Malting in Alloa

No, I'm not ready to let this one lie yet. How did they kiln malt in Scotland? This is unequivocal:

"Messrs. Calder & Co., who manufacture most of the malt used in their brewings, have malthouses in King Street, near the railway station, as well as on the brewery premises. Those situated in the town, which have a steeping capacity of sixty quarters, are the most important, having been erected by the present firm in 1875. They comprise a double range of buildings, three storeys high, constructed of stone, and of neat elevation. In each range, are two growing floors, and, over them, barley garners and malt bins. The kiln floors are laid with tiles, the furnaces are open choffers, and the heat is dispersed by spark-plates. After a brief inspection of these fine maltings, we returned to the riverside, and looked through those at the brewery, each of which has a steeping capacity of twenty-five quarters. These are also built of stone with slate roofs, and, at the top of one of them, which adjoins the brewery, there is an extensive hop store. In this malting, there is a growing floor, 60 feet in length, the basement of which forms a fine cellar. It also contains screening rooms, five malt bins, holding 450 quarters of malt, and a large malt store, over the mill room. The kilns are similar to those at King Street, being floored with Farnley tiles, and fired by anthracite coal and coke."
"Noted Breweries of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. 4", Alfred Barnard, 1890, page 393.

See that last sentence? In 1890 Calder was kilning using athracite or coke. It's probably fair to assume that they had been doing so since at least the date their new maltings had been built in 1875.

Not that it's any great shock to learn they were using athracite or coke. It would have been odd if they hadn't.

Anyone have a picture of a choffer? I'd like to know what one looked like.