Let.s Brew - 1896 Eldridge Pope XX

And here’s the XX which was parti-gyled with the PA above. Though, at first glance, it might not look that way.

Because this was almost all second wort, the boil time and the hopping are different. In fact. It looks very similar to the AK. The gravity and grist pretty much match. XX only differentiates itself by being more lightly hopped.

I’m struggling to think of much more to say about this beer. It’s all pretty simple. Just base malt, flaked maize and sugar. Though the 50% of the base malt was made from foreign barley, the other half from English barley.

Two types of hops, both English, with no vintage or type specified. 

1896 Eldridge Pope XX
pale malt	8.50 lb	80.95%
flaked maize	0.50 lb	4.76%
No. 2 invert sugar	1.50 lb	14.29%
Fuggles 165 mins	1.00 oz
Fuggles 30 mins	1.00 oz
OG	1049
FG	1011.5
ABV	4.96
Apparent attenuation	76.53%
IBU	24
SRM	8
Mash at	151º F
Sparge at	160º F
Boil time	165 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	White Labs WLP099 Super High Gravity

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1880 Chapman XX

There was sill a range of Mild at Chapman. With XX the middle one of three.    

At 7% ABV, it’s a pretty powerful beer. Though it wouldn’t have been considered as being super-strong at the time. Still, around double the strength of a modern Mild.

Though all were brewed single-gyle, XX has exactly the same grist as X: two-thirds pale malt one-third sugar. The only difference is that this time all the malt is Saale. That is, made from German barley.

It is rather sugar-heavy. Though it’s strong enough that I couldn’t imagine that it would taste thin.

Three types of hops: Sussex from the 1880 harvest, along with two types of Mid-Kent, both from 1878.

1880 Chapman XX
pale malt	8.25 lb	66.00%
No. 1 invert sugar	4.25 lb	34.00%
Fuggles 90 mins	2.00 oz
Fuggles 30 mins	2.00 oz
OG	1068
FG	1015
ABV	7.01
Apparent attenuation	77.94%
IBU	40
SRM	9
Mash at	147.5º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	57º F
Yeast	WLP023 Burton Ale

 

 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1911 Russell XX

Unlike most big London brewers, Russell was still producing more than one Mild Ale. Logically enough, the next one up the strength pole was XX.

There’s an essentially identical grist to X. Which I suppose isn’t a great surprise. Though both beers were brewed single-gyle. Why would that be? Well, one element of the recipe did differ: the hopping rate. X was hopped at 6.1 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt. While XX had 8.77 lbs. That greater hopping rate is reflected in the considerably higher (calculated) bitterness.

Exactly the same hops were employed as in X (as you’ll see, they pop up in all of their beers): English from the 18908 and 1910 harvests. And in the same proportions, too/ One third old, two thirds fresh. 

1911 Russell XX
pale malt	7.75 lb	71.26%
flaked maize	0.75 lb	6.90%
No. 1 invert sugar	2.25 lb	20.69%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.125 lb	1.15%
Fuggles 90 mins	1.25 oz
Fuggles 90 mins	1.25 oz
Fuggles 30 mins	1.25 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.50 oz
OG	1055
FG	1015
ABV	5.29
Apparent attenuation	72.73%
IBU	42
SRM	14
Mash at	149º F
Sparge at	168º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1768 English Special Bitter

Let's Brew - 1940 Barclay Perkins XX (Light)

Another recipe as the result of a Twitter poll. Of the four options - X, XX, XXX and XXXX - XX was a narrow winner, just pipping XXXX. I've picked an example of Barclay Perkins XX from a year into WW II. Not the happiest of times.

It didn’t take long for the war to take a bite out of the OG of XX. It’s down 4º on the year before.

That’s not been the only change. The grist has been fiddled with, too. The quantity of pale malt has been massively reduced, replaced by more mild malt. Flaked rice arrives in place of flaked maize. But there’s about 50% less of it, the slack being taken up by No. 3 invert.

This was parti-gyled with X (Dark). Especially in the early war years, Barclay Perkins rarely brewed any of their Milds, other than X Ale, single gyle. Presumably because the quantities of Ale and XX Ale required were far more modest. This gyle, for example, consisted of 192 barrels of XX and 390 barrels of X.

The hops are also more complex than at first sight. They’re all Mid-Kent Fuggles from the 1939 harvest, but there are three different types.

As with all their Milds, XX was quite heavily primed, raising the gravity by 2.5º. I’ve added an extra 0.25 lb of No. 3 invert to allow for these primings. 

1940 Barclay Perkins XX (Light)
pale malt	0.75 lb	8.94%
mild malt	4.00 lb	47.68%
crystal malt 60 L	0.50 lb	5.96%
amber malt	0.33 lb	3.93%
flaked rice	1.00 lb	11.92%
No. 3 invert sugar	1.75 lb	20.86%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.06 lb	0.72%
Fuggles 90 mins	0.75 oz
Fuggles 60 mins	0.75 oz
Fuggles 30 mins	0.75 oz
OG	1041
FG	1013
ABV	3.70
Apparent attenuation	68.29%
IBU	29
SRM	17
Mash at	144º F
After underlet	152º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	60.5º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1099 Whitbread ale

Let's Brew - 1885 William Younger XX

Not quite so many in this set, you’ll be pleased to hear. Logically enough, the next up is XX.

It’s not a huge amount stronger than X. A mere 5º. If X was around the same strength as 60/-, XX would be a 70/-. Which, of course, didn’t exist.

The recipe is just as thrilling as that of X. Pale malt and a few Flgs of pat. I really wish I knew what that measure was. It must be pretty small, otherwise it would be measured in quarters or bushels. Feel free to throw in a few handfuls of black malt.

Four types of base malt were employed, one English, one Scottish and two foreign.

Not so many types of hops this time up. Just two: American from the 1884 crop and Kent from 1884. Plus, dry hops of an unspecified type. 

1885 William Younger XX
pale malt	13.00 lb	100.00%
Cluster 120 min	1.00 oz
Fuggles 60 min	1.00 oz
Fuggles 30 min	1.00 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.50 oz
OG	1056
FG	1012
ABV	5.82
Apparent attenuation	78.57%
IBU	42
SRM	5
Mash at	153º F
Sparge at	163º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1898 Hancock XX

In 1887, XX was by far Hancock’s most popular beer, accounting for 75% of their production. Not so a decade later. When XX was only brewed occasionally and was greatly outsold by X and XXX. I’ve no idea why focus was switched away XX.

It’s a good bit weaker than in 1887, having lost more than 5º. And was only a few degrees stronger than X.

Not much has changed with the recipe, other than the proportion of pale malt increasing at the expense of No. 3 invert sugar. Nothing very dramatic. Its presence is enough to guarantee that XX a good bit darker than X. Though it’s a good bit paler than in 1887.

Fewer hops were used, but this was counterbalanced by a longer boil time. Leaving the calculated IBUs almost unchanged. Three English hops were used: East Kent from the 1896 harvest, Kent from 1894 and Sussex from 1895.

1898 Hancock XX
pale malt	8.00 lb	86.49%
No. 3 invert sugar	1.25 lb	13.51%
Fuggles 120 mins	1.00 oz
Goldings 30 mins	1.00 oz
OG	1044.5
FG	1008
ABV	4.83
Apparent attenuation	82.02%
IBU	25
SRM	10
Mash at	156º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	White Labs WLP099 Super High Gravity

Fitch & Wilson

I was looking for something completely different. Well, same thing, a price list, but for a completely different brewery. I hate to let any discovery go to waste

I set about extracting the details to my price list spreadsheet. Which is when I noticed something odd. The Strong Ales could be "Mild or bitter, as preferred". Does that mean either young or aged? Or just that one was more heavily hopped?

The X's are used inconsistently, too. XX Very Strong is more expensive, and hence stronger, than both XXX and XXXX. And what the hell does Osborne mean?

A - a designation usually reserved for the weakest of Mild Ales - here is used for something super strong. 2 shillings and sixpence per gallon is incredibly expensive. It implies something well north of 1100º. Queens Cordial I'm guessing was their brand name for it. Unless it was some generic name for a very strong beer.

 

Alcester Chronicle - Saturday 25 June 1881 , page 1.

 The warning and the end is very revealing, too.

"All the Strong and Pale Ales are season brewed, and well matured in cask, the finest qualities of Malt and Hops alone being used in their manufacture; the Dinner Ales are intended for ordinary use, and should not be kept too long in draught if perfection is desired."

It sounds like the Strong and Pale Ales were all Stock Ales and would keep well. While the Dinner Ales you'd best drink pretty quickly.

The Dinner Ales must surely be Mild Ales. Maybe they only called them Dinner ales for their home trade. Which is whom the advert is aimed at.

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1888 Hancock XX

The standard Mild Ale of Hancock which made up the bulk of their output. Obviously, the favourite of drinkers in their pubs.

It’s not a complicated beer. Three types of pale malt, all seemingly made from English barley, the suppliers named Butebock, Wilscombe and Barnard. That’s if I’m reading the handwriting correctly. Not totally sure about Wilscombe. Then there’s lots of No. 3 invert, more than a third of the grist.

Which results in a surprisingly dark beer. Pretty much the colour of a modern Dark Mild. This is a very early date for a truly dark Mild. Making this a dead interesting beer.

I've made a wild guess at the FG, which is not listed in the brewing record. With all that sugar, it could have been lower.

For the mashing temperature, I split the strike heat and the tap heat (i.e., at the end of the mash). The rest is weird, with a couple of additions of really hot water: 6 barrels at 202º F, 15 barrels at 190º F and 15 more at 192 F. Then 15 barrels unheated. All a bit odd.

There were two types of Kent hops from the 1884 and 1887 harvests and one of Sussex hops from 1887. I’ve included dry hops as pretty much all casks were "hopped down" in this period. The quantity of hops has been reduced on account of the age of some.

I wasn't really sure about the yeast. I couldn't find any from the Southwest other than Super High Gravity, which is the Thomas Hardy yeast, so Eldridge Pope. If you can get another yeast from the region, feel free to use that.
 

1888 Hancock XX
pale malt	5.75 lb	63.89%
No. 3 invert sugar	3.25 lb	36.11%
Fuggles 90 mins	0.75 oz
Fuggles 60 mins	0.75 oz
Goldings 30 mins	0.75 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.25 oz
OG	1050
FG	1013
ABV	4.89
Apparent attenuation	74.00%
IBU	27
SRM	17
Mash at	155º F
Sparge at	190º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	White Labs WLP099 Super High Gravity

Let's Brew - 1901 Boddington XX

Next up the Mild chain is XX Ale. Though, in terms of strength, it’s about equal to a London X Ale.

Don’t expect anything exciting to report about the recipe. Although Boddington mostly brewed their Mild Ales single-gyle, they may as well have been, given the similarities between them. All consisted of just base malt and sugar. The latter being described simply as “Garton”.

Even assuming that the sugar is No.3 invert, the colour is significantly paler than that of London Mild Ales. Which by this point were clocking in at over 15 SRM. Not really so surprising, if you remember, as I do, Boddington’s Mild from the 1980s. It was dark compared to their Bitter, but only what I would describe as semi-dark, that is, about 10-12 SRM. It’s also confirmation that the darkening of Mild was an uneven process, not occurring everywhere simultaneously.

Once again there are lots of different hops, four English and one Californian, age unknown.

1901 Boddington XX
pale malt	10.75 lb	93.48%
No. 3 invert sugar	0.75 lb	6.52%
Cluster 120 mins	0.50 oz
Fuggles 60 mins	1.00 oz
Fuggles 30 mins	1.00 oz
Fuggles dry hops	0.50 oz
OG	1051.5
FG	1014
ABV	4.96
Apparent attenuation	72.82%
IBU	32
SRM	8
Mash at	154º F
Sparge at	168º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1318 London ale III (Boddingtons)

Let's Brew - 1890 Adnams XX

Proof here that beers were constantly evolving, no matter how much breweries might claim to be using age-old recipes.

For a start, there’s been a big drop in gravity – a full 10º. Sadly, as Adnams no longer have any of their brewing records, I’ve no idea exactly when the reduction in strength occurred. Not all at once, would be my guess. However it happened, that’s a substantial reduction. Leaving a rather watery-looking beer for an XX Ale.

There’s still not much to the recipe: base malt, rather a lot of sugar and a touch of caramel. The use of the latter leaves the colour rather hanging in the air. The exact shade being crucial. I’ve opted for a middling dark type, which leaves the beer semi-dark. Something which seems to have been becoming a common hue for Mild around this time.

Few details are revealed about the hops in the brewing record. Simply that some were English and the rest Altmark. That’s a region of North Germany just to the left of Berlin. It’s where the Prussian established a hop-growing industry in the 19th century using sets acquired from Bohemia. Which is why I’ve used Saaz in the recipe. Not sure how accurate that is, but it’s the best I can come up with.

1890 Adnams XX
pale malt	5.75 lb	69.03%
No. 2 invert sugar	2.50 lb	30.01%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.08 lb	0.96%
Saaz 30 mins	2.50 oz
Fuggles 90 mins	1.00 oz
OG	1044
FG	1012
ABV	4.23
Apparent attenuation	72.73%
IBU	38
SRM	14
Mash at	154º F
Sparge at	160º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	WLP025 Southwold

London XX Ale hops 1880 - 1899

English hops are the most commonly used. Again, the majority coming from Kent, though with Worcester well represented and in one case from Sussex. Many, unfortunately, I know little about, other than that they were English. There’s a good chance many of them came from Kent, that being the most convenient source for London brewers.

There are fewer foreign hops in this set, being limited to six American and two Bavarian. It is notable that Truman 40/- contained 100% American hops. They may have been extensively used, but it was rare to see a beer that had nothing but American hops.

London XX Ale hops 1880 - 1899
Year	Brewer	Beer	hop 1	hop 2	hop 3	hop 4	dry hops
1880	Barclay Perkins	XX	MK 1875	MK 1878	MK 1879	US 1878
1886	Barclay Perkins	XX	EK 1885	Worcs. 1885
1881	Whitbread	XL	Bavarian 1880	English 1880	English 1881
1885	Whitbread	XL	English 1883	English 1884	Bavarian 1884
1890	Whitbread	XK	English 1889	English 1889	US 1889	US 1889
1895	Whitbread	XK	English 1894	English 1894	Pacific 1894
1899	Whitbread	XK	Worcs. 1898	US 1898
1887	Fullers	XX	Worcs. 1886	EK 1883			Worcs. 1886
1893	Fullers	XX	Sussex 1892	Worcs. 1893			Worcs. 1886
1880	Truman	40/- Ale	US 1879	US 1879
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.

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.

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.