St. Anne's Lager Beer

I told you I'd be returning to St. Anne's Well Lager Beer. I bet you hadn't expected it to be quite so quickly.

As you can see from the advert, they were still plugging away in 1885.

ST. ANNE'S LAGER BEER
A LIGHT, AGREEABLE TONIC.
TESTIMONIALS are daily received the parity and excellence of
ST. ANNE'S LAGER BEER.
SOLD IN PATENT SCREW-BTOPPERED BOTTLES — IMPERIAL PINTS ONLY —
AT 3s 6d PER DOZEN
Charles Ekis, Esq., F. C. S., writes:
"The results of my Analysts of the St. Anne's Lager Beer show that it is perfectly sound, light, wholesome beer of moderate alcoholic strength, and possessing considerable aromatic and tonic properties. No traces of any other bitter than that hops be discovered."

Sold by gents in Town and Country.
ST. ANNE'S WELL BREWERY, EXETER.
Western Times - Friday 06 November 1885, page 4.

I wonder why they were so keen to stress only hops had been used for bittering? I strychnine scandal (that never was) had been decades before.

3s 6d for a dozen pints. That's 3.5d per pint. Let's do a bit of contextualisation. A pint of Draught Mild (X Ale) cost 2d a pint in the 1890's. And would probably have been a bit stronger than Lager. Guinness Extra Stout, a powerful beer at 1075º, also cost 3.5d for a pint bottle. A pint bottle of Bass cost 3.5d to 3.75d, but that was an expensive drink. And also a good bit stronger than Lager.

Bad value for money. Something of a recurring theme with British Lager.

Exeter Lager Beer

My trawl through the newspaper archives in search of material on Lager beer has thrown up some intriguing stuff. Like an early Lager I'd not heard of before. And from an odd location: Exeter.

The St. Anne's Well Brewery seems to have started brewing Lager in 1881. That's a very early date. I only know of a handful of early attempts at Lager brewing:

• Joseph Spink and Sons of the Brownroyd Brewery, Rose Street, Bradford, 1877
• William Younger of Edinburgh 1879
• Bayerische Lager Beer Brewery in Eltham, Kent, 1881

Why did a relatively small, provincial brewery jump on the Lager train so early?

"EXETER LAGER BEER.
The proprietors of the St. Anne's Well Brewery, this city - Messrs. Harding, Richards, and Thomas - appear to have achieved a decided success the production of a light, pleasant, refreshing beer of the Lager quality, so famous at Vienna and throughout Germany, and of late years popularised Paris and London. They have fouud the water of the St. Anne's Well well adapted for the production of such a beverage, aud have other special advantages for the brewing of the amber-coloured drink. English beers have been chiefly remarkable for their strength. Messrs. Harding, Richards, and Thomas claim to be in possession of the art of providing beer comparatively free from the intoxicating quality, combining English excellence with the sparkling lightness of the Vienna Lager. That their claim is founded on merits likely to ensure general acceptance, the annexed extract from a report in yesterday's Moring Advertiser on The National Brewery Exhibition and Market affords strong evidence "Messrs. Harding, Richards, and Thomas, of the St. Anne's Well Brewery, Exeter, exhibited their 'English Lager Beer,' the novelty and excellence of which obtained for them encouraging amount of attention throughout the exhibition. This article is of the light, pleasant, tonic kind so well known on the Continent, and which is certainly making its way in the public estimation in this country. They show three sorts of beer - the St. Anne's Lager, a mild, light, dinner beer; the St. Anne's Pale Ale, a little stronger than the first; and the St. Anne's '3 X,' a pale, mild, beer, a little heavier than the others, and possessing more the Burton character. Favourable judgments have been passed by competent judges on these products of the St. Anne's Well Brewery, and they appear likely to become extensively popular. They are considered by the exhibitors owe much of their excellence the application in their manufacture of the 'combined attemperator, aerator, and rouser,' invented by their brewer, Mr. Clinch. This apparatus, which is manufactured by Messrs. G. Adam and Sons, of Bristol, exhibited at their stand, and plays so important part the brewing process, by effecting exact and uniform adjustment of the temperature of the wort the fermenting rounds, as merit a brief notice. of these combined arrangements is placed in the centre of each round. It may be described as a metallic vessel through which a current of cold water is constantly passing, and which is traversed by a number of vertical tubes extending completely through it. The water is admitted into the apparatus at the base, and at a suitable pressure, and passes out it at the top, while the wort, divided by the tubes into multitude of small streams, has its temperature rapidly modified by that of the water, an extended surface of the two fluids interchanging their heat through the thin metallic partition constituting the substance of the tubes which separates them. The constant circulation of the wort through the tube is ensured by simple and ingenious contrivance. As the water leaves the apparatus it is made to fall over a small wheel constructed as a water wheel, which is thus made to rotate, and the mechanical power so obtained is transmitted by suitable connexions to a fan mounted on a vertical spindle, and fixed position below the apparatus. The rotation communicated to the fan draws the wort downwards through the tubes, after passing through which it ascends through the cooler strata to the top, when it is again drawn downwards by the continuous action of the fan. In this way it is obvious that, by suitably regulating the current of water employed, the brewer obtains perfect control over the temperature of the entire body of wort, aud can ensure its being maintained any given temperature throughout the entire period of the fermentation. Mr. Clinch's apparatus has been successful operation at Messrs. Harding and Co.'s brewery during the last eighteen months, and was for the first time introduced to the brewing trade in the present Exhibition."
Exeter and Plymouth Gazette Daily Telegrams - Tuesday 25 October 1881, page 2.

I wish the article was less vague about the Lager itself. "of the Lager quality" - does that mean bottom-fermented or just similar to a bottom-fermented beer? It's really not clear from the text. I do know that they had rebuilt their brewery in 1878 (source: "A Century of British Brewers", by Norman Barber, 2005, page 23.) so it's possible that they added a Lager capability at that time.

It's weird how often it's mentioned in 19th-century sources that Lager was virtually non-intoxicating. Lager wasn't lower in alcohol back then. In fact it was stronger than modern British Lager. It just appeared comparatively alcohol-free compared to the strong British-type beers of the day. Which started at around 5% ABV and worked upwards from there.

Passing on to their other beers, there's a detail about the 3X Mild that you rarely see mentioned: its colour. Here's one a 19th-century Mild that was definitely pale. It's bizarree how few mentions I've ever found of this. I guess it was just too obvious to be worth mentioning. I'd lve to know what's meant by "Burton character". Presumably that's the origin of Burton as a style.

Without a diagram to help me, I don't really understand how that 'combined attemperator, aerator, and rouser' worked. Though I'm sure that anything which allowed the brewer to precisely control the temperature of fermentation was bound to improve beer quality. If it worked. I'm always coming across mention of similar clever devices thought up by brewers. Few of them caught on.

I've not quite finished with the St. Anne's Well Brewery. If only to tell you how long they kept on with their Lager.

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1934 Barclay Perkins Draught Lager

Not to dilute the current Lager thread, I thought I'd throw in some recipes, too. Next week's is a real treat: one of the earliest commercially-brewed Lagers in Britain. But, as a warm-up, here's a early draught Lager.

I really must revisit the Barclay Perkins Lager records. I've only ever looked at a couple of them. Funny how your ideas changed. When I first saw the catalogue of the Barclay Perkins archive, I never imagined that I'd be so interested in the Lager records. Initially, it was only the Porter logs that interested me. The 19th century ones.

There's something else I hadn't anticipated being so exciting: the 20th century records, especially those from after WW II. If you'd asked me right at the start of my archive trail, I'd have said my interest ended at around 1922. How things have changed since then. I'll be honest, lots of 19th century records are pretty dull. Pale malt, hops, sometimes some sugar.

Barclay Perkins entered the Lager business in 1921, when their shiny new Lager brew house opened. With little domestic competition, they were soon able to establish themselves as one of the country's leading Lager brewers.

The early Lager market was a funny one. There were only 6 Lager brewers and just about all of them operated on the national level. They had to, given the small volume of Lager sales. In 1935 those six Lager brewers (Alloa, Barclay Perkins, Jeffrey, Red Tower, Tennent and Wrexham) only produced 114,000 barrels between them (source: Western Daily Press - Wednesday 10 June 1936, page 12).

Barclay Perkins brewed three Lagers in 1934: Export at 1049.4º, Draught at 1043.2 and Dark at 1057.4º. Most Lager was still bottled at the time and Barclay's led the way in offering a draught version as well. I know from later pricelists that it was delivered in metric-sized casks, 5.5 and 11 gallons (25 and 50 litre). It was served on top pressure, as the pricelists also include CO2 cylinders.

It looks like a pretty authentic Lager. I can't say that I understand the mashing details totally. But it is complicated. And it starts at a very low 130º F, rising to 175º F. It's all malt - something none of their top-fermenting beers was - and uses half German malt and all Czech hops. The wort was pitched at 46º F and rose to a maximum of 52º F. After primary fermentation it was moved to lagering tanks at 39º F.

I hadn't realised before Kristen mentioned it, but this is very like a Czech Výčepní Pivo in terms of gravity.






Time to let Kristen take control . . . . . . .

Kristen’s Version:

Notes: Holy smokes kiddoes, this one is pretty sweet. It very much feels like a Světlé Výčepní…that being a very pale light Czech lager. Very simple grist of pils and pale malt. I really wanted to keep it English so I went with Fawcett lager malt and Fawcett Optic however I did choose to use those delicious Czech Žatec hops. A simple primary fermentation for a week and then a 3 week lager at 36F. Keep it simple. Make it now, drink this bastard for Ofest!  

Wrexham Pilsener

As I've already mentioned, there are plenty of articles to be found in late 19th century newspapers about Lager. This one is even more specific, being about Pilsener.

The Wrexham Lager brewery was an important player in the development of Lager-brewing in Britain. It was the first Lager-only brewery to survive for any length of time. Founded in 1881, it lasted right up to 2000 when its multinational owners finally pulled the plug.

"PILSENER LAGER BEER.
It is not so many years past since Lager Beer was practically unknown in this country. Travellers returning from Vienna, Berlin, Bavaria, and other continental towns, had gone into raptures over the famous "Beir Gardens," telling how the Burgomeister and the workman, the general and the private, the lady and her maid, the townspeople countryfolk, and strangers, not to speak of children and their nurses, all met on one common ground, straying under the Linden trees, listening to the strains of the military band playing Strauss' dreamy waltzes, or mayhap Wagner's "Lohengrin," the men drinking lager beer out of German tankards, iced, cold, and exhilarating. The number of tankards consumed at one sitting were generally in proportion to the credulity of the listener, sometimes it extended to gallons, as in the case of the famous student of Heidleberg.

It is a question if lager beer would have been introduced into England to the extent it now is, but for the fact that the German brewers first attacked the export trade of the English and Scotch brewers, and slowly but surely superseded them in almost every foreign market, particularly those under the British flag. Being successful, they then pushed the beer into England, and were assisted by the English residenters, who coming home brought the taste for lager beer with them. Up to this the German clubs in London, Manchester, &c, kept lager beer for their members, but outside of this there was no other trade to speak of. All this is now changed ; at present there are no less than thirty-five Continental lager beer breweries represented in London alone, and in England there are several breweries now making this beer. The demand for lager beer, especially the light Pilsener beer, has advanced with great strides. The public are finding out that this light beer is a very healthy beverage, acting as an exhilarating tonic, without any depressing effects, such as follow the consumption of heavier ales, and the taste generally is setting towards a light, palatable beer.

We have mentioned there are several breweries that brew lager beer in this country, among these the Wrexham Lager Beer Company (Limited), Wrexham, stands foremost, This brewery, built from the foundation on the German system, is complete in all its details, and has been very successful in brewing the light "Pilsener" beer for the past two years, their sales within six months having advanced nearly 50 per cent. The beer is a beautiful pale color, light and pleasant to the palate, and effervescing like good champagne, as a dinner beverage it is unsurpassed. The beer is matured in the Company's ice cellars for at least three months, the machinery at the brewery being capable of making from ten to twelve tons of ice per day. This being more than is required for brewing purposes, the company are now making the ice from pure town's water, and selling it to the public for trade or domestic use.

It is strange to think of the distant parts of the world to which the Wrexham Pilsener Beer finds its way. When one speaks of flowery Japan, China with her teeming populations ; the Malay Archipelago, including the Dutch island of Java, Rangoon, and British Burmah ; India, from Calcutta to the mountains, and in Ceylon ; all the principal Australian ports ; Africa, both east and west coast ; the principal ports in South America, both east and west coast ; Florida, New York, and Canada, it can be seen that it has a wide domain. At Home the principal large lines of steamers take it for passengers' use, both the great Australian lines and the famous Atlantic racers, not to mention Eastern bound steamers. In the United Kingdom, from Aberdeen in the north to Bournemouth in the south, and in the wild wests of Ireland to Hull in England, a large and growing trade is being done ; and like carrying coals to Newcastle it has even been sent to customers in Germany. We are informed that making use of their extensive malting floors and kilns the Company started malting last year, and made malt suitable for sale to other brewers. So far they have met with success, having sold all they malted for the purpose during the season. With the machinery and plant at their disposal, and the efficient staff of employés at present engaged, the Company Will have, and deserve, continued success in the future."
Wrexham Advertiser - Saturday 25 October 1890, page 5.

There are a couple of really interesting points in there. First, about the way German beer stole British export markets. Particularly export markets that were part of the British Empire. That I knew, but the next bit is an echo of how IPA arrived in Britain. Returning expats who had acquired a taste for Lager whilst abroad wanting to continue their Lager habit.

Then there's the number of Lager brewers with agents in London: 35. That's quite a lot. Though, given that only 50,000 barrels were imported in total in 1890 (source: Brewers' Almanack 1928, p. 115), many must foreign breweries must have been bringing in very small quantities of beer.

One significant change since the early days of the 1860’s was the type of Lager being imported and drunk. At first the Vienna style of amber Lager had been most popular, followed by the dark Munich type. By 1890 Pilsner had become the preferred Lager, which mirrored trends in the rest of Europe. The first Lagers brewed in most of European countries were Müncheners. Carlsberg in Denmark and Heineken in Holland are good examples. Neither initially brewed a pale Lager.

Despite this glowing writeup in the local paper, the Wrexham Lager brewery struggled to find much of a market for its beers in Wales of Britain as a whole. Which is why there's such a long list of export destinations. It's significant that the first "domestic" customers mentioned are shipping lines. Hardly really domestic consumption.

This is one of several advertorial type articles about the brewery that I've found in the Wrexham Advertiser. One was clearly written by a non-native English speaker. A dead giveaway of the brewery having been involved in its writing.

Continental and English Railway Travelling

We're back again with an ancient travel report. I hope you enjoy these things as much as I do.

Some things never change. Like the superior organisation and comfort of continental railways compared to those in Britain. Funnily enough, one of the area wher the Germans excelled was in superior catering. It's still true today. A German station of any resonable size will have at a bare minimum a kiosk selling food, beer and impulse schnapps. Large stations have a dazzling array of refreshment options.

"CONTINENTAL AND ENGLISH RAILWAY TRAVELLING.
A correspondent of the Athenaeum, writing from Vienna, says:- One great faet which strikes an Englishman travelling on the Continent is, that in foreign parts the convenience of the public (with some exceptions) is more studied better cared for than in England. Who that has eaten and drunk at a railway restauration, or Speise Saal, as they call it in Germany, or a "buffet" in France, but must have felt more than ever ashamed of the so called "refreshment rooms" in which the British travelling public are supposed to refresh themselves? Go where you will abroad, the superiority is manifest. The restauration at Olten is well known to all who have traveled in Switzerland, It is one of the largest, if not the largest, in Europe. I arrived there with a party from Baale, and during the 20 minutes of waiting for the train to Berne we had an excellent breakfast, unlimited in quantity, café-au-lait, bread, butter, honey, and jam, for whioh the charge was one franc each person, There were waiters enough to attend to the crowd of travellers, and, notwithtanding the apparent confusion, the traincaller did his duty so well that throng after throng left the tables as their train was ready, and none was left behind.
Glasgow Herald - Saturday 24 October 1868, page 3.

I'm pretty sure that you'd pay more than one franc a head in a Swiss station buffet today.

Now we get to all the good beer stuff.

"All through the Rhine provinces; the Palatinate, and Baden, railway travelling is divested of some of its inconveniences by the nimble lads and lasses who, wherever the train stops, run from carriage to carriage with baskets of fruit or trays of freshly-drawn beer, or jugs of water. Many a traveller who does not wish to alight may wish to quench his thirst, and there the opportunity is afforded. All over Germany the same practice prevails, but, perhaps, finds its culmination in Bavaria. If any of our railway directors want to know what a refreshment room ought to be, let  him go and look at the restauration at Augsburg or Munich. One room is allotted to first and second class passengers, who, instead of crowding at a single counter, seat themselves at the numerous tables, and eat and drink in comfort. But third class passengers are' not neglected; theirs is the largest room, containing scores of tables every one of which may be crowded, as I saw more than once, and with  a few of the first and second class passengers, who seemed to enjoy the bustle. Of course, the noise is overpowering, but you can get a good dinner, promptly served, of soup; meat (roast and boiled), the never~failing sausage, potatoes and salad, with sweet things if you like, and good beer at a very moderate cost. The counter from which the chief delivers his supplies is so well arranged and fitted with pots and pans that the various dishes are kept hot and ready for serving dut at a moment's notice. And let it be rermarked, a table-napkin is supplied to each person who dines. This is a touch of consideration for third-class passengers which I can hardly hope to see adopted in England, live as long as I may. At nearly all the stations the third-class waiting-room is also the restauration. "Will any of you dine at the table d'hote at Linz ?" asked the guard of the train, looking into our second-class carriage, as we were nearing that city. Whether he sent a message on by telegraph or otherwise I know not, but on our arrival at Linz, with twenty minutes to wait, we found forty plates of soup, smoking hot all ready for us; these were followed by two courses of meat, and a mehlspeise, which resembled a baked apple-pudding. No one complained of not having enough. The charge, inclnding beer, was equivalent to 2s."
Glasgow Herald - Saturday 24 October 1868, page 3.

Doesn't that sound civilised - lads and lasses bringing draught beer around the train. I wonder what it was served in? Because surely they wouldn't be around to collect empty glasses.

 Even continental boats were better than their British counterparts:

"Draught beer can be had onboard the Danube steamers at ten or twelve kreutzers the tankard. How the steward of a Thames steamer would stare if you asked for a pint of draught ale while on a trip to Gravesend or the Nore! when all the while the majority of the passengers prefer draught beer to the frothy, bottled stuff which is supposed to be good because it contaius fixed air. England is commionly spoken of as a beer drinking country; but what are the facilities afforded to drinkers? In London and the large towns you stand at the counter, or the bar parlour, or the big room upstars, where one large table nearly fills the space; and in any case you are, served in pewter. In Germany even at very modest houses, the drinking cups and tankards are of glass, or in some instances stone with a pewter lid, and the room is furnished with rows of small tables, which facilitate companionship.
Glasgow Herald - Saturday 24 October 1868, page 3.

This is exciting. He's talking about a pub I know:

"At the Hof Brauhaus, in Munich, I have seen from four to five hundred persons taking their evening draught - brown beer on one side of the house; white beer, with a slice of lemon in each tankard, on the other. At the Ober Pollinger, a 20 gallon cask of beer stands on a pedestal in the middle of the room, and is emptied in about fifteen minutes. Down goes the pedestal, speedily to re-appear with another full cask, which in turn is soon drawn off, and so it goes on all the evening. So rapid is the demand that although the waiters carry five tankards in each hand, they cannot supply the eager customers quickly enough, and you see a crowd round the cask holding out their tankards to the tapster. In some rooms a fountain of iced-water is provided in which the tankards and glasses can be rinsed and cooled. Pains are taken to keep the beer cool in the cellars; hence, as will be understood, the Bavarians are highly favoured in their national beverage. They can drink it to perfection. To those who know what Bavarian beer is this particular will be important, because even a good thing may be spoilt by bad serving. An Englishman who cannot drink beer at home without undergoing a severe bilious attack, finds that he can drink beer at Munich with impunity. He feels refreshed and comnforted thereby but not stupefied. But hould he travel on to Vienna be will find that the Austrian capital has beaten the Bavarian in the article of beer."
Glasgow Herald - Saturday 24 October 1868, page 3.

Did you spot the most fascinating part of this whole article? The one real nugget of fact. That Weissbier was served with a slice of lemon. No way the Hofbräuhaus would do that today. I'd wondered if a lemon garnish had ever been the practice in Germany. It seems that it was. At least in the 1860's.

That pedastal with the barrel sounds very much like the lifts that some Alt and Kölsch pubs have built into the bar and which bring up fresh barrels from the cellar.

Kindle version of Bitter!

I seem to be getting the hang of  the Kindle upload interface. I've managed to get another book up: "Bitter!"

I won't start telling you about what a wonderful source of detaily stuff about every type of Pale Ale. If you read this blog, you'll already know that it's packed with analyses, recipes, grists, brewing techniques and loads more about Pale Ale, IPA, Bitter, Light Ale, Light Bitter, Bitter Ale, AK, Dinner Ale and all the many other variations.

Maybe I do need to remind you to buy the bloody thing.

Here's my usual subtle hint. Buy "Bitter!" now. It's sweet.

German drinkers

Travellers' accounts can be remarkably good sources for details of everyday life. Because they are interested in and can be bothered to record the minutiae that locals find too mundane to be worth discussing.

The tales of British visitors to Germany in the 19th century are particularly fascinating. If only because they are untainted by the negative emotions generated by the two World Wars. German drinking habits seem to have had a particularly mesmerising effect on British tourists. Especially in Bavaria, where ludicrous quantites of beer were consumed.

"German Drinkers.
What is set up as the master-vice among ourselves is in him a sort of amiable weakness. He is like the husband who was pronounced "a good kind of a drunken body, with no harm in him." "He does not take raw spirits like our wretched working classes," you say but even that is not strictly true. The Schnaps is a considerable institution in Germany, and if you are an early riser you will often see a glass of brandt-wine or kirschen-wasser, or bitters taken, to fortify the stomach for the heavy beer-drinking of the day. But let us look at fermented liquors alone. It will shock no German to impute to him the consumption of a couple of bottles of wine in any given day - not though you should make it out to be three or four. Now the sages in chemistry tell us that the mildest wine made has 8 per cent, of alcohol in it - that without that it cannot be wine at all. Strong ports and sherry have 24 or 25 per cent. Take the average German vintage at half of this - 12.5 per cent. Well, in proof spirit, which is a good deal above the average of the gin-palace, the amount of alcohol is 50 per cent. It follows that in a couple of bottles of this very harmless stuff there is as much spirit as in half a bottle of good gin or brandy. Then we are told that the strength of the strongest malt liquors just comes to 8 per cent. — that of the weakest wines. If we suppose that excellent liquor, Bavarian beer, to be half as strong as this, there is room for it to communicate a good deal of fire when consumed on the enormous native scale. In any place of entertainment in Bavaria, if a Kelner sees your beer-flagon empty, he immediately fills it for you without request or hint. Bavarian nature abhors such a vacuum, and the nerves of a kindly Kelner will not permit him to behold such a type of misery as an empty beer-flagon. I was told in this region that the universal passion for beer was made a highly available instrument in the suppression of crime — seeing that in countries where nothing of the kind prevailed, it is impossible to bring punishment up to so afflictive a height, consistent with the preservation of the criminal's health, as the stopping of a Bavarian's beer; while, for the purposes of prison discipline, the power on some occasions slightly to relax the prohibition was a bribe to good conduct, so potent to leave far behind anything we can accomplish through our inferior social institutions. How much beer the inhabitants of this or any other part of Germany habitually consume, can only be matter for guess-work ; but any one who knows the country will not denounce from one to two gallons per day as extravagant. Now, on the supposition of the 4 per cent., a gallon of beer is equivalent to half a bottle of spirits. In the novel by Freytag, called "Debit and Credit," supposed to be so accurate a picture of German manners, we are told that the average allowance of beer to a packer — the allowance which it is not creditable to him to exceed - is forty pints a day — more than three gallons, and certainly endowed with more alcohol than a bottle and a half of ordinary spirituous liquor.— "My Latest Vacation Excursion," in Blackwood's Magazine." Kentish Gazette - Tuesday 08 November 1864, page 2.

That description of starting the day with a schnapps or two to set you up for a day's beer-drinking could be about me when I'm in Germany. I'm glad to know that I'm fitting right in with German traditions. German spirits are still on the weak side. Much of the impulse schnapps I slurp down on my hols is only 30% ABV.

Bringing you a new beer when your glass is empty? That sounds more like the Rhineland than modern Bavaria. I wonder when that practice died out? I could have done with that sort of action during my Long Wait in the Hofbräuhaus (more than 60 minutes - I've not been back since).

How Lager came to Britain

More Lager fun. This time, the very beginning of the story.

How did Lager become established in Britain? It was a funny process, kicked off by two quite unrelated events. As this article explains:

"GERMAN BEER IN ENGLAND.
Everybody (says the Pall Mall Gazette) who, visited the Paris Exhibition the year before last will remember the continual throng of people flocking in and out of the German beershops as one of the most remarkable features of the show. The immense popularity of the Bavarian and especially the Austrian beer, led to the opening of permanent establishments for its sale in different parts of Paris, and an attempt is now being made to gain a footing for the trade in London. At first sight, considering, the vast amount of brewing which goes on in this country, and the old reputation of the manufacture, the experiment of introducing foreign beer, on which the cost of a long journey has to be paid, may seem rather unpromising. In point of fact, however, the sort of beer which is supplied by Dreher and the Liesing Company has really no counterpart among the different varieties of English beer, and supplies what has long bean recognised as a want - a light, pure, clear drink, of good flavour, but weak alcoholic strength. This is just what our English brewers, from a mistaken notion of interest, seem determined not to brew. For the sake of the higher price, they compel people to drink strong stupefying ale, the lighter kinds of beer being quite insipid and unpalatable. A slight concession is, indeed, made in the case of beer for domestic use, though even then the same false principle may be detected; but in the case of taverns and public-houses it is impossible to get a glass of drinkable beer which is not stronger than need be. Nothing can be more absurd than that we should have to go to Munich or Vienna for beer, which might be produced at home in any quantity, and probablly of better quality. The Austrians, however, are making a mistake in charging 6d. a pint for their beer - more than three times as much as is charged in Vienna. Twopence, or at the most threepence, a pint should pay them very well, and would certainly increase the circle of their customers, The British medical Journal gives the component parts of which Austrian beer is composed. These appear to be as follows:-

	DREHERS BEER, bought at the Vienna bought at the Restaurant, 395, Strand.	LIESING BEER, bought at the Crown Coffee-house, 41,  Holborne.
Specific gravity	1,019.76	1,019.11
Alcohol	4.43	4.45
Acetic acid	0.12	0.13
Extract	7.05	6.82
Original gravity	1,062.27	1,061.67

Further, the proportion of malt used in brewing this Viennese beer is estimated at:-

Drehers Beer.,,... 2.30 bushels per barrel of 36 gallons.
Liesing Beer ...... 2.28 ,. , ,

And it is said that about three times as much is charged per glass as a better description of the same article can be obtained for in Austria. "
Birmingham Daily Post - Wednesday 27 January 1869, page 6.

The Viennese beer hall had been a particularly big hit at the Great Exhibition in Paris in 1867. An event that had been attended by many Britons. Then there's the first example of a phenomenon that happened several times: Lager consumption being given a huge boost by exceptionally warm weather.

1868 was very hot, especially in Southeast England, where there was at least one day over 32º C in every month from May to September. In July alone there were 9 days over 32º C.

I find this stuff fascinating. We'll be returning to the theme of Lager's initial beachhead in Britain.

Mumme

Old posts. No-one notices the comments there.

This one, about Mumme in Denmark, deserves to be seen.

Go here.

Kharkov here I come

Me and Andrew have just been doing a bit of Google travelling. He checked where has streetview and up popped Kharkov.

I'd only heard of it as the site of a nasty battle in WW II. One of those bloody Eastern Front slug fests.

I thought it might have been smashed to hell. But on streetview it's a wonderland. Like Prague circa 1985. One of my favourite places in space and time. It'll be one of the first spots I revisit when the time travel stuff gets sorted.

Look:

Prague, but with a soupçon de Stalinisme architecture-wise. (Check out the block the tram line leads to.) Magic. Can't wait to get there.

Andrew isn't so keen. "It looks a dump, Dad. Like some Communist country."

"Yes, exactly. That's why it's so brilliant."

"I'm not going there, dad."

Not if I don't tell you beforehand. You'll think you're going to Munich.I'll claim to have made a simple mistake and booked Kharkov. Kharkov, Munich. easily confused. Both have an "h' in their name.

"Do you want to go to Kharkov Lexie?"

"No!"

"What about if I give you 30 euros a day?"

"How many days will we be there, Dad?"

"Three."

"Yeah, OK then."

I love Lexie. He'll do anything for money.

"Do I have to spend the money there, Dad?"

"We'll discuss that later."

"Look at all those air-conditioners."

Lexie's an observant lad.

"We'll go in the spring."






Just to be clear about this: I really do think Kharkov looks wonderful.

Merits of British and Foreign Lager Beer

I'm back banging my Lager drum. For the reasons that should soon be apparent.

I love the House of Commons. No, not for the bad jokes and childish behaviour. For all the useful information in its debates and reports. The article below is a good example. Which has provided me with an elusive statistic.

Though admittedly a good part of debate as reported is made up of bad jokes. Note the presence of Lady Astor, American born, teetotaller who was the first woman to sit in the House of Commons and the person responsible for raising the drinking age to 18.

"MERITS OF BRITISH AND FOREIGN LAGER BEER
Lively Debate In House of Commons
DUTY ON TEA

During the committee stage of THE FINANCE BILL IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, YESTERDAY, THERE WAS A LIVELY DEBATE ON THE MERITS OF BRITISH AND FOREIGN LAGER BEER ON THE CLAUSE WHICH IMPOSES A TAX ON THE IMPORTED BEVERAGE.

It was opened by Mr Benson (Lab., Chesterfield), who complained that this tax was merely a protection for the brewing industry increase their already large profits.

Sir Hugh Seely (L., Berwick-on-Tweed) agreed that the tax was pure protection for the brewing trade.

"Everyone knows,'' he said, "that lager beer is produced better abroad than in this country."

Lady Astor confessed that she could not tell which beer was best.

"If there is one thing in the world that we want to-day," she said, "it is not drink. If people have got to drink intoxicants the lighter beer is better, because if lighter beer were drunk, and less of it, it might decrease the number of road accidents."

Sir William Davison (C., Kensington S.) confessed that from time to time he drank lager beer.

"When I have glass of this foreign beer," he added, always feel a kind of guilt that I not supporting home industry. Now I shall be able to have half-pint or pint of this beer without feeling guilty." (Laughter).


NOT GOOD FOR HIM

Lady Astor: If he could be persuaded that it was better for the country drink milk would Sir William drink milk instead?

Sir William: I am very fond of milk and would like to drink it, but it is not good lor me. (Laughter).

Mr Bellenger (Lab., Bassetlaw) thought that foreign lager beer was very good.

"But," he added, it is probably better beer when it is drank abroad than when it is drunk at home."

Sir John Wardlaw-Milne (C., Kidderminster) said that the argument that the brewers were now making large profits might be an argument for cheaper beer, but it was no argument for drinking foreign beer. This tax might be one way of proving whether not we could produce lager beer this country good that brewed abroad.

Col. Gretton (C., Burton) pointed out that at present only six breweries in this country produced lager beer and the annual production was only about 100,000 barrels. Perhaps this tax might increase the production this year.


STRENGTH OF BEERS

Mr Chamberlain said that while the production of lager beer in this country amounted in 1935 to 114,000 barrels, that of other beers was 23,000,000 barrels. Apparently Lady Astor thought that light beers were less likely cause that cerebral disturbance which she set down as the cause road accidents.

"But," said Mr Chamberlain, "If she will try for herself the effect of lager beer and other beers she will find that the alcoholic strength less in the case of lager beer than the case of other beers."

It was because producers of lager beer had been put in a prejudiced position owing to the fact that they were not able to make the application to the Import Duties Advisory Committee which other industries were that he had had to make this proposal.

He saw no reason why the industry should be excluded from the general rule which applied to other imports.

The Brewers' Society had kept their promise and had very much increased their purchases of British barley. No doubt they would consider themselves just as much covered by this promise as the production of lager beer as in that of other beer.

Members need not be afraid that this would add unduly to brewers' profits. The clause was carried by 241 votes to 124. "
Western Daily Press - Wednesday 10 June 1936, page 12.

See the statistic I mean? The quantity of Lager brewed in the UK. Just 114,000 barrels in 1935. I hope assume that figure is right. Because the one for total beer production isn't. My source (Brewers' Almanack 1955, page 50) gives it as 20,864,814. Using my figure, I make Lager just 0.55% of total beer production. I thought it might have been even lower than that because in 1960 Lager still accounted for just 1% of consumption. Or about 450,000 barrels.

But what about imported Lager? Good question I happen to know the import figures for a year or two earlier:

1932-3    22,486 standard barrels
1933-4    32,480 standard barrels
(Source: Brewers' Journal 1934, page 324.)

Adjusting those to more useful bulk barrels (assuming a gravity of imported Lager of 1048), I make that 25,765 barrels in 1932-33 and 37,217 barrels in 1933-34. Of course, that's all imports from the Continent, but it's safe to assume the vast majority was Lager. Assuming all British-brewed Lager stayed in the country (not actually true) that's still less than 150,000 barrels in total.

The number of Lager brewers in Britain is handy to know, too. Six of them, eh? Let's see, there's Arrol, Tennent, Barclay Perkins, the Red Tower Lager Brewery in Manchester, the Wrexham Lager Brewery and Jeffrey of Edinburgh. That's an impressive three out of six for Scotland.

I'll be returning to the statistics of British Lager brewing as I unearth more.

Another Kindle book!

Yes, I've managed to get another book onto Kindle. Not sure how. The interface is a mystery to me. Like magic, but more erratic.

But enough of my technophobia, on with shameless self-promotion.

Unique. How many books can be called unique? I know one. "Peace!" The only book about brewing in Britain between the two wars. Not only is it unique, it's filled to brim with all the detaily things I fill my books with. Tables, charts, numbers, numbers, numbers, statistics, and a few more numbers. With 40-odd recipes from the period.

Buy Peace! (How impractical does that sound?)

The history of British Lager

You might have noticed that a bit of a Lager theme has crept in over the last few days. There's a reason for that. A very simple one.

I'm going to be giving a talk on the History of British Lager as part of Glasgow Beer Week. Not wanting to look a total twat, I've been doing some additional research. It's been a fascinating experience. And I've been accumulating masses and masses of new information.

One thing I've noticed. There are way more articles in newspapers about Lager than there is about British types of beer. Search for IPA and almost all that you'll find are advertisements. It's totally different for Lager. Because it was so new and exotic at the end of the 19th century there are dozens of articles describing it and its arrival in Britain.

I've been finding so much that it's made me seriously consider putting together "Lager!". Not a complete history of Lager I'm afraid Rod. Just British Lager.

My talk will be on Monday 10th September. Not sure of the venue yet. There should be some proper Lager brewers there, too. Hopefully someone from Tennent.

Graham's Golden Lager / Skol 1933 - 1994

I never dreamt when I first got interested in beer seriously in the 1970's that one day I'd be writing about Skol. Stuff I wouldn't have baited a slug trap with.

The beer had a far more interesting history than I could have imagined. And one that winds in and out of a few obsessions of mine.

Where does the story begin? At the end of the 19th century in Burton, of all places. Allsopp, deciding that Lager was going to be the next big thing, bought a state of the art Lager brewery from the USA. It opened in 1899, just as Allsopp was starting to get into serious financial difficulties. They did have a degree of success with their Lager, especially in export markets, but their Pale Ale trade collapsed. Between 1900 and 1910 Allsopp's sales fell by 40%. By 1911 a receiver had been appointed to run the business.

In 1912, John Calder of Calder's Brewery in Alloa was brought in to run Allsopp. This forged a link between Allsopp and Alloa that was to play a key role in the later formation of Allied Breweries. It also brought Lager brewing to Alloa, for in 1921 Allsopp's Lager plant, which had lain idle in Burton, was moved to Arrol's Brewery, where John Calder was also a director. In 1927 a new beer was brewed in Arrol's Lager brewery - Graham's Golden Lager.

It was a big success. As Arrol's were brewing all their Lagers, it's no surprise that Allsopp's took a controlling interest in the company in 1930, even before their 1934 merger with Ind Coope. Arrol's was completely bought out in 1951 and the brewery converted to a Lager-only plant.

In 1959, Graham's Golden Lager was rebranded ads Skol, though for a while it had the ungainly name of Graham's Skol Lager. It became the main Lager of Ind Coope and later the whole Allied Breweries group. Allied Breweries set up an international consortium in 1964 to brew Skol abroad and soon it was being made in more than a dozen countries. And, though British Skol went to the great cellar in the sky, it's still brewed in several countries.

That's got the history out of the way. Now we can get onto the beer itself. Luckily, I've quite a few analyses from across the years.

Graham's Golden Lager / Skol 1933 - 1994
Year	Brewer	Beer	Price	size	package	Acidity	FG	OG	colour	ABV	App. Atten-uation
1933	Alloa Brewery	Graham's Golden Lager		pint	bottled		1010.5	1044.5		4.42	76.40%
1939	Alloa Brewery	Graham's Golden Lager			bottled	0.04	1008.6	1045.2	8.5	4.77	80.97%
1950	Alloa Brewery	Graham's Golden Lager	15d	half	bottled	0.05	1010.6	1040.6	9	3.89	73.89%
1952	Alloa Brewery	Graham's Golden Lager	15d	half	bottled	0.04	1014.3	1039.2	15	3.22	63.52%
1957	Alloa Brewery	Graham's Pilsener Lager	20d	half	bottled	0.04	1007.2	1035.6	9	3.69	79.78%
1957	Alloa Brewery	Graham's Golden Lager		half	bottled	0.04	1007.3	1030.4	11	3.00	75.99%
1960	Alloa Brewery	Skol Pilsner Lager	18d	half	bottled	0.04	1007	1033.4	8	3.30	79.04%
1961	Ind Coope	Grahams Skol	20d	half	bottled	0.03	1007.2	1033.6	9.5	3.30	78.57%
1961	Ind Coope	Grahams Skol	20d	half	bottled	0.03	1007.2	1033.6	9.5	3.43	78.57%
1962	Ind Coope	Skol Export	24d	half	bottled	0.04	1008.3	1035.4	8	3.52	76.55%
1962	Ind Coope	Skol Pilsener	19d	half	bottled	0.04	1006.4	1033.9	7	3.57	81.12%
1963	Ind Coope	Skol Pilsener	21d	half	bottled	0.04	1006.5	1033.6	8.5	3.52	80.65%
1972	Allied Breweries	Skol	15p	pint	draught		1007	1033.2		3.40	78.92%
1994	Ind Coope (Burton)	Skol Lager		pint	bottled					3.60
Sources:
Thomas Usher Gravity Book document TU/6/11
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/001
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/002
Daily Mirror July 10th 1972, page 15
The Best of British Bottled Beer

The first thing that strikes me is the gravity. Up until 1952, the gravity is above the average for all beer brewed in the UK. Soon after the complete takeover of Arrols by Ind Coope (coincidence?), the gravity drops below the average and remains around 11% below it.

Skol OG and average OG
year	Skol OG	average OG	difference
1933	1044.5	1039.52	11.19%
1939	1045.2	1040.93	9.45%
1950	1040.6	1033.88	16.55%
1952	1039.2	1037.07	5.43%
1957	1035.6	1037.42	-5.11%
1957	1030.4	1037.42	-23.09%
1960	1033.4	1037.25	-11.53%
1961	1033.6	1037.41	-11.34%
1961	1033.6	1037.70	-12.20%
1962	1035.4	1037.70	-6.50%
1962	1033.9	1037.70	-11.21%
1963	1033.6	1037.70	-12.20%
1972	1033.2	1036.90	-11.14%
Sources:
Brewers' Almanack 1955, p. 50
Brewers' Almanack 1962, p. 48
Brewers' Almanack 1971, p. 45
Statistical Handbook of the British Beer & Pub Association 2005, p. 7

To give some idea of just how bad value for money Skol was, in 1962 a half pint bottle of Double Diamond cost 15d, 4d less that Skol though its gravity was 13 points higher at 1047º. remeber that Double Diamond was a heavily-promoted, premium product. A pint of Ind Coope Mild Ale, with a gravity almost exactly the same as Skol, cost just 14d that year. Or less than half the price for the same amount of alcohol. It makes you realise why large breweries pushed Lager and neglected Mild.

Which has prompted me to think of another reason beer styles decline and die. When a style becomes the most popular, it's very difficult to keep selling it as a premium price. It's new types of beer, fashionable ones, that can demand a higher price. So there's a clear financial incentive for brewers to push the new at the expense of the old.