Another foreign Lager-brewer moves in

Tuborg, Carlsberg’s big local rivals had also been active in the UK market in the interwar period. Just like Carlsberg, their beer looked much like its domestic product at 4.5% ABV.

And, this is so weird, after the war, they had a Pilsner at 3% ABV and a stronger “Export Beer” at 5.3% ABV.

In 1970, they struck a deal with Truman, then still independent, to sell. And then later brew under licence, their draught Lager in the UK. 

Another agreement signed for sale of foreign lager
In line with a marked increase in sales of lager beers and its healthy prospective growth rate, yet another trading agreement has been signed with a foreign brewer for the sale of its beer in this country. Trumans have made a long-term agreement with Tuborg of Denmark to sell Tuborg lager on draught in their houses from the beginning of this month.

Truman's will be producing the lager in their re-built London brewery with purpose-built plant which is being installed in consultation with Tuborg and produced to their specification and under their surveillance. An English brewer will be in charge of production.

As an interim measure, until the new plant is functioning, Tuborg will supply beer to the brewery by bulk tankers direct from Copenhagen.

From May 1, it will be available initially in 350 Truman’s houses and progressively in the majority of their 1,200 pubs and for their free trade.

At the moment, Truman’s sell Skol and Harp lagers in their houses, plus a certain amount of Holsten on draught, and carry a selection of Continental bottled lagers. The company have said the new move will not immediately jeopardise existing ties but agreements with Harp and Skol expire in 1973.
Brewers' Guardian, Volume 99, April 1970, page 23.

Takeovers of the two breweries involved by larger local rivals would render this dear irrelevant very quickly.

 

Looking back (part eight): Draught Lager prices in 1972

More early 1970s pricing fun. This time, it's the turn of Lager. How will this type turn out in terms of value for money?

Crap, obviously. Especially when compared with more traditional British styles. But we'll be getting back to that later.

At this point, most breweries were trying to brew their own Lager. Four of the ten examples come from regional breweries: Greenall Whitley, Vaux, Hall & Woodhouse and Youngs. Another four are international brands: Carling, Heineken, Carlsberg and Tuborg. Though two of those - Carling and Heineken were brewed under licence by Big Six brewers, namely Bass and Whitbread, respectively.

Harp is listed as being brewed by Guinness, but at this point it was also brewed by Courage. It was an odd period, as not all the Big Six owned their Lager brand. Something that was going to increase in importance as Lager slowly caught up with, and the surpassed, Bitter in popularity. All the weirder, given the amount of advertising effort they put into Lager.

Why were brewers so keen on Lager? Because the profit margins were larger. In theory, Lager cost more to brew than Bitter or Mild. That's if you brewed it the continental way and lagered it for a couple of months. But that wasn't how Lager was usually brewed in the UK. Harp, whose recipe was devised by a German brewer, was originally decocted, lagered for several weeks and "spundet" so that it conditioned naturally. Though I think all of that had been dropped by 1972.

The four Lagers from regional brewers won't have been decocted. And almost certainly weren't even bottom-fermented. They were just very pale and bland Ales.

The average price is almost 18p per pint. That's more than 50% greater than the average for Mild Ale, while being not much greater in strength. Which, along with being committed to cask, was why I never drank Lager myself. It was simply awful value for money. trying to think when I first drank Lager. It might well have been when I first visited the continent in 1979. When I drank Jupiler in Paris.

There's no correlation in this set between value for money and the size of the brewery. With Youngs Saxon second worst and Allied's Skol next to best. 

Draught Lager prices in 1972
Brewer	Beer	Price	º gravity per p	% ABV per p	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation
Greenall Whitley	Grunhalle	16	2.33	0.24	1037.3	1007.3	3.90	80.43%
Allied Breweries	Skol	15	2.21	0.23	1033.2	1007	3.40	78.92%
Vaux & Co	Norseman	16	2.21	0.23	1035.3	1007.6	3.60	78.47%
Carling	Black Label	18	2.17	0.24	1039.1	1006.1	4.30	84.40%
Guinness	Harp	17	1.93	0.19	1032.8	1006.6	3.30	79.88%
Heineken	Lager	17	1.93	0.21	1032.8	1005.9	3.50	82.01%
Hall & Woodhouse	Brock	18	1.83	0.19	1033	1006.8	3.40	79.39%
Carlsberg	Lager	18	1.64	0.17	1029.5	1005.6	3.10	81.02%
Young & Co	Saxon	21	1.50	0.17	1031.5	1004.6	3.50	85.40%
Tuborg	Lager	22	1.33	0.14	1029.3	1005.4	3.10	81.57%
Average		17.8	1.91	0.20	1033.4	1006.3	3.51	81.15%
Source:
Daily Mirror July 10th 1972, page 15

Beer is Bust beers

To go with yesterday's post of an advert listing various beers on sale here are analyses of most of them.

The ones described as "all" beers selling for 3 shillings or so a quart are those with gravities in the low 1030ºs. They're things like Brown ale, Light Ale and low-gravity Stouts. A beer selling for 3 shillings a quart would be around 10d or 11d when packaged as a half pint.

1/4 (16d) seems like pretty good value for a beer as strong as Bass or Worthington. I'm sure the advert got it wrong when it spoke of red and green labelled Bass. Their Pale Ale came with either a red label (bottle conditioned) or a blue label (brewery conditioned). It was Worthington which had Green Shield, the brewery-conditioned version of White Shield.

In the strong Pale Ale segment, Double Diamond, Tavern and Ben Truman were less value for money, being only 0.5d per half pint cheaper, despite being considerably weaker than Bass or Worthington.

Beer is Bust beers
Year	Brewer	Beer	Style	Price	size	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	colour
1955	Bass	Pale Ale (Blue Triangle)	Pale Ale			1063.5	1003.1	7.96	95.12%	19
1955	Bass	Pale Ale (Red Triangle)	Pale Ale			1063.2	1009.6	7.02	84.81%	19
1953	Bass	Barley Wine	Barley Wine	20d	nip	1104.6	1036.3	8.90	65.30%	80
1956	Ind Coope	Double Diamond	Pale Ale	17d	half pint	1048.3	1012.7	4.62	73.71%	20
1956	Simonds	Bitter Ale	Pale Ale	12d	half pint	1030.1	1010	2.60	66.78%	25
1956	Simonds	Berry Brown Ale	Brown Ale	16d	half pint	1031.9	1011.9	2.58	62.70%	85
1957	Simonds	Luncheon Stout	Stout	11d	half pint	1033.6	1014.9	2.41	55.65%	275
1959	Simonds	Tavern Export Ale	Pale Ale	17d	half pint	1045.8	1013	4.25	71.62%	18
1959	Simonds	SB Light Ale	Pale Ale	10d	half pint	1034.2	1010.3	3.09	69.88%	19
1956	Truman	Trubrown	Brown Ale	10.5d	half pint	1034.9	1016.5	2.37	52.72%	95
1956	Truman	Light Ale	Pale Ale	10d	half pint	1031.7	1011.4	2.62	64.04%	19
1956	Truman	Eagle Stout	Stout	11d	half pint	1034.8	1016.1	2.41	53.74%	225
1959	Truman	Ben Truman Pale Ale	Pale Ale	16d	half pint	1049.9	1010	5.20	79.96%	17
1953	Watney	Yorkshire Stingo	Barley Wine	17d	nip	1089.6	1031.7	7.52	64.62%	110
1956	Watney	Brown Ale	Brown Ale	10d	half pint	1032.2	1011.1	2.73	65.53%	120
1957	Watney	Special Stout	Stout	13d	half pint	1042.3	1009.4	4.28	77.78%	200
1959	Watney	Pale Ale	Pale Ale	10d	half pint	1033.2	1010.1	2.99	69.58%	23
1955	Worthington	India Pale Ale (Green Shield)	IPA			1063.3	1009.4	7.06	85.15%	18
1955	Worthington	India Pale Ale (White Shield)	IPA			1063.7	1002.9	8.02	95.45%	18
Source:
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/002.

Beer is Bust

If you're wondering about that title, it comes from the advert below. And is obviously a joke on the campaign of the brewing industry at the time call Beer is Best.

This advert provides an interesting snapshot of what types of beer were on offer in the late 1950s.

BEER is BUST - wide open!
Maybe you KNOW us best as WINE MERCHANTS but we can also tell you ALL there is to know about BEER - if you're interested. What's mere, we STOCK far MORE different BEERS than MOST brewers — because we have NO "ties" at all. We are not bound to sell ONLY this beer or that: we stock ALL the good been you are likely to ask for -  BECAUSE hate to lose a sale.
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

First, the standard beers. Where they don't even bother mentioning the individual types, just the brewery.

We stock all SIMONDS beers, 3/- qt; all TRUMANS beers, 3/1 qt. ; all WATNEYS, 3/1 qt; all WHITBREADS, 3/7; also Fremlins, Tolly, Mackesons, Friary, Younger's, Eldridge Popes, Benskins, Flowers, and Uncle TOM COBLEY's too if you even SUGGEST you might want it.
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

Fascinating that Whitbread was sold at a premium price compared to the other breweries. Especially surprising as two of the other brewers - Truman and Watney - were Whitbread's direct rivals. 

Next a selection of Burton Pale Ales.

BASS, of course — both Red and Green labels - in pints 2/7, half-pints 1/4, and nips 1/-; WORTHINGTON, same prices; Double-Diamond 1/4 ; TAVERN Ale, 1/3.5; Ben TRUMAN 1/3.5; and all other best ales.
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

As relatively strong beers for the period, this set is much more expensive: 1/4 for a half pint when the standard beers sold for 3/- per quart.

I love the way the strongest ones are described as "he-man" beers:

And the HE-man beers: Simonds 5-X at 1/4 per nip; Stingo 1/6 nips: Barley Wine 1/8 nips. Lay in some beer at HOME and get the GARDENING done this weekend.
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

A bit unusually, they still sold beer in casks.

If YOU like it from the WOOD - for real BEERMANSHIP - we can cope with that too: try a "PIN" (4.5 gallons), it should last you ALL evening! SIMONDS 30/-; Whitbreads Bitter 57/-; Younger. Scotch Ale No. 3 57/-, Worthington 57/-. Or any OTHER brew you fancy, in ANY size you like from a PIN to a HOGSHEAD (72 gallons - lasts MANY people a whole WEEKEND).
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

Though they got the size of a hogshead wrong: it's 54 gallons. I'm guessing that the Simonds beer must have been Mild Ale, given the price relative to the other ones mentioned.

They were very keen on cans. I doubt any advert today would mention the method of can disposal suggested.

Beer in CANS is excellent - tastes BETTER than beer in bottles - honestly, And SO handy! NO empties to return. Just chuck them over the hedge; easy to CARRY, to OPEN, to DRINK. Keeps perfectly for MONTHS - if nobody sees it - and we can even POST a dozen cans to you and you get them NEXT morning - NO charge for postage or packing. We STOCK 8 kinds of BEERS in CANS - biggest seller is TAVERN at 16/- dozen. For a BARBECUE up the CREEK take some CANS in your CANOE.
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

Wow - 8 types of canned beer. The crazy bastards.

Of course, Lager was also on offer. Only a couple of types, mind.

It you like it LIGHT and mild, fresh and FROTHY, how about LAGER? We stock Barclays 1/3; TUBORG and Carlsberg 1/5; HEINEKEN'S 1/7. One LAST try to get YOUR order.
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

Finally, a selection of Stouts. 20 different ones, no less.

About STOUT now, which we nearly forgot to mention. We stock GUINNESS of course, in 4 sizes: 4/3 qt., 2/2 pt., 1/1.5 half-pint, 11d nip. MACKESONS, in bottle or can. OATMEAL Stout, PLAIN stout and FANCY stout - perhaps a score of them. Very good for NURSING MOTHERS. Very good EXCUSE for nursing mothers. We deliver to you IMMEDIATELY if you say so throughout the TOWN area; and regularly EVERY WEEK in all COUNTRY districts. A postcard brings us RUSHING to your door.
DOMINIC
Peter Dominic Limited
Worthing Gazette - Wednesday 26 June 1957, page 9.

How quaint, ordering by postcard. 

Next time - some details of the beers mentioned.

UK beer imports Imports 1936 - 1965

On the face of it, the UK had a big trade deficit in beer, importing around 1 million barrels more than it exported. But it’s not quite as simple as that. As more than 1 million barrels of those imports came from a country not so far away: Ireland. And the vast majority of that beer was Guinness Extra Stout.

Initially, only tiny amounts were imported from elsewhere, fewer than 50,000 barrels.

The amount of beer coming in started to rise from the middle of the 1950s, mostly due to a jump in imports from Denmark. So loads of Carlsberg and Tuborg.

That the numbers fell again after 1960 is probably attributable to one factor: Carlsberg starting to brew in the UK.

It’s safe to assume that almost 100% of the beer imported from Continental Europe was Lager of some kind.

UK beer imports 1936 - 1953
Country of Origin	1938	1950	1951	1952	1953
Irish Republic	836,624	1,031,159	1,025,902	1,023,031	1,088,076
Other British Countries	108	22	31	133	422
Total British Countries	836,732	1,031,181	1,025,933	1,023,164	1,088,498
Denmark	25,459	17,686	23,058	30,959	36,410
Germany	18,813	-	-	-	2,307
Netherlands	8,708	2,685	3,492	5,905	8,910
Belgium	821	700	1,150	2,136	2,205
Czechoslovakia	3,810	915	903	702	713
Other Foreign Countries	278	224	1,703	1,922	244
Total Foreign Countries	57,895	22,110	30,306	41,624	50,879
Total Bulk Barrels	894,627	1,053,291	1,056,239	1,064,788	1,139,377
Total Standard Barrels	856,331
Source:
“1955 Brewers' Almanack”, page 60.

UK beer imports 1954 - 1959
Country of Origin	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Irish Republic	1,099,717	1,166,980	1,281,064	1,234,214	1,196,066	1,232,946
Other British Countries	408	689	100	317	486	601
Total British Countries	1,100,125	1,167,669	1,281,164	1,234,531	1,197,152	1,233,547
Denmark	45,238	77,125	98,216	139,682	154,726	209,244
Germany	4,366	6,651	7,627	10,272	9,372	13,523
Netherlands	9,560	17,707	21,540	26,549	24,564	28,473
Belgium	1,024	3,181	4,349	7,138	8,180	13,084
Norway	-	-	-	1,215	1,586	3,075
Czechoslovakia	688	16	140	1,033	935	1,164
Sweden	-	-	-	662	692	734
Other Foreign Countries	384	505	1,101	266	145	352
Total Foreign Countries	62,160	105,185	132,973	186,817	200,200	260,049
Total Bulk Barrels	1,162,285	1,272,854	1,414,137	1,421,348	1,397,352	1,503,196
Source:
“1962 Brewers' Almanack”, page 58.

UK beer imports 1960 - 1965
Country of Origin	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965
Irish Republic	1,257,695	1,329,752	1,245,451	1,215,539	1,281,126	1,215,168
Other British Countries	940	1,740	2,303	3,793	3,007	3,344
Total British Countries	1,258,635	1,331,492	1,247,758	1,219,332	1,284,133	1,218,512
Denmark	184,076	178,975	148,018	149,974	159,164	143,189
Germany	7,476	8,926	7,601	9,805	13,925	12,485
Netherlands	27,444	28,077	21,212	23,321	28,245	28,363
Belgium	8,704	8,907	8,391	5,303	5,803	5,053
Norway	3,019	2,390	2,308	3,887	4,491	6,081
Czechoslovakia	1,174	1,083	1,038	922	1,391	1,276
Sweden	1063	670	578	1,112	459	460
Other Foreign Countries	402	655	589	853	1,392	1,166
Total Foreign Countries	233,358	229,689	189,795	195,177	214,870	198,073
Total Bulk Barrels	1,491,993	1,561,181	1,437,553	1,414,509	1,499,003	1,416,585
Source:
“1971 Brewers' Almanack”, page 55.

The above is an excerpt from my overly detailed look at post-war UK brewing, Austerity!

http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/austerity/23181344

Which is now also available in Kindle format.

Continental Lager returns

Just a quick table today. To give you an idea of the Lagers which were imported into the UK when restrictions were lifted in 1947.

As we've already learned, Dutch and Danish breweries were the quickest to return to the UK market. The speed with which they returned is all the more remarkable given that they were clearly brewing beers specifically for the UK. A quick glance at the OG is enough to prove that.

It's particularly easy to spot in the case of Tuborg and Carlsberg as I also have analyses for the standard export versions, which Whitbread had somehow purchased in Singapore. These are the strength that you expect forr a continental Lager: 4.5-5% ABV.

This is in contrast with the situation before WW II, when both the Carlsberg and Tuborg sold in the UK were the same strength as they were on the continent. I assume that the standard-strength version would have been too expensive for the UK market after the war.

Continental Lager returns
Year	Brewer	Beer	Price per pint (d)	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	colour
1947	Barclay Perkins	Draught Lager	26	1033	1006.4	3.46	80.61%	8
1947	Carlsberg	Lager		1033	1008	3.24	75.76%
1947	Carlsberg	Pilsner		1035.6	1008.5	3.52	76.12%	13.5
1947	ZHB	Z.H.B. Lager	30	1032.4	1008.2	3.14	71.91%	11.5
1947	Tuborg	Pilsner		1036.6	1009.1	3.57	75.14%	11.5
1948	Carlsberg	Pilsner ex Singapore		1049.9	1011	5.06	77.96%	9
1948	Tuborg	Export Beer ex Singapore		1043.9	1009.4	4.49	78.59%	9
Sources:
Thomas Usher Gravity Book held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document TU/6/11.
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/002.

UK beer imports 1895 - 1897

As we've been looking at beer exports, we may as well look at imports, too.

There are a couple of things to be careful about. First, it's packages rather than a volume. Secondly, just because the beer was dispatched from a port in Belgium or Holland, it doesn't necessarily mean that the beer was brewed there. Much likely came from somewhere else, most likely Germany.

Though the beer shipped from Copenhagen probably did come from Denmark. And I think it's safe to assume anything coming from New York had been brewed in the USA. I'm shocked to see that any beer at all was imported from the US. The stuff coming from Copenhagen was probably mostly Carlsberg and Tuborg.

The beer itself was probably almost all Lager. That was about all that was imported into the UK. Top-fermenting styles were provided by domestic breweries.

Note that more than half of the imports came in via London. Not really surprising: London waws a massive port and much closer to the Continent than Liverpool, Dublin or Glasgow. I'd guess that the same was also true for exports. Though maybe not to quite the same extent.

Total importations of beer into the United Kingdom:—
From	London	Liverpool	Hull	Harwich	O.E Ports	Dublin.	Clyde &c.	Total
	pkgs.	pkgs.	pkgs.	pkgs.	pkgs.	pkgs.	pkgs.	pkgs.
Hamburg	7,885	3,977	2,215	700	1,604	457	908	17,746
Bremen	20,827	1,075	1,351	-	-	-	3,525	27,078
Rotterdam	18,593	171	4,129	11,183	725	9,098	1,831	45,730
Antwerp	4,574	732	18	4,576	672	-	3	10,575
Amsterdam	14,718	282	5,655	-	2,754	-	3,064	26,473
Copenhagen	1,882	105	2,033	-	-	-	5,275	9,296
Christiania	154	-	618	-	14	-	66	852
New York	100	46	-	-	-	-	50	195
Ostend	4,934	-	-	-	-	-	-	4,934
Totals,1897	73,667	6,388	16,019	16,459	5,769	9,555	15,022	142,879
Do. 1896	53,257	10,179	13,468	14,026	4,997	8,250	14,655	129,442
Do. 1895.	55,429	11,868	11,775	17,082	4,079	8,282	14,130	122,645
Source:
"The Brewers' Journal, 1898", page 64.

Here are the numbers in bulk barrels:

UK beer imports 1895 - 1897 (bulk barrels)
1895	1896	1897
44,399	45,000	45,752
Source:
Dundee Evening Post - Monday 01 April 1901, page 2.

As 1 package seems to equate to about a third of a barrel, here's are the bulk barrels for each point of origin:

From	bulk barrels
Hamburg	5915.33
Bremen	9,026
Rotterdam	15,243.33
Antwerp	3,525
Amsterdam	8,824.33
Copenhagen	3,098.67
Christiania	284
New York	65
Ostend	1,644.67

It's not a huge amount of beer.