Another video of Brazil

 Me in Uberlandia in Minas Gerais, Brazil, , where I judged the Concurso Brasileiro de Cervejas.

Uberlandia bound

I rise just after 7:00. And, after my morning ablutions, go downstairs for breakfast.

It's the same as yesterday: scrambled egg and bacon. Along with coffee and orange juice. Plus fruit, of course. Wouldn’t want to skimp on the vitamins. Or the bacon. It may be the last I get on this trip. Best double up.

The other guests all seem to be Brazilian. Beach bound most of them, based on their dress. This is a handy spot. For the beach and everything else.  A really nice spot. Which is why I’m here and not wasting my money on a Copacabana beachfront room. Probably their motivation, too. Not a lot of business travellers, by the look of it. Just me. Sort of.

Just after 9:00 I get an Uber to the airport. Santos Dumont, not the international airport where I arrived. I’m off to Uberlandia. Weird name, I know. Strangely German. Sort of. In Minas Gerais. A new state for me.

Once out of Ipanema, we skirt Copacabana beach for a while. Hunking hotels looming over the beach. Which doesn’t look that inviting in this weather. Overcast and rather blustery. Like midsummer in Mablethorpe. But double the temperature.

On the way to departures, I notice that the bloke in front of me looks familiar. It's one of Brazilian judges, Jose Padilha. We’ve been at competitions together a few times. We sit together while waiting for our flight to board. 

I spotted someone in a Cantillon top earlier. After Jose posts a photo of me and him on the judges’ WharsApp group, Cantillon bloke comes over with his wife and introduces himself. He’s from Italy. Later a Mexican judge also joins us.

Our connecting flight in Sao Paulo leaves the gate on time, but then queues on the tarmac for ages. We take off twenty minutes late. The flight itself is uneventful.

Once we’ve picked up our bags, me, Jose and the Italian judge and his wife share an Uber to the hotel.

“Uberlandia is very different to Rio.” Jose remarks as we make our way along bumpy roads, flanked by random buildings of random heights.

That’s very true. Much more modern. And rambling. A lot less charming, too. With a busy four-lane road right through the middle of it.

The hotel is a bit grotty. And has a brown toilet. How weird is that? I suppose it hides shit stains well. There is a fridge. Where I stash what’s left of my cheese.

I have a few hours to myself. Warming myself up for the evening with the last of my hotel whisky. There are no glasses in the room. Another sign that it’s not the poshest of hotels. I have to mix in a coke bottle and drink from that. I feel so classy.

The bus for the judges’ dinners leaves at 19:00. Supposedly. This is Brazil. No way it will leave before 19:20.

Lots of familiar faces are waiting in the lobby. Which is cool. Plenty of people to chat to. And I’m a pretty chatty bloke. When the topic is beer. Then it’s hard to shut me up. Especially if I get going on the colour of Mild Ale. You’ll be lucky f I pause in the next three hours. Such a enthralling subject..

The dinner is at Captain Brew, a taproom. In quite a plush neighbourhood. The interior is fairly cavernous. As these places tend to be. With the brewhouse at the rear behind glass.

There’s a buffet. What a surprise. They so rarely have buffets in Brazil. Not really. I’d best get used to it. The first of many, I’m sure. I get myself some beef and cheese. Seems like a balanced meal. Colour-wise, at least. 

I have an IPA. There’s original. Not that there are loads of options. Rather an IPA than a Lager. Hops will cover up some nastiness that’s totally exposed in a Pils. And it’s stronger. Just love me those ABVs.

More cheese is eaten And IPA is drunk. It’s very good. The cheese, I mean. The IPA is OK. The cheese is something special. A cheese corner is home to several different types. Local artisanal stuff. Easily the best cheese I’ve had in Brazil. And, as everyone knows, you can never have too much cheese.

There’s plenty of chat, obviously. I talk to the Silvia de Tomas, from Peru, about writing, A topic I know a little about. I hope. I’ve written a lot of books. Volume counts for something, surely? Best not mention that. If number of words were the sole criterion, I’d be the best beer writer in the world.

I sit next to Suzanne and Kate, whom I’ve met a few times over the years. More than I’ve been able to forget. Back during my first trip to Boston, when Pretty Things held an event in their bottle shop. My biggest memory being how fucking expensive the Starbucks Dann bought for me was. The price of 3 Abts in Ton Overmars. 

Thankfully, the bus back to the hotel isn’t too late. I can’t be doing with late nights. Especially when I need to be up early in the morning. And need a clear head for judging.

I do have a small nightcap. Of gut-rot cachaça. I have to get someone at reception to open the bottle for me. It doesn’t have a screw top, as you might expect. Instead, a plastic top that needs to be cut off with a knife.

Soon slumber summons me. How can I refuse?


Captain Brew
R. Marieta de Castro Santos, 135
Altamira, Uberlândia
MG, 38411-004.


Disclaimer: Concurso Brasileiro de Cervejas paid for my hotel, some meals and some drinks during my stay in Uberlandia.
 

Rio relaxing

I rise at 8:30. Potter around a bit, then nip downstairs for breakfast.

It's not a bad buffet. I go for bacon and scrambled egg. Followed by fruit. I'm such a healthy chap.

I wander to the supermarket to stock up on essentials: salami and cachaca. Two litres. I'll be needing that in Uberlandia. And am not quite sure where I could pick up some there. Or when I’ll have the chance. It’s not exactly the best stuff. Far from it. Not a cachaca you’d want to drink straight.

The weather isn’t great. It’s cloudy and threatening to rain. Not really beach weather. And only around 25º C.

I laze around in my room for a while. I'm in no rush. Around 13:30 grab an Uber and head for Copacabana and Colarinho. A bar that I rather like.

We roll through leafy Ipanema streets. Bustling businesses and apartment blocks. Chemists. So many chemists. Almost as many as in Paris.

I always try to drop by Colarinho when I’m in Rio. Grabbing a table outside. Where I’ve a good view of the street. There aren’t quite as many beautiful people walking past as usual. Though some still wander by in beachwear. 

What to start with? I think I’ll go for an IPA.

Colarinho IPA Maracuja, 7.5%, R$23.90
A bit hazy, but not too bad. Quite nicely fruity and not too bitter. Quite dank and quite alcoholic. Just like me (I keep making that joke.)

They’re still building opposite. How long have they been doing that? At least a couple of years. I doesn’t seem to have progressed at all since I was here with the kids in 2024.

This is my only real rest day. I did consider going to the beach. Then I saw what the weather was like. I don’t really fancy sitting on the sand in the rain.

I first came here with Martyn Cornell in 2020. On my first trip to Brazil. I’ve visited pretty much every time I’ve been in Rio since. It reminds me of Martyn, which brings up mixed emotions. Still hard to believe that he’s been gone almost a year.

Time for another beer. Maybe an IPA, for a change?

Noi Amara IPA, 10.5% ABV, 100 IBU, R$30.90 (450 ml)
Pretty sure I’ve had this before. I wonder what attracted me to it? I remember: the high ABV. Funny that. It’s quite dark and caramelly. Also, pretty bitter. As you’d expect from the name. 

Not bad. And very alcoholic. Did I mention that? Probably not. I don’t pay much attention to that sort of thing.

It’s not that warm. Did I already mention that, too? Barely warm enough to wear shorts. Which I’m obviously wearing. As I will be all the time I’m in Brazil.

The bloke on the next table is getting stuck into caipirinhas. He’s knocked back three or four since I’ve been here. I’ll be moving onto them later.

I’m feeling all relaxed now. Can’t think why. I just ordered a 57 real steak. Bargain. I don’t get anything to go with it. It’s a 100% meat meal.

A woman just walked past wearing a Nottingham Forest shirt. How strange. Most people are in Flamengo tops.

The steak is excellent. As they always are in Brazil. The beef is so good here. Just a shame about all the rainforest. Time for a caipirinha now. My first of the trip. I’m sure it won’t be my last.

You know what a caipirinha puts me in the mood for? Another caipirinha. Which is what I order. This is my idea of fun. Sitting in a Rio bar, drinking caipirinhas and with absolutely fuck all I need to do.

Still a bit hungry, I order a cod ball. Because I know from previous visits how nice they are. Full of coddy goodness. It doesn’t disappoint.

A French family, on their way back from the beach, order takeaway hamburgers. The adults drinking a Pils while they wait for their order.

I leave around 17:30. Before it gets dark. And when I’ve had enough caipirinhas to warm me up. I have nothing planned for the evening. Other than attacking my hotel whisky and fiddling on my laptop. 

I find that the maid has left the TV on. A bit odd. As there must be a reason, I don’t switch it off.

I turn in around 23:00. As I have to be up fairly early tomorrow for my flight. After I’m urged unconscious by whisky.


Boteco Colarinho Escondido
R. Francisco Otaviano, 30
Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro
RJ, 22080-040 

 

Flying down to Rio

I've fairly early start. my flight is at 10:40. I rise at 6:45. And am in an Uber by 8:05.

The formalities go pretty fast tanks to pushing in boarding. And after a quick diversion to the duty free, I'm in the lounge by 8:30.

It's the standard brace of whiskies to kick off. Along with some breakfast. It's the best meal of the day in the lounge. The hash browns are pretty nice. Not so keen on the turkey bacon. I prefer the real stuff. Which is full of piggy goodness.

For some reason, I thought the scrambled egg was potato salad on my first visit to the food bar. WTF was I thinking? Next time I get myself a plain omelette. And insert some cheese. Cheese improves anything.

I revisit the bar bar a couple of times for more restorative whiskies. Wouldn’t want to be getting on the plane too sober.

There's no air bridge, for some reason. We have to get a bus. Which is weird for such a large jet. And lots of stairs to walk up. Always a challenge for fat oldies like me.

Boarding is competed pretty early. I’m hoping to get two free seats next to me. But right, just before the doors close, two young blokes take the seats. They're obviously on stand-by. And, judging by the way they interact with the cabin crew, seem to be KLM employees. Probably cabin crew themselves.

That's fucked me trying to surreptitiously drink the miniatures I bought in the duty free. Then, just before take-off, they're moved to premium economy. Phew.

Just before take-off, we're told that there will be a half hour delay due to a "miscommunication". Great. It's more like 40 minutes. Brilliant. Though the pilot claims we'll still arrive on time. I’ll believe that when it happens.

The first meal is meatballs. It's just about edible. Though I can't stomach the mash. It’s good to have low expectations of airplane meals.

I start watching Infinite Vice. Which is sort of like the Big Lebowski. But not quite as good. Half way through, I pause it and doze for a couple of hours. It makes the time go quicker.

I nip to the galley a couple of times to fetch some red wine. I wouldn't want to become dehydrated during the flight, would I?

It's a long walk to immigration again. At least there are moving walkways for most of it. With my oldie priority, I'm through in a jiffy.

My bag pops out quickly. And soon I'm in a taxi bouncing towards Ipanema. Through a darkened Rio, lights glistening on the hillsides. Motorbikes weave scarily through the traffic. We dash through floodlit tunnels. Finally, rumbling into the rumbaing streets of Ipanema. Where shops glow enticingly. Cafés and bars spilling joyously onto the pavement.

God, I love Rio. Especially Ipanema. That could explain why I come here so often.

Same hotel as always. Comfortable enough rooms. Great location. Pretty decent buffet breakfast, which includes bacon. Crispy bacon. Mmmm.

Once checked in, I nip to the supermarket. It isn’t even a block away. (See what I said about the hotel’s location?) For bread rolls, cheese, sliced meat and cola. The latter to mix with my whisky. That’ll be my tea. The rolls and stuff, not the whisky. That’s supper.

The meat section is impressive. Big chunks of lovely beef. I stare longingly at the display for a while. Before moving on to the cheese. A far less impressive display. I’ve been spoilt by living in Holland.

I consider dropping by Mad Brew for a beer or two. Just consider. I don’t actually do it. As it’s getting late. And the pubs are looking pretty crowded. With happy, young people. Pretty much the opposite of me. I don’t want to bring down the tone.

I spend the next couple of hours watching YouTube. And sipping my whisky. Until sleep beckons me from across the void. Hello oblivion.
 

Rio by the sea-o

A short video report of my time in Rio de Janeiro recently.

Let's Brew - 1932 Youngs Stout

The stronger of the Black Beers was, naturally enough, Stout.

With an OG in the low 1050ºs, it fits nicely into the strongest category of beer in the last set of price controls from just after WW I. These were generally the strongest draught beers in London during the interwar period. And included most Stouts.

As you’ve probably guessed, this was parti-gyled with Porter. All the London brewers did that. The quantities of Porter being brewed by this point didn’t merit being single-gyle.

The presence of oats convinces me that there was a bottled version. Oatmeal Stout wasn’t usually a draught beer. Even though, in many cases, draught Stout also contained oats. Brewers just didn’t tell anyone.

Pretty sure this wasn’t aged to any great degree. Maybe a few weeks in trade casks.  

1932 Youngs Stout
mild malt	6.00 lb	53.55%
black malt	1.00 lb	8.92%
amber malt	1.125 lb	10.04%
crystal malt 60 L	0.75 lb	6.69%
flaked oats	1.00 lb	8.92%
No. 3 invert sugar	0.625 lb	5.58%
No. 2 invert sugar	0.625 lb	5.58%
caramel 2000 SRM	0.08 lb	0.71%
Fuggles 120 min	2.00 oz
Fuggles 30 min	2.00 oz
OG	1052
FG	1016
ABV	4.76
Apparent attenuation	69.23%
IBU	46
SRM	39
Mash at	152º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	WLP002 English Ale

 

Learn more about brewing at Youngs from former brewer John Hatch. 

1960s Hydroautomatic Brewhouse (Steinecker)

Even more DDR fun. Sort of. The source is from the DDR, at least.

This time with a more high-tech brewhouse. A two-vessel system. Which, if you paid attention to my post on a four-vessel brewhouse, meant that meant the vessels had dual functions. With the mash tun doubling as lauter tun and the mash kettle doubling up as the wort kettle. As in the system illustrated here.*

It's automatic. Or at least, that's what's claimed. With a brewer only needed to keep an eye on it. Sounds dead groovy. Like the decade that spawned it.

As this was a system developed by a firm, Steinecker of Freising, Bavaria, I doubt very much one was ever installed in the DDR. It would have cost way too much hard currency. Unless the Czechs produced a knock-off back in the communist days. (Or the Good Old Days, as I call them. Much to the annoyance of Dolores.)

Hydroautomatic Brewhouse (Steinecker)

(1) Malt Steeping Vessel
(2) Twin-Roll Mill for Wet Milling
(3) Mash and Lauter Tun
(4) Mash and Wort Kettle
(5) Hop Filter
(0) Control Panel
(7) Sight Window with Liquid Level Indicator
(8) Cutting Unit
(9) Propeller
(10) Hop Feeding Device
(11) Exhaust with Fan
"Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 265.

* "Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 264. 

Four-vessel DDR brewhouse

More DDR fun today. I've accumulated so much material on DDR brewing that maybe I sould assemble it into a book. Like "DDR! volume two". Except who would be interested in a book about a country that no longer exists. Let me know if you would. If there's enough interest, I might nail it together.

Back to the topic of the day. A four-vessel brewhouse. In the DDR. Though, if you look closely, it couldn't be a West German system. As there's a second mash tun. One specifically for a cereal mash of unmalted grains. Which obviously wouldn't apply in Reinheitsgebot-land. Where you would only need three vessels.

I suppose that the extra mash vessels must have been installed after WW II. As the use of unmalted grains wouldn't have been allowed before then. I imagine that, in most cases, the other three vessels were already installed and continued to be used.

The four vessels were:

a mash tun, which was unheated
a mash kettle for boiling the partial mash
a lauter tun
a wort pan for boiling the whole mash*

A simpler, two-vessel system was also in use. Here, one vessel functioned as both mash tun and lauter tun and the other as mash kettle and wort kettle.** Which is more like the set up in a traditional UK brewhouse, though used in a different way.

Looking at the Helles Vollbier mashing scheme I published a few days ago, it's clear that some breweries had a two- or three-vessel brewhouse. In that scheme, the cereal mash was performed in the kettle rather than a dedicated mash kettle. I imagine that situation was more common than the system illustrated here. 

(1) mash kettle I    (4) wort kettle    (7) hop montejus    (10) discharge pump
(2) mash kettle II    (5) malt mill    (8) agitator drive
(3) lauter tun    (6) adjunct mill    (9) mash pump


* "Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 260.
** "Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 260. 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1932 Youngs Porter

Time now for the Black Beers. Of which there are two. We’ll kick off with the weaker one, Porter.

It’s as watery as you would expect of an interwar Porter. Not quite 3% ABV. Quite a change from the 5% ABV version brewed before WW I. No wonder its popularity plunged into a death spiral.

With four malts, one adjunct and two sugars, it’s a pretty complicated grist. Well, it could be five malts, as it’s not totally clear what form the oats were. I’ve just guessed flaked rather than malted. Feel free to use malted oats if you prefer.

Interesting that brown malt isn’t amongst all those malts. It had been a standard ingredient in Porter since, well, the beginning of the style two centuries earlier.  Though there is some amber malt. Presumably for flavour, mostly. With most of the colour coming from the black malt and the sugar.

Speaking of sugar, there were equal quantities of No.3 invert and DM (dextro-maltose). For the latter I’ve substituted No. 2 invert. As well as a small amount of caramel as primings.

The two types of hops were both from Kent and the 1930 harvest. One had been cold stored.

Obviously, no ageing for a beer this piss-weak. 

1932 Youngs Porter
mild malt	4.00 lb	58.82%
black malt	0.50 lb	7.35%
amber malt	0.75 lb	11.03%
crystal malt 60 L	0.25 lb	3.68%
flaked oats	0.50 lb	7.35%
No. 3 invert sugar	0.375 lb	5.51%
No. 2 invert sugar	0.375 lb	5.51%
caramel 2000 SRM	0.05 lb	0.74%
Fuggles 120 min	1.25 oz
Fuggles 30 min	1.25 oz
OG	1032
FG	1010
ABV	2.91
Apparent attenuation	68.75%
IBU	34
SRM	25
Mash at	152º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	WLP002 English Ale

 

Learn more about brewing at Youngs from former brewer John Hatch. 

How to brew Doppelkaramelmalzbier

Doppelkaramelmalzbier is such a weird beer. a Vollbier - 12º Plato - but only around 1% ABV. Barely hopped and incredibly sweet. How did they brew a beer like that?

Luckily, Kunze's "Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" has a pretty detailed description. 

The initial brew was the same as for ordinary Malzbier. 

6.1.2. Special Features in the Production of Doppelkaramelmalzbier and Malzbier
In most breweries, both beers are produced using the same process up to the lagering cellar.

Both beers are 6% Plato dark beers; in the case of Doppelkaramelmalzbier, the extract difference of up to 12% is later achieved by adding sugar.

The grist contains 3–6% Farbmalz and often another 6–8% Karamelmalz. Part of the colour is always achieved by adding caramel colouring (see p. 92). The hop addition is minimal (see TGL) and serves only to round out the flavour. 
"Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 451.

Around 6º Plato of gravity came from sugar. Making sugar, effectively, 50% of the grist. Which is ridiculously high. Especially as it wasn't really fermented at all.

Several methods were used.

There are several ways to achieve the desired wort concentration:

The wort is drawn off at approximately 6% Plato; reducing the grist size decreases the brewhouse capacity in fully utilized brewhouses. A blind plate must be used in the mash filter.

With a normal grist size, the wort is drawn off at approximately 6% Plato; However, significantly more wort needs to be drawn off to achieve 6% Plato in the wort. This amount exceeds the kettle's capacity, and some breweries boil the additional quantity in the mash tun. This, however, ties up the brewing equipment for longer and results in unnecessary water boiling.

The wort is drawn off at 9-10% Plato, as far as the kettle's capacity allows. During racking, it is then blended with water to approximately 6% Plato (converted to pitching wort).

Advantages: Time savings in the brewhouse, fewer vessels in the fermentation cellar, and energy savings, as the blending water is not boiled. 
"Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 451. 

A sort of high-gravity brewing, then, the last method. though 9-10º Plato isn't exactly a very high gravity.

For Doppelkaramelmalzbier, the finished beverage, based on an 11.7 to 12.2% Plato pitching wort, must contain 6 kg (Figure 259) of sugar per 1 hl of retail beer. This sugar is added in a concentrated aqueous solution as sugar syrup before bottling. Since the syrup water dilutes the beer, the double caramel malt beer is blended slightly stronger beforehand (7-8% Plato). The 7-8% Plato beer is mixed with the syrup by repeatedly transferring it between pressure tanks. At the same time, several liters of thick yeast slurry are usually added to initiate a second fermentation, which is intended to generate a higher carbon dioxide pressure in the Doppelkaramelmalzbier.

Doppelkaramelmalzbier is not filtered, but pasteurized.

The added sugar introduces a significant amount of fermentable extract into the Doppelkaramelmalzbier. If the existing and added yeast were able to ferment this extract, all the bottles would burst due to the ever-increasing carbon dioxide pressure. 
"Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 451.

The sugar was added after primary fermentation. However, by the addition of yeast as well, ther was a short secondary fermentation, which was designed to increase the CO2 content.

But that fermentation had to be stopped, given the massive content of unfermented sugar. Hence the pasteurisation. A bit strange that it wasn't filtered, though.

However, slightly higher pressure produces a more appealing head (see p. 434). To generate this increased pressure, the temperature is raised to 30–35°C for approximately 2–4 hours at the beginning of pasteurization. Then, the temperature is increased to about 65°C, thereby killing the yeast cells and preventing further fermentation and carbon dioxide production.
"Technologie Brauer und Mälzer" by Wolfgang Kunze, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 2nd edition, 1967, page 452. 

All in all, pretty weird.  Doppelkaramel does still exist. But does anyone still brew it this way?

Chapman 14th October 1880 AK mashing scheme

We’ll finish with a look at the mashing scheme.

It’s a rather complicated one. With no fewer than seven operations.

Things kick off with an infusion. Followed by an underlet. All pretty standard stuff. Then there’s something simply described as “O” in the brewing record. My guess is that it means “overlet”. That is, adding hot water to the top of the mash, rather than the bottom, as in an underlet.

There’s then the first sparge, which is followed by a second mash. Which is somewhat warmer than the first. Though the strike heat is lower. The process ended with more sparging.

As there are no column headers for the mashing details, it’s impossible to know whether the rightmost temperatures are initial heats or tap heats. I’m inclined to believe the latter. For all, except the initial infusion mash.

Chapman 14th October 1880 AK mashing scheme
operation	barrels	strike heat	initial heat	tap heat
mash 1	10	168º F	143º F
underlet	1	173º F
overlet	1	173º F
sparge 1	9	176º F		150.5º F
mash 2	3	160º F		150º F
sparge 2	4.5	164º F		158.5º F
sparge 3	4.5	161º F		160º F
Source:
Chapman brewing record.

 

 

Chapman boiling and fermentation in 1880

Moving on to processes.

Starting with boiling. Not that there’s anything very odd about it. For most beers, the first copper was boiled for 90 minutes and the second for 120 minutes. Times which aren’t anything out of the ordinary.

As none of the beers is super strong, it makes sense that there were no extremely long boils. The longest, for the second copper of Stout, was 160 minutes. I wonder if that was to try and darken the weaker wort a little. A dark colour being a bit of a requirement for a Stout.

Pitching times are a little on the low side. All of them, including for the weakest beers, are under 60º F.

The highest temperatures were generally 10º F to 12º F above the pitching temperature. So, generally a bit under 70º F. A pretty standard range of temperatures and pretty dull, really.

I can see from the brewing records that attemperators were used to control the temperature of the fermentation. The attemperators were generally switched on about two days into the fermentation and switched off about two days later.

Here’s a full fermentation record:

It’s interesting that the attemperators were switched off just before the wort hit its maximum temperature. 

Chapman boiling and fermentation in 1880
Beer	Style	boil time (hours)		Pitch temp	max. fermen-tation temp	length of fermen-tation (days)
X	Mild	1.5	2	58.5º F	69.25º F	8
XX	Mild	1.5	2	57º F	67.75º F	8
XXX	Stock Ale	1.5	2	57º F	66.5º F	8
AK	Pale Ale	2.5		58º F	69.25º F
PA	Pale Ale	1.5	2	57º F	68.5º F	5
S	Stout	1.5	2.67	58.5º F	69.5º F	7
Source:
Chapman brewing record.

Chapman 5th Oct 1880 XX fermentation
time (hours)	gravity	temperature
0	1067.9	57º F
13		59.5º F
23.5	1063.7	61.5º F
25	attenuators on
37	1054.8	63.75º F
47.5	1046.0	64.75º F
61	1032.4	66º F
72	1025.2	67º F
76	attenuators off
100	1020.5	67.75º F
107.25	1019.1	67.75º F
157	1015.2
	racked
Source:
Chapman brewing record.

 

 

Let's Brew - 1932 Youngs XXXX Ale

Just like Fullers with Old Burton Extra, Youngs also had a stronger Burton Ale. Something called XXXX Ale. Though it probably wasn’t called that down the pub.

It doesn’t seem to have been brewed very often. And was parti-gyled with XXX. I’m guessing that it was a winter seasonal beer.

Nothing to say about the recipe. This having been parti-gyled with the XXX Ale above.

Now here’s the big question: was this a genuinely Old Ale? Well, the only example I have was brewed in early November. If it was a winter beer, that means it was either consumed withing a couple of months, or aged for a full twelve months. 

1932 Youngs XXXX Ale
mild malt	13.00 lb	79.46%
crystal malt 60 L	1.250 lb	7.64%
No. 3 invert sugar	2.00 lb	12.22%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.11 lb	0.67%
Fuggles 120 min	2.75 oz
Fuggles 30 min	2.75 oz
OG	1079
FG	1029.5
ABV	6.55
Apparent attenuation	62.66%
IBU	53
SRM	23
Mash at	152º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	WLP002 English Ale

Learn more about brewing at Youngs from former brewer John Hatch. 

Drinking habits

 For years, I drank a few bottles of St Bernardus Abt every day. It sort of defined me.

Not any more.

This year, I've drunk pretty much no beer at home. Why? A change in habits.

These last 12 months have presented a few challenges health-wise. Starting with my broken arm in Salvador.

Feeling a bit fucked, and in quite a bit of pain, I knocked off drinking for a while. Until it became a new habit.

I don't drink beer at home any more. I bought 11 Abts in December 2024 for Christmas. I drank the last one on 5th July 2025. Why the big change?

Habit. I realise much of my drinking over the years has been about habits. Those four or five Abts every night? A habit. Once illness broke that routine. Well, I didn't feel the need to do it any more. 

It's probably for the best. Even though I do still love Abt. I just don't want it to take over my life.

1970s Pilsator decoction mash

As you read this, I should be sipping a beer in a bar in Copacabana. Flash bastard that I am. Far away from the freezing cold of Amsterdam. 

More fun from behind the iron curtain. In the form of another decoction scheme.

It's been a while since I went on a decoction mash binge. Such a fascinating subject. Who would have guessed that there were so many different methods? And this is another new one to me.

The source is a brewing record image for a Pilsator. I can't remember where I got it, nor which brewery it is. Dead interesting, thougfh.
It's a type of single deoction. But with a twist.

It's mashed in at 50º C, then has rests at 64º C and 74º C. Weirdly, it's cooled back down to 64º C. Thn warmed back up to 76º C. Only then was the wort boiled. But only for ten minutes. Which seems pretty short. It can't have been very much wort that was boiled, as it only raised the temperature of the mash by 2º C.

What's odd about this method? Usually any boils are earlier in the process. And are used to raise the temperature of the mash considerably. For example, from 50º C to 64º C.

1973 DDR Pilsator mashing scheme
operation	time
	start	end	temp. º C	hl
3,500 kg pilsner malt mashed in	06:20	06:40	56	120
drain 1st mash	06:55	07:05		110
raise to 64º C	07:00	07:15
saccharification rest	07:15	07:45	64
raise to 74º C	07:45	07:55
rest 20 min	07:55	08:15	74
move to mash tun	08:15	08:25
cool to 64º C	08:25	08:35	64	140
drain 2nd mash	08:35	08:40		60
saccharification rest	08:40	08:55	76
raise to boil	08:55	09:25
boil	09:25	09:35
move to mash tun	09:35	09:45
saccharification rest	09:45	10:00	76
mash out in lauter tun	10:00	10:25
Source:
a random DDR brewing record I have