Monday 31 January 2022

London XX Ale malts and sugars 1880 - 1899

It’s an indication of many fewer ingredients were used relative to X Ale in that I can fit them all into a single table. All a bit dull, really. Most of the beers are just base malt and sugar. One from Fullers has a touch of crystal malt and another the unusual base of amber malt.

Frustratingly, the specific type of sugar wasn’t detailed in any of the records. Probably some sort of invert is the best guess I can make.

The lack of adjuncts can be explained by most examples being pre-1890, when they weren’t used so much. And the ones after 1890 are from Whitbread, who eschewed unmalted grains. 

London XX Ale malts and sugars 1880 - 1899
Year Brewer Beer pale malt amber malt crystal malt total malt other sugar
1880 Barclay Perkins XX 85.71%     85.71% 14.29%
1886 Barclay Perkins XX 100.00%     100.00%  
1881 Whitbread XL 91.84%     91.84% 8.16%
1885 Whitbread XL 92.31%     92.31% 7.69%
1890 Whitbread XK 89.29%     89.29% 10.71%
1895 Whitbread XK 93.85%     93.85% 6.15%
1899 Whitbread XK 91.16%     91.16% 8.84%
1887 Fullers XX   78.75%   78.75% 21.25%
1893 Fullers XX 75.25%   4.86% 80.11% 19.89%
1880 Truman 40/- Ale 73.15%     73.15% 26.85%
  Average         87.62% 13.76%
Sources:
Barclay Perkins brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers ACC/2305/1/579 and ACC/2305/1/584.
Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/047, LMA/4453/D/01/050, LMA/4453/D/01/056, LMA/4453/D/01/061 and LMA/4453/D/01/065.
Fullers brewing records held at the brewery.
Truman brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/161.


Sunday 30 January 2022

London XX Ale 1880 - 1899

We now move up a class to XX Ale. Or whatever a specific brewery might call a Mild stronger than X Ale.

The stronger X Ales had been rapidly disappearing as the 19th century rolled on. A few were still clinging on in the 1880s and 1890s. Not many, though. And only those one level up from single X. Mighty beasts like XXX and XXXX Ale were long gone.

Barclay Perkins and Truman were down to just X Ale by 1890. Fullers XX lasted a little longer, struggling on to the mid-1890s. Only at Whitbread was a stronger Mild still being brewed at the end of the century.

Initially, XL, which had been brewed since 1860, was replaced by XK in 1888.   Renamed, more like, as the new beer was the same strength and had an identical recipe. XL as a brewhouse name I can understand. “L” usually stands for London. Brewers in the capital Sometimes brewed different-strength beers for the local market and what they called the “Country”. Basically, anywhere else. With beers intended for London being stronger.  XL makes sense in this case.

XK is another matter entirely. The K suffix at this point usually indicated a Pale Ale. Fullers also had a beer called XK, and that’s exactly what that was. A Pale Ale. In the context of a Mild Ale, it makes no sense. But, hey, there’s no complete consistency in these sorts of designations.

The hopping rates per quarter (336 lbs) of malt are generally similar to X Ale. No shock there, as most of the examples were parti-gyled with their weaker sibling. Being stronger, however, the rate per barrel was inevitably higher.

London XX Ale 1880 - 1899
Year Brewer Beer OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation lbs hops/ qtr hops lb/brl
1880 Barclay Perkins XX 1079.5 1024.1 7.33 69.69% 13.38 4.98
1886 Barclay Perkins XX 1076.0 1022.7 7.05 70.11% 12.00 3.86
1881 Whitbread XL 1076.5 1022.7 7.11 70.29% 7.35 2.56
1885 Whitbread XL 1071.7 1024.9 6.19 65.25% 8.04 2.51
1890 Whitbread XK 1069.0 1019.0 6.61 72.45% 8.02 2.46
1895 Whitbread XK 1069.3 1019.0 6.65 72.56% 8.01 2.52
1899 Whitbread XK 1064.5 1019.0 6.02 70.56% 6.53 1.84
1887 Fullers XX 1064.8 1023.3 5.50 64.10% 6.64 1.93
1893 Fullers XX 1068.4 1016.9 6.82 75.30% 7.62 2.25
1880 Truman 40/- Ale 1067.9       10.8 3.68
  Average   1070.8 1021.3 6.59 70.04% 8.84 2.86
Sources:
Barclay Perkins brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers ACC/2305/1/579 and ACC/2305/1/584.
Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/047, LMA/4453/D/01/050, LMA/4453/D/01/056, LMA/4453/D/01/061 and LMA/4453/D/01/065.
Fullers brewing records held at the brewery.
Truman brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/161.

 




Saturday 29 January 2022

Let's Brew - 1886 Barclay Perkins X Ale

Another early Dark Mild recipe. 

This is a really odd one. A Mild Ale recipe like none other I’ve come across.

I repeatedly tell home brewers – especially American ones – that brown malt doesn’t appear in Mild Ales. That’s mostly true, but there is the occasional exception. Like this version of Barclay Perkins X Ale.

Not only does it contain brown malt, there’s a shitload of it, accounting for a third of the grist. I tell you what it’s similar to – their 1812 TT (Porter). Both have a 2:1 ration of pale to brown malt. Given that fact, it’s no shock that the colour of X Ale here is much darker than most of its contemporaries, which wouldn’t have been more than 10 or 12 SRM, at most. It’s the earliest truly Dark Mild I’ve found.

The hopping rate is about standard for London Milds of this date, that is, around 8 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt. Mid-Kent hops from the 1884 and 1885 season, plus American hops from 1885, were employed.

1886 Barclay Perkins X Ale
pale malt 10.25 lb 66.13%
brown malt 5.25 lb 33.87%
Cluster 120 mins 1.25 oz
Fuggles 90 mins 1.25 oz
Fuggles 30 mins 1.25 oz
OG 1064
FG 1015
ABV 6.48
Apparent attenuation 76.56%
IBU 49
SRM 23
Mash at 154º F
Sparge at 165º F
Boil time 120 minutes
pitching temp 60º F
Yeast Wyeast 1099 Whitbread ale


Friday 28 January 2022

Bottled Imperial Stout sold in Scotland 1880 - 1889

Here's the second part of my look at Imperial Stout  in the 1880s. But, this time, specifically ones on sale in  Scotland. All details have been taken from advertisements in Scottish newspapers. The British Newspaper Archive is such a useful resource.

This bunch is even more dominated by London brewers. Only one is definitely from elsewhere: Guinness. Plus one whose origin in uncertain, Yule. That being the name of the retailer who was presumably selling a brewer's Imperial Stout under their own name.

I was interested to see Reid popping up as well as their later partners Combe. It looks as if Reid had pulled out of the Scottish market - or at least stopped advertising - by 1900. I wonder why that was.

Based on the prices, there's a variation in strength here, too. The only ones which look too be the full Imperial strength are those selling for 2s 9d and 3s per reputed pint. Which equates to  4.1d and 4.75d per imperial pint. Those costing 2s 2d and 2s 3d (3.25d and 3.375d per Imperial pint couldn't have an OG of 1075º-1080º. Not quite as weak as some of the draught versions, but still well off Imperial Stout strength and more like a Double Stout.

I'm pretty sure that Guinness didn't brew a Stout stronger than Extra Stout or Foreign Extra Stout, both of which had an OG of 1075º. Which fits in neatly with the price of 2.25d per reputed pint. I can't remember seeing Guinness Extra Stout sold as Imperial Stout in England. I wonder why it was in Scotland?

Don't get the impression no-one in Scotland was brewing the style. I just couldn't find any adverts which included prices. For example, Devanha of Aberdeen advertised their own Imperial Stout.

Bottled Imperial Stout sold in Scotland 1880 - 1889
year Brewery Place beer price (per doz) size
1880 Reid London Imperial Stout 6s reputed quart
1880 Reid London Imperial Stout 3s reputed pint
1880 Truman London XXX or Imperial Stout 6s reputed quart
1880 Truman London XXX or Imperial Stout 3s reputed pint
1883 Barclay Perkins London Imperial London Stout 2s 2d reputed pint
1883 Combe London Imperial London Stout 2s 2d reputed pint
1885 Barclay Perkins London Imperial Stout 2s 9d reputed pint
1885 Guinness Dublin Imperial Stout 2s 3d reputed pint
1885 Truman London Imperial Stout 2s 9d reputed pint
1885 Unknown London Imperial Stout 3s reputed pint
1886 Combe London Imperial or XXX Stout 2s 9d reputed pint
1886 Unknown London Imperial XXX London Stout 2s 6d reputed pint
1888 Reid London Imperial Stout 5s bottle
1888 Reid London Imperial Stout 2s 7d half bottle
1888 Yule ?? Imperial Stout 2s 2d reputed pint
1889 A. Gordon & Co. London Imperial Stout 4s 6d pint
Sources:
Elgin Courant, and Morayshire Advertiser - Friday 06 February 1880, page 1.
Dundee Weekly News - Saturday 22 December 1883, page 8.
East of Fife Record - Friday 25 September 1885, page 1.
Stirling Observer - Thursday 24 December 1885, page 1.
East of Fife Record - Friday 25 September 1885, page 1.
East of Fife Record - Friday 20 July 1883, page 1.
East of Fife Record - Friday 12 November 1886 page 1.
Dundee Courier - Tuesday 12 January 1886, page 1.
Leith Burghs Pilot - Saturday 01 December 1888, page 1.
Aberdeen Evening Express - Thursday 08 March 1888, page 1.

 

Thursday 27 January 2022

Draught Imperial Stout 1880 - 1889

I've completed another bit of my Imperial Stout research and thought I'd pester you with it.

I say finished, but the information here is information I'd already collected. The second part will be the new stuff. And will refer specifically to Imperial Stouts advertised in Scottish newspapers. While all of these were beers on sale in England.

Finding so many examples of draught Imperial Stout did rather surprise me. Even in the 19th century, it was a type of beer mostly found in bottled form.

More confirmation that Imperial Stout was a thing in London. Four of the nine examples in the table were brewed there. Though there are also two from Ireland. I'm not sure if that's how they were described within the brewery or for the Irish market.

Most don't look to be full Imperial Stout strength. Something like Barclay Perkins version, being about double the strength of their X Ale, you would expect to cost about double the 36 shilling price. So around 72 shillings. Only the Caffrey's beer gets anywhere near that. 

60 shillings a barrel implies a beer of around 1090º, 54 shillings 1082º and 48 shillings just 1073º. The latter two look more like a Double Stout and a Single Stout, respectively. Clearly there was a very wide interpretation of what constituted and Imperial Stout.

Draught Imperial Stout 1880 - 1889
year Brewery Place beer price per barrel price (per gallon)
1880 Bentley Woodlesford, Yorkshire Imperial Stout 54 18
1882 J Caffrey & Sons Dublin Dublin Imperial Stout 70 23.33
1882 Manns London London Imperial Stout 60 20
1882 Smithwick Kilkenny Imperial Export Stout 48 16
1885 Joseph Wyles & Co. Bourn IS Imperial Stout 48 16
1886 RH Jenner & Sons London IS Imperial Stout 58 19.33
1889 A. Gordon & Co. London IDS Imperial Double Stout 60 20
1889 Allsopp Burton Imperial Stout 60 20
1889 Wimbeldon Brewery London Imperial Double Stout IDS 56 18.67
Sources:
Various newspaper advertisements.

 

Wednesday 26 January 2022

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1890 Barclay Perkins X Ale

A chance today to look at another late 19th-century London Mild and see how dark it was. I won't keep you in suspense. It was properly dark. What else could it be with all that brown malt?

What a difference a few years make. In 1886, Barclay’s X Ale was a simple affair, brewed from just pale and brown malt.

Now three new ingredients have been added and six points shaved off the gravity. On top of that, the boil time has been reduced by 30 minutes and the pitching temperature raised by 3º F. And here was me thinking that nothing ever changed very quickly in the 19th century. At least when no wars were raging.

New arrivals in the grist are crystal malt, flaked rice and some type of sugar. Not sure what it was. Probably some sort of invert. I’ve gone for No. 2, just to hedge my bets. No. 3 would leave it 22 SRM, No. 1 at 19 SRM. Take your pick. Whatever the choice, it comes out quite dark, about a typical colour for a modern Dark Mild.

To make way for the new ingredients, both the pale and brown malt percentages have been reduced.

The hopping rate is a little higher, despite the fall in gravity. Hops coming in the form of Mid-Kents from the 1888 and 1889 seasons, and American from 1889. The result is 62 IBU, way off the scale for a Mild today.

1890 Barclay Perkins X Ale
pale malt 6.25 lb 48.54%
brown malt 3.50 lb 27.18%
crystal malt 0.125 lb 0.97%
flaked rice 1.50 lb 11.65%
No. 2 invert sugar 1.50 lb 11.65%
Cluster 90 mins 1.00 oz
Fuggles 90 mins 0.50 oz
Fuggles 60 mins 1.50 oz
Fuggles 30 mins 1.50 oz
OG 1058
FG 1017
ABV 5.42
Apparent attenuation 70.69%
IBU 62
SRM 20
Mash at 154º F
Sparge at 165º F
Boil time 90 minutes
pitching temp 63º F
Yeast Wyeast 1099 Whitbread ale

 

 

Tuesday 25 January 2022

London X Ales hops 1880 - 1899

Finally, it’s time to look at the hops. Unsurprisingly, the commonest source of hops is the UK. In particular, Kent. Not so odd, really, as it’s right next door to London. There are also a few from Worcester and Surrey. And quite a few where no specific location in England is mentioned. It’s probably safe to assume that most of these came from Kent. Just statistically, given that it produced far more hops than any other region.

Even more specific than that, Mid-Kent was the most common source. With rather fewer from East Kent, where the classier hops tended to come from. While Mid-Kent and Worcester provided the more workaday hops.

The second most common supplier of hops after the UK was the USA. Again, not much of a shock as it was already one of the world’s largest producers of hops. By this point most of the US hop industry had shifted from New York State to the West Coast. In some cases, California, Washington or simply. Pacific is recorded in the brewing record.

Trailing a distant third, with only 4 examples in the table compared to the 12 of the US, is Germany. Their hops were valued rather more highly than those from the USA and are more likely to turn up in expensive beers like Pale Ale. Though mostly just recorded as Bavarian, they were most likely to have been Hallertau.

The example called Bohemian will be Saaz or something similar. No idea what variety the ones from Burgundy might have been. Nor the two simply described as “Foreign”. They could have come from anywhere.

In most cases, the hops were from either the most recent harvest or the one before that. Though one lot, the Bohemians used by Truman, were three years old. Given that I’ve seen plenty of examples of hops five years or more old being used, overall these were pretty fresh.

London X Ales hops 1880 - 1899
Year Brewer hop 1 hop 2 hop 3 hop 4
1880 Barclay Perkins MK 1879 US 1878 Bavarian 1879  
1886 Barclay Perkins MK 1883 MK 1885 California 1885  
1886 Barclay Perkins MK 1885 US 1885 MK 1884  
1887 Barclay Perkins MK 1885 MK 1886 Farnhams 1885   
1890 Barclay Perkins MK 1886 MK 1889 US 1889  
1899 Barclay Perkins MK 1899 US 1898 MK Goldings 1897  
1881 Whitbread Bavarian 1880 English 1880 English 1881  
1885 Whitbread English 1883 English 1884 Bavarian 1884  
1891 Whitbread English 1890 US 1889 US 1890 Hallertau 1890
1895 Whitbread English 1894 English 1894 Pacific 1894  
1898 Whitbread EK 1897 EK 1897 MK 1896  
1887 Fullers Kent 1884 EK 1883    
1893 Fullers Foreign 1892      
1898 Fullers Worcs. 1897 MK 1896    
1880 Truman US 1879 US 1879    
1885 Truman Kent 1884 US 1884 Bohemian 1882  
1890 Truman Kent 1889 Kent 1889 Burgundy 1889  
1895 Truman Kent 1893 Kent 1894 Washington 1893 Foreign 1893
Sources:
Barclay Perkins brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers ACC/2305/1/579, ACC/2305/1/584, ACC/2305/1/583, ACC/2305/1/586 and ACC/2305/1/593.
Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/047, LMA/4453/D/01/050, LMA/4453/D/01/057, LMA/4453/D/01/061 and LMA/4453/D/01/064
Fullers brewing records held at the brewery.
Truman brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers B/THB/C/161, B/THB/C/166, B/THB/C/171 and B/THB/C/175.

 


Monday 24 January 2022

London X Ales adjuncts and sugars 1880 - 1899

Moving on to other fermentable materials, there is a bit of a shock: that there are so few adjuncts.

Unmalted grains were first allowed as a result of the 1889 Free Mash Tun Act and it’s odd to see how long it was before breweries picked up on their use. In the 20th century, the vast majority of breweries used adjuncts, usually in the form of flaked maize.

Of this set of brewers, Barclay Perkins were the only one to have embraced adjuncts. Initially, in the form of flaked rice, later switching to flaked maize. Both Truman and Fullers would later go down the same road. Whitbread, on the other hand, other than during wartime, never did. Sticking to just malt and sugar.

Sugar, first allowed in brewing in 1847, wasn’t really used much before 1880. Very quickly after the Free Mash Tun Act it became almost universal. Only Irish brewers seemed immune to its charms.

In the 20th century the classic sugar for Mild Ales was No.3 invert. It does turn up in a couple of the beers in the table. Probably in more. It’s just impossible to know for certain, due to brewing logs mostly being vague about the type of sugar being employed. Hence most I can only describe as “other sugar”.

There’s a lot of variation in the proportion of sugar in the grist. Ranging from under 5% to over 26%. When things had settled down, 10% to 15% was the norm. It would be a mistake to assume that economy was the only reason for adding sugar to recipes. It was also used for flavour and, in the case of Mild Ale, to add colour.

London X Ales adjuncts and sugars 1880 - 1899
Year Brewer flaked maize flaked rice total adjuncts no. 3 sugar other sugar total sugar
1880 Barclay Perkins     0.00%   14.01% 14.01%
1886 Barclay Perkins     0.00% 18.18%   18.18%
1886 Barclay Perkins     0.00%     0.00%
1887 Barclay Perkins   10.43% 10.43%   11.30% 11.30%
1890 Barclay Perkins   11.44% 11.44%   12.71% 12.71%
1899 Barclay Perkins 9.47%   9.47%   18.45% 18.45%
1881 Whitbread     0.00%   8.16% 8.16%
1885 Whitbread     0.00%   7.69% 7.69%
1891 Whitbread     0.00%   4.41% 4.41%
1895 Whitbread     0.00%   6.15% 6.15%
1898 Whitbread     0.00% 16.67%   16.67%
1887 Fullers     0.00%   21.25% 21.25%
1893 Fullers     0.00%   19.14% 19.14%
1898 Fullers     0.00%   18.60% 18.60%
1880 Truman     0.00%   26.85% 26.85%
1885 Truman     0.00%   14.26% 14.26%
1890 Truman     0.00%   13.79% 13.79%
1895 Truman     0.00%   10.64% 10.64%
Sources:
Barclay Perkins brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers ACC/2305/1/579, ACC/2305/1/584, ACC/2305/1/583, ACC/2305/1/586 and ACC/2305/1/593.
Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/047, LMA/4453/D/01/050, LMA/4453/D/01/057, LMA/4453/D/01/061 and LMA/4453/D/01/064
Fullers brewing records held at the brewery.
Truman brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers B/THB/C/161, B/THB/C/166, B/THB/C/171 and B/THB/C/175.