Let's Brew - 1923 Cairnes Single Stout

I’m calling this Single Stout purely because that’s what it’s called in the brewing records. Though, in reality, it looks rather like a Porter. Whatever it was, it formed the overwhelming majority of what Cairnes brewed.

I had been contemplating writing about how little roast barley was used in Ireland. Outside Guinness, of course. Until I came across a note of materials used at the bottom of one page. Which included a column or roast barley.

This is the problem of getting ingredients hard-coded in the pre-printed brewing records. Cairnes records two ingredients so listed: BPG (Beane’s Patent Grist) and patent malt. BPG was dropped before WW I, being replaced by “flakes”. Which I’m guessing were flaked maize, but which could have been rice. And, at some point, patent malt was replaced by roast barley. It’s just impossible to see when.

Other than the roast barley, there are just two other elements to the grist: pale malt and caramel. Interestingly, no other sugar and no adjuncts. It’s far simpler than a London Porter recipe.

Three types of English hops, all from the 1921 harvest. 

1923 Cairnes Single Stout
pale malt	8.75 lb	90.21%
roast barley	0.75 lb	7.73%
caramel 2000 SRM	0.20 lb	2.06%
Fuggles 120 mins	0.75 oz
Fuggles 60 mins	0.75 oz
Goldings 30 mins	0.75 oz
OG	1042
FG	1014
ABV	3.70
Apparent attenuation	66.67%
IBU	33
SRM	33
Mash at	155º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	58.25º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1084 Irish ale