Let's Brew Wednesday - 1837 Reid BS

Reid, one of the great London Porter brewers, is one I've much neglected. Despite theirs being the first brewing records I collected.

It’s fun finally getting around to these Reid’s records. Not that the Porter recipes are that weird or exciting. Just nice to do some different ones.

This is their base level Stout. Brown Stout was the first modern Stout in the 18th century. Brown because of the base brown malt, Stout because of the strength.

I won’t talk at great length about the recipe. Because it’s the usual pale, brown, black malt and pale malt. And East Kent hops. Pretty standard. London Porter brewers were pretty conservative with their grists. And we’re before the period foreign ingredients flooded in. When British agriculture couldn’t keep up with the growth in population and thirst.

Hertfordshire malt and Kent hops. They were the backbone of London brewing through the birth and blossoming of Porter in the 1700’s. And continued when to be so while Mild Ale’s star rose in the middle of the 1800’s. Until there just wasn’t enough to brew the quantity of beer the masses required.

Getting back to the beer, the simplicity doesn’t extend to the mashing scheme. Three mashes, no sparges. With a fourth mash for a return wort.

Here are the details:

action	water (barrels)	water temp.	tap temp.	time
mash	213	160º F	142º F	90
mash	114	182º F	158º F	50
mash	155	168º F	158º F	40

As you’d expect, BS spent some time in vats. It wasn’t the poshest Stout, so perhaps less than a year, but at least six months.

1837 Reid BS
pale malt	13.75 lb	77.46%
brown malt	3.25 lb	18.31%
black malt	0.75 lb	4.23%
Goldings 75 mins	3.00 oz
Goldings 60 mins	3.00 oz
Goldings 30 mins	3.00 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.50 oz
OG	1074
FG	1023
ABV	6.75
Apparent attenuation	68.92%
IBU	98
SRM	33
Mash at	150º F
Sparge at	168º F
Boil time	75 minutes
pitching temp	65º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1099 Whitbread Ale

This recipe is in my wonderful book, Let's Brew!: