Malzbier between the wars (part three)

I'll be gradually plodding my way through Schönfeld over the next few months. When I can be arsed to translate sections.

So many beer types to get through. And I haven't even finished Malzbier yet. Well, I will have after this post. Which describes what happened after primary fermentation:

"The beers, which at the end of primary fermentation were almost invariably characterized by a beautiful and fiery break, as long as there were no serious infections or they were brewed poorly dissolved malt, were - if they were not fully fermented in the vat - partly filled directly from the vat  into transport containers and served after a short period of bunging of about 2-3 days, partly subjected to a short secondary fermentation with an open bung in small containers, in which they were sent out immediately, before they came to be bunged."
"Obergärige Biere und ihre Herstellung" by Dr. Franz Schönfeld, 2nd edition, Verlag von Paul Parey, Berlin, 1938, page 134.

A short conditioning in the transport cask, then. Hard-spiled. It all sounds rather like cask beer, doesn't it?

Though something simialr happened with bottled variations:

"The same procedure was followed for the treatment of bottled beer. Under such conditions, addition of Kräusen was not only superfluous, but under certain circumstances harmful due to an excessive formation of sediment."
"Obergärige Biere und ihre Herstellung" by Dr. Franz Schönfeld, 2nd edition, Verlag von Paul Parey, Berlin, 1938, page 134.

Though sometimes there was a more controlled secondary fermentation at the brewery:

"In some places it was customary to transfer strong beers into lagering barrels of 8-16 hl and leave them here for a secondary fermentation with the bung open. If some beer was expelled after eight to fourteen days, they were mixed with some Kräusen, probably with sugar, too, and filled into barrels or bottles."
"Obergärige Biere und ihre Herstellung" by Dr. Franz Schönfeld, 2nd edition, Verlag von Paul Parey, Berlin, 1938, page 134.

A bit of lagering, then filling into barrels with Kräusen, which is the continental equivalent of primings. It's still sounding very much like cask beer. The beer would have needed that to build up condition after being lagered with the bung open.

This next bit answers some of the questions I had a bout the poor degree of attenuation of old German top-fermenting styles:

"The apparent degree of fermentation of all of these beers after the primary fermentation was completed was in most cases unusually low and not higher than 35-40%, although the yeast used was not, at least not exclusively, of the Saaz low-attenuating type.

Mostly they were mixtures of top- and bottom-fermenting strains in different proportions.

However, these low attenuations were by no means the lowest limits at which the yeast stopped in the primary fermentation. On various occasions it stopped fermenting at a degree of attenuation of 30%, even 24-28%, as can still be seen today when using low-attenuating pure yeast. And at the same time, the yeast is able to build up normally and reach full maturity."
"Obergärige Biere und ihre Herstellung" by Dr. Franz Schönfeld, 2nd edition, Verlag von Paul Parey, Berlin, 1938, page 134.

The type of yeast was responsible for the poor attenuation.I'm surprised to learn that they used cultures which were a mixture of top- and bottom-fermenting strains. Especially as the rules were different for beers brewed from the different types of yeast. Sugar and artificial sweeteners only being allowed in top-fermenting beers.

Despite barely fermenting the wort, these strains of yeast were still able to go through a healthy life-cycle.

Poor attenuation could be a useful feature:

"This behavior, which is of course tied to certain preconditions, places top-fermenting yeast in a drastic contrast to bottom-fermenting yeast, which is not able to suspend its fermentation activity even with attenuation that is nearly as low. From a practical point of view, this can be of great benefit insofar as it is possible when using such yeasts to produce beers, and in particular high-gravity beers, with a very low alcohol content, without the yeast being prevented from fermenting by means of artificial, sharp interventions."
"Obergärige Biere und ihre Herstellung" by Dr. Franz Schönfeld, 2nd edition, Verlag von Paul Parey, Berlin, 1938, page 135. 

Having looked at hundreds of analyses of 19th-century Lager, it's apparent that many bottom-fermenting strains weren't that attenuative. Few examples hit more than 70% apparent attenuation and there were plenty under 60%.