Strong Bitter

According to my classification, Strong Bitter is anything above 1045º. Beers of this type pretty much disappeared in the 1940s. As restrictions on brewing were lifted in the early 1050s, breweries started to introduce stronger Bitters, similar in strength to pre-war Best Bitter.

About the only exception to this was Draught Bass, which even during the war remained over 1045º.

Beers of this strength didn’t sell in enormous quantities, but were profitable enough to be worth a brewery’s while. Often they were parti-gyled with standard Bitter, an economical way of producing a small batch beer. Which is still the way Fullers produce ESB.

Strong Bitter 1953 - 1964
Year	Brewer	Beer	Price per pint d	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	colour
1960	Ansells	Bitter	17	1045.3	1010.7	4.5	76.38%
1954	Bass	Pale Ale	19	1046	1008.7	4.86	81.09%	20
1965	Bass	Draught PA		1050.5	1009.4	5.36	81.39%	16
1964	Camerons	Strong Arm	25	1045.2	1013.1	4.01	71.02%	45
1953	Charrington	Pale Ale	17	1046.4				29
1959	Charrington	Toby Ale	15	1046.6	1009.4	4.84	79.83%	20
1963	Charrington	Toby Ale	33	1048.1	1008.3	5.19	82.74%	18
1960	Courage & Barclay	Directors' Bitter	24	1048.8	1008.4	5.27	82.79%	26
1960	Greene King	Abbot Ale	22	1051.3	1007.9	5.43	84.60%	20
1960	Ridley	Best Bitter	21	1047	1007.8	4.9	83.40%	22
1961	Southams	Pressure PA	24	1045.8	1007.1	4.84	84.50%	17
1954	Watney	Special Bitter	20	1045.5	1013.7	4.12	69.89%	23
1963	Watney	Red Barrel Ex. PA	31	1047.7	1012.9	4.52	72.96%	20
1965	Watney	PA		1050.3	1011.5	5.05	77.14%	23
1960	Young & Co	Best Bitter	20	1048.4	1011.5	4.61	76.24%	24
	Average		21.4	1047.5	1010	4.82	76.24%	23.1
Sources:
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/002.
Which Beer Report, 1960, pages 171 - 173.

This is an excerpt from my excellent book on brewing after WW II.


http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/austerity/23181344