AND DARK BEER IN ROTTERDAM.
Mr Zylker says that at a meeting of cafe owners in Rotterdam, at the suggestion of the H.B.M. it was decided to sell only Dark Lager beer one day a week. The H.B.M. would then consult with the other breweries to support such an arrangement through sanctions.

In the Speaker's opinion, this proposal from the H.B.M. is only enforceable, if the C.B.K, supports it, possibly by laying down this matter in regulations. The sanction should then consist of the exclusion of violating café owners from beer supply.

De Heer Six thinks that in the summer in the Netherlands there will be one or more beer-free days in the cafes. A Dark Lager day then takes on the meaning of a transitional measure towards a beerless day. Speaker is for a Dark Lager day.

The speaker went on to say that even rural innkeepers already ask for a Dark Lager day, while the concept of a beerless day is already alive with them.

Mr. Zylker says he has no objections to a Dark Lager day. However, in addition, a regulation will have to be made in Rotterdam with regard to Light Lager, since in the current circumstances it is impossible to maintain the Light Lager ban any longer.
Minutes of the management of the CBK on 26th March 1941, held at the Amsterdam City Archives, document number 31121-1, page 211.

H.B.M. is Heineken, in case you were wondering. Which, as I'm sure you remember, had a big brewery in Rotterdam.

I suppose I should explain what Dark Lager (Donker Lagerbier) and Light Lager (Licht Lagerbier) were. Relatively low-gravity by continental standards, at just 3.5% ABV when the panzers rolled over the eastern border. At this point, March 1941, it was a feeble 2.4% ABV.

Brewers and pub owners agreed: one day a week, nothing but Dark Lager. That didn't mean any old old dark beer. They specifically mean Donker Lagerbier. Which meant that not only were drinkers being limited in their choice of colour, but also strength. As the option of Pilsner was denied.

Then another problem pops up: the ban on Light Lager. What the hell was that about? A ban on Licht Lagerbier? What did they have against Rotterdam? Find out next time.

Correct mashing scheme for Heineken Beiersch

Since getting hold of the detailed brewing records from Heineken's pilot plant, I'm having to go back and modify the recipes I've published. The process has kicked off with their Münchener. For the simple reason that it's the first beer in the brewing book.

Mt guess that it was double decocted turned out to wrong. In reality, a triple decoction was performed. As the sole purpose of this experiment was connected with the brewing water used, I think we can be pretty sure that the mashing scheme was the same as in the full-size brew house.

The whole mash gets two rests, one at 55º C and another at 67º C. Which equate to a protein rest and saccharification rest, which I guess what you would expect. It looks like a fairly classic triple decoction mash.

Heineken seem to have been trying quite hard to replicate a beer in the Bavarian style.This is exactly the type of complicated mashing scheme employed by Munich brewers. However, this isn't how they brewed their Pils, which went for a simpler double decoction.

I can't imagine Heineken mash in anything like such a complicated manner today. I wonder how long they stuck with decocting?

Beiersch 2nd Jul 1935
step	duration (minutes)
Mash in at 37º C (99º F)	20
Raise whole mash to 50º C (122º F)	5
Draw off first decoction and raise to 70º C (158º F)	30
Boil first decoction	30
Rest whole mash at 55º C (131º F)	15
Draw off second decoction and raise to 70º C (158º F)	20
Boil second decoction	20
Rest whole mash at 67º C (153º F)	10
Draw off third decoction and raise to 100º C (212º F)	5
Boil third decoction	20
Mash at 74.5º C and mash out (166º F)	5
Sparge at 75º C (167º F) and rest	60
Draw off main wort	65
Draw off srcond wort	115
Total time	420
Source:
Heineken Brouwjournalen van de proefziederij, 1935 - 1957 held at the Amsterdamse Stadtsarchief, document number 1785-1792, page 10.

 

Let's Brew - 1941 Heineken Beiersch

Note that this example was brewed in early 1941 and belongs really with the late 1940 set. Especially as it’s a watered beer. Meaning that it was brewed at 12.5º Plato and then diluted down to 10º Plato prior to fermentation.

At least it still has a reasonable gravity, even with the watering. Stronger than most of the beer on sale in the UK at the time. It wouldn’t last much longer.

The recipe remains the same as in 1939, though, due to the watering down, there’s less of everything. Nothing much more to say, really.

All of the hops were a single type of Hallertau from the 1939 harvest.

1941 Heineken Beiersch
pilsner malt	7.75 lb	89.18%
caramel malt 60 L	0.25 lb	2.88%
caraamber	0.50 lb	5.75%
carafa III	0.09 lb	1.04%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.10 lb	1.15%
Hallertau 90 mins	0.125 oz
Hallertau 60 mins	0.33 oz
Hallertau 30 mins	0.75 oz
OG	1039
FG	1010
ABV	3.84
Apparent attenuation	74.36%
IBU	15
SRM	14.5
Mash double decoction
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	48º F
Yeast	WLP830 German Lager

Mash in at 35º C (95º F)	5 minutes
Warm whole mash to 52º C (126º F)	20 minutes
Rest whole mash at 52º C (126º F) (protein rest)	15 minutes
Draw off first mash and without a rest bring to the boil	30 minutes
Boil first mash	10 minutes
The rest of the mash remains at 52º C (126º F)	40 minutes
Mash at 70º C (158º F)	25 minutes
Rest whole mash at 70º C (158º F) (saccharification rest)	30 minutes
Draw off second mash and without a rest bring to the boil	15 minutes
Boil second mash	10 minutes
Mash at 76º C (169º F) and mash out	20 minutes

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1940 Heineken Donker Lagerbier

Another example of Heineken’s weird period, when they to the old strength, but then watered it down, seemingly before fermentation. Enough to drop Donker Lagerbier under 3% ABV. I suppose it was just about intoxicating. Much like the weaker Mild Ales in the UK. I've adapted the recipe to take the watering into account.

Other than a touch of caramel, this is an all-malt beer, rice having been dropped from the recipe. I assume because of supply problems. Malt seems to have been reasonably available in the early war years. After the disaster in WW I, when imports of barley weren’t available, the Dutch started growing loads more during the interwar period.

The hops are a bit of a riddle again. One is, I think, described as “Sa” in the brewing record. Which I’m guessing is short for Saaz. The other is “Backa” which is what Vojvodina (in the North of Serbia) was called in German. Evidently, they have their own hop variety there. To be honest, there are so few hops you probably couldn’t tell what type they were anyway. Both were from the 1939 crop, if you’re interested in that sort of thing.

1940 Heineken Donker Lagerbier
pilsner malt	5.75 lb	89.15%
caramel malt 60 L	0.25 lb	3.88%
caraamber	0.33 lb	5.12%
carafa III	0.05 lb	0.78%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.07 lb	1.09%
Hallertau 90 mins	0.25 oz
Hallertau 60 mins	0.33 oz
Saaz 30 mins	0.50 oz
OG	1029
FG	1007
ABV	2.91
Apparent attenuation	75.86%
IBU	14
SRM	11
Mash double decoction
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	48º F
Yeast	WLP830 German Lager

 

Mash in at 35º C (95º F)	5 minutes
Warm whole mash to 52º C (126º F)	20 minutes
Rest whole mash at 52º C (126º F) (protein rest)	15 minutes
Draw off first mash and without a rest bring to the boil	30 minutes
Boil first mash	10 minutes
The rest of the mash remains at 52º C (126º F)	40 minutes
Mash at 70º C (158º F)	25 minutes
Rest whole mash at 70º C (158º F) (saccharification rest)	30 minutes
Draw off second mash and without a rest bring to the boil	15 minutes
Boil second mash	10 minutes
Mash at 76º C (169º F) and mash out	20 minutes

Heineken hops in 1939

Lots of Heineken full still to come. I have to wring even last drop of blood from their brewing records, given all the time I've spent on them.  

Just as well I don't have a job wasting loads of my precious time. It gives me the room to embark on even more ridiculously detailed research. It's reaping rewards. I'm shocked at how much I missed on my initial sprint through the records. Like the couple of batches of Bok brewed in the summer of 1940. Or the weird watering down practices later in the year.

Now let’s take a look at the hops Heineken employed.

Compared to the practice in UK breweries, the hopping is much simpler. More than half the beers only contained a single type. At this point that would have been very unusual in the UK. Most beers contained at least two types of hops, more typically three or more.

Another difference with the UK is the freshness of the hops. None are more than a year old. Whereas in the UK it wouldn’t be odd to see some hops two or three years old.

Unlike British brewers, Heineken do seem to have bothered to record the variety, or at least the region of origin. Only problem is, I can’t work out what they all are, between the cryptic abbreviations and crap handwriting. I’m pretty sure everything designated by an “H” is Hallertau, as in some examples it’s written as Hall. Or even written out fully as Hallertau. “A” could be Alsace. I’ve no idea what “R” “Ro” or “Rand” might be.

Using mostly German hops would turn out to be useful as the war churned on.

Heineken hops in 1939
Date	Beer	Style	hop 1	hop 2	hop 3
26th Dec	Do	Donker Lagerbier	Rand. 1938	Hallertau 1938
11th Dec	Li	Licht Lagerbier	R 1938
12th Dec	Exp	Pils	Ro 1938	Ro 1938	Belg
6th Dec	P	Pils	Fr. A 1938	Kra R 1938	Kra A 1939
7th Dec	Bei	Münchener	H 1938
18th Jan	Mei	Meibier	Kra H 1938
7th Aug	Bok	Bok	H 1938
Sources:
Heineken brewing records held at the Amsterdamse Stadsarchief, document numbers 834 - 1758 and 834 - 1759.

 

Heineken grists in 1939

Heineken had two basic types of grist: one for the pale beers and another for the dark ones. 

The pale grist was 80% pilsner malt and 20% rice. I’m not sure the exact form the rice took. It could have been flaked, simply ground into flour, or it could have even been in the form of syrup. The brewing record isn’t very specific. I’m guessing that its purpose was twofold, to lighten the body and colour and to save money. The slightly darker Export Pils also contained a very small amount of “kleurmout” (“colour malt”).

The short-lived Meibier was unusual in having a grist of 100% pilsner malt.

The grists for the darker beers were much more complex and, with the exception of Donker Lagerbier, adjunct-free. Three types of coloured malt were used: kleurmout, broeimout and caramelmout.

Kleurmout was a type of dark roasted malt similar to black malt. Caramelmout was a type of crystal malt. Nothing too complicated there. Broeimout is a different matter. Literally “heating malt”, it had a specific method of production.

“In the case of broeimout, there is no cooling during the germination process, so that the temperature rises quite high and the flour body dissolves a great deal. Due to the higher germination temperature, it is not necessary to kiln at a high temperature. The colour of the malt darkens due to the germination heat alone to about 30 - 40 EBC. However, broeimout cannot be 100% of the grist, as many enzymes have been destroyed by the higher temperatures. Amber malt is sometimes also called broeimout, but this does not always necessarily the case.” 

In addition, a small amount of “kleur”, a type of caramel, for extra colour.

Heineken grists in 1939
Date	Beer	Style	pilsner malt	kleur mout	broei-mout	caramel mout	rice	litres kleur
26th Dec	Do	Donker Lagerbier	69.70%	0.90%	6.00%	3.40%	20.00%	20
11th Dec	Li	Licht Lagerbier	80.39%				19.61%
12th Dec	Exp	Pils	79.83%	0.17%			20.00%
6th Dec	P	Pils	80.00%				20.00%
7th Dec	Bei	Münchener	89.22%	0.98%	5.88%	3.92%		28
18th Jan	Mei	Meibier	100.00%
7th Aug	Bok	Bok	94.00%	1.00%	3.00%	2.00%		15
Sources:
Heineken brewing records held at the Amsterdamse Stadsarchief, document numbers 834 - 1758 and 834 - 1759.

 

Heineken beers in 1939

Heineken had a pretty simple range at the start of WW II: a pale and a dark full-strength Lager, a pale and a dark Schankbier-strength Lager, an export Pils and a Bok. With the standard Pils being by far their biggest seller, accounting for around two-thirds of their production.

The Pils was pretty typical for the style. A touch under 12º Plato, and 4.7% ABV. Though, if you look at interwar labels, the strength is given as 5% ABV. (Holland was unusual in having the ABV listed on beer labels in the interwar period.) Yet it was always really 4.7% ABV. I assume they were exploiting the tolerance for error allowed on the ABV to the maximum. A trick still performed by large breweries today.

The hopping rate of the Pils at 0.2 kg per hl is lower than you might expect for a hop-accented beer. It’s the equivalent of around 4.5 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt and 0.75 lbs per barrel. To put that into context, in the same year Barclay Perkins Standard Mild, X Ale, was hopped at 7 lbs per quarter of malt and 0.95 lbs per barrel.

Heineken’s other full-strength Lager, Beierische, was obviously intended to be in the Munich style. It actually pre-dated their Pils, having been one of their first bottom-fermented beers. By the late 1930s its popularity had faded and it was brewed in modest quantities.

Beierische was lightly stronger than Pils both in OG and ABV. It was even more lightly-hopped than Pils, though that was in keeping with the intended style. I’m not sure what colour scale they were using. Based on the colour of the Pils, it looks about the same as old Lovibond or EBC, so about double SRM. Which would make it a little on the pale side for a Münchener.

Licht Lagerbier look much like a light version of Pils. Session Pils, I suppose you could call it. The hopping rate per 100 kg of malt is a little bit higher than that of the Pils, but roughly similar. As you would expect, the colour was a little paler.

Donker Lagerbier was more lightly hopped, but of the same strength as its pale sibling. The colour being the same as Beierische.

Export Pils was much the same as the standard beer, just being a little hoppier. In fact, it was the most heavily hopped of all their beers.

Finally, there’s Bok, a seasonal beer only available in the Autumn. It must have had a reasonable amount of lagering. The example in the table was brewed at the beginning of August but wouldn’t have been on sale for at least another two months. It was by far the strongest beer of the range at 7% ABV. Which is why this is one of the last brews for several years. It wasn’t ever brewed during the occupation. It has the lowest hopping rate per 100 kg of malt of all their beers.

Heineken beers in 1939
Date	Beer	Style	OG Plato	FG Plato	ABV	App. Atten-uation	kg hops/ 100 kg	hops kg/hl	colour
26th Dec	Do	Donker Lagerbier	8.91	2.31	3.50	74.75%	1.10	0.13	15
11th Dec	Li	Licht Lagerbier	8.96	2.36	3.50	74.35%	1.37	0.16	4
12th Dec	Exp	Pils	11.86	2.93	4.80	76.16%	1.50	0.23	6
6th Dec	P	Pils	11.91	3.18	4.70	74.21%	1.33	0.20	5
7th Dec	Bei	Münchener	12.59	3.33	5.00	74.51%	0.98	0.17	15
7th Aug	Bok	Bok	17.14	4.44	7.00	75.36%	0.80	0.19	15
Sources:
Heineken brewing records held at the Amsterdamse Stadsarchief, document numbers 834 - 1758 and 834 - 1759.