Pale Ale wasn't the only beer shipped to India. Considerable amounts of Porter were shipped, too. But for some reason this often gets overlooked or ignored. I guess there isn't a romantic enough story behind it. Both Barclay Perkins and Whitbread brewed a Porter specifically for the Indian market.
So what was and Export India Porter like? You'd expect it, like IPA, to be brewed stronger and with more hops to help it survive the journey. (Only joking. We all know by now that IPA wasn't a strong at all.). Why don't we take a look?
The grist is very simple: 110 quarters of SP (Sussex pale malt) and 100 quarters of HB (Hertfordshire brown malt). Along with just over a ton of Mid Kent hops (2,500 pounds). Which is about 3.5 pounds of hops per barrel. The OG is 18.9 lbs per barrel or 1052.
How does that compare with Barclay Perkins standard Porter? Here's a table comparing TT (standard Porter) and EI (Export India):
Barclay Perkins 1805 Porter | ||
TT | EI | |
pale malt | 42% | 60% |
brown malt | 45% | 40% |
amber malt | 13% | 0% |
hops (lbs/barrel) | 2 | 3.6 |
gravity (lbs barrel) | 20.00 | 18.90 |
gravity (OG) | 1055.40 | 1052.35 |
gravity (FG) | 1015.50 | 1016.00 |
ABV | 5.28 | 4.81 |
apparent attenuation | 72.02% | 69.44% |
Source: Barclay Perkins brewing records. | ||
The version exported to India was actually weaker than the domestic beer. Though considerably more heavily hopped. The grist was of EI also quite different, containing no amber malt and a higher proportion of pale malt.
The origins of Black IPA?
ReplyDeleteUnusual that there was no amber malt, I though it was used as it was believed to have stability effects and help storage. One reason is survived in Guinness FES till the 1940's
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