Mild Ale on the eve of WW I

Mild Ale had been the most popular style of beer since the mid-19th century. For most breweries, Mild Ale accounted for more than 50% of output.

In the second half of the 19th century, it was typical for a brewery to produce four Mild Ales, usually called X, XX, XXX, XXXXX. By 1914, many breweries had reduced their range of Mild Ales to just two or three. Most extreme was London, where the large breweries often brewed just a single Mild, called X Ale.

The number of Milds brewed wasn’t the only difference between London and the provinces. While a London X Ale had a gravity or at least 1050º, provincial versions could be as weak as 1040º. An XXX or XXXX Ale from the provinces was around the same strength as a London X.

While the provincial Milds are mostly hopped at a similar rate to London Milds – around 5 lbs per quarter of malt, those from Boddington are extremely lightly hopped.

Scottish Mild Ales follow a similar pattern to provincial English versions, with the strongest examples about the same strength as a London X Ale. This was the last hurrah of Mild Ale in Scotland. After the war, very little of it was brewed.

As with provincial English Milds, the weakest examples are under 1040º. No London beer was as weak as that before the war.

Provincial Mild Ale before WW I
Year	Brewer	Beer	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	lbs hops/ qtr	hops lb/brl
1914	Boddington	B	1037.0	1010.0	3.57	72.97%	2.86	0.51
1914	Boddington	BB	1047.0	1014.0	4.37	70.21%	3.62	0.85
1914	Boddington	XXX	1051.0	1015.0	4.76	70.59%	3.67	0.99
1914	Adnams	X	1033.0	1005.5	3.64	83.33%	4.38	0.58
1914	Adnams	XX	1042.0	1007.0	4.63	83.33%	4.20	0.73
1910	Warwicks	X	1043.2	1013.9	3.88	67.95%	5.00	0.85
1910	Warwicks	XX	1048.5	1014.7	4.47	69.71%	4.95	0.95
1910	Warwicks	XXX	1055.4	1017.7	4.98	68.00%	4.95	1.14
1911	Lees	U	1034.0	1007.0	3.57	79.41%	4.74	0.66
1911	Lees	K	1049.0	1010.0	5.16	79.59%	5.82	1.12
Sources:
Boddington brewing record held at Manchester Central Library, document number M693/405/126.
Adnams brewing record Book 2 held at the brewery.
Warwicks & Richardsons brewing record held at the Nottinghamshire Archives, document number DD/NM/8/4/1.

London Mild Ale before WW I
Year	Brewer	Beer	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	lbs hops/ qtr	hops lb/brl
1914	Whitbread	X	1052.1	1010.0	5.57	80.80%	6.04	1.29
1914	Barclay Perkins	X	1051.3	1013.6	4.99	73.54%	5.49	1.15
1914	Fullers	X	1049.6	1011.1	5.09	77.65%	5.15	1.15
1910	Truman	X	1052.6				5.42	1.22
1914	Courage	X	1054.6	1019.4	4.65	64.47%	4.96	1.05
Sources:
Whitbread brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/01/079.
Barclay Perkins brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number ACC/2305/1/603.
Fullers brewing record held at the brewery.
Truman brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/190.
Courage brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number ACC/2305/08/247.

Scottish Mild Ale before WW I
Year	Brewer	Beer	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	lbs hops/ qtr	hops lb/brl
1914	Thomas Usher	60/- MA	1038	1015	3.04	60.53%	5.00	0.79
1914	Thomas Usher	X	1045	1013	4.23	71.11%	7.25	1.35
1914	Thomas Usher	80/- MA	1046	1016.5	3.90	64.13%	5.00	0.96
1914	Thomas Usher	X 60/-	1051	1013.5	4.96	73.53%	7.25	1.52
1909	Maclay	Mild 42/-	1034	1013	2.78	61.76%	6.31	0.91
1909	Maclay	Mild 56/-	1061	1025	4.76	59.02%	6.31	1.63
1913	Younger, Wm.	XX	1055	1018	4.89	67.27%	4.07	0.87
1913	Younger, Wm.	XXK	1056	1016	5.29	71.43%	4.07	0.81
1913	Younger, Wm.	XXX	1065	1021.5	5.75	66.92%	4.55	1.15
Sources:
Thomas Usher brewing record held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number TU/6/1/5.
William Younger brewing record held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number WY/6/1/2/58.
Maclay brewing record held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number M/6/1/1/2.

This is an exceprt from Armistice! my book on British brewing during WW I.  Buy this wonderful book.