Let's Brew Wednesday - 1960 Drybrough 60/-

As you can see, we’re still stuck on 60/-. Why? Don’t ask me. I’ve started so I’ll finish. Isn’t that reason enough?

This looks very much like 60 Bob as I knew it in my youth. As watery as a Mild and pretty much the same colour. In this case, not even quite 3% ABV. But what about the colour? The recipe says just 10 SRM. Isn’t that much paler than a Mild? Well, this is a Scottish beer, remember? It would have been coloured up with caramel at racking to various colours. Often to around 20 SRM.

There was another version called Keg Light, which was identical to this beer with one exception: it received no dry hops.

The grist is pretty simple: pale malt, flaked maize and a tiny amount of black malt. The latter presumably purely for colour. In addition, there were quite a few sugars: Colour, invert, Avona and CME. For those, I’ve substituted No. 2 and No. 3 invert.

Three types of English copper hops and one of English dry hops. With no indication of vintage or region. I’ve gone with Goldings and Fuggles. 

1960 Drybrough 60/-
pale malt	5.00 lb	75.36%
black malt	0.01 lb	0.15%
flaked maize	0.75 lb	11.30%
No. 2 invert sugar	0.75 lb	11.30%
No. 3 invert sugar	0.13 lb	1.88%
Fuggles 90 min	0.50 oz
Fuggles 60 min	0.50 oz
Goldings 30 min	0.25 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.50 oz
OG	1031
FG	1010
ABV	2.78
Apparent attenuation	67.74%
IBU	17
SRM	10
Mash at	144 / 159º F
Sparge at	165º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	61.5º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

 

Let's Brew - 1940 Drybrough P 60/-

Continuing my look at modern Shilling Ales, here’s a 60/- recipe from the start of WW II.

Being brewed early on in the conflict, the gravity hasn’t been reduced yet from its interwar strength. By the end of the war, the gravity was reduced to not much over 1030º. Or about as weak as beer got. Though a shitty level of attenuation leaves this beer not much over 3% ABV.

You’ve probably heard me bang on about how Scottish beers usually had no coloured malts in them at all. This beer is an exception, as there’s a tiny quantity of black malt. I assume just for colour. Other than that, it’s just base malt and sugar.

There were three types of sugar: Fison, Avona and invert. I’ve substituted No. 1 invert for all three. Perhaps No. 2 invert would be a better choice. I’ll leave that decision up to you.

Just one type of hops: English from the 1938 season. Not all that many of them, either. Leaving the finished beer at a mere 20 IBU.

It’s quite likely that this beer was coloured to several different shades through the addition of caramel at racking time.

1940 Drybrough P 60/-
pale malt	7.00 lb	89.06%
black malt	0.04 lb	0.51%
No. 1 invert sugar	0.75 lb	9.54%
malt extract	0.07 lb	0.89%
Fuggles 135 min	0.50 oz
Fuggles 60 min	0.50 oz
Goldings 30 min	0.50 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.25 oz
OG	1036
FG	1013
ABV	3.04
Apparent attenuation	63.89%
IBU	20
SRM	7
Mash at	151º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	135 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1933 William Younger Export

Finally, an Eighty Shilling that really is related to modern Scottish Export. Though it wasn’t actually called 80/- by the brewery. It was, at least, called Export.

The gravity clearly plonks it firmly in the 80/- category. With an OG of 1054º, it’s clearly in the 8d per pint class. Which is where 80/- gets its name. 6d per pint beers were called 60/-, 7d beers 70/- and 8d beers 80/-. Simple, isn’t it?

There’s a shitload of grits again. Along with three types of pale malt. All very simple, if not particularly awe-inspiring. There was almost certainly caramel added at racking for colour correction. And, knowing Scotland, it probably came in a few different shades. With some being surprisingly dark.

The hopping is heavier than in the 1913 Shilling Ale type of 80/-. Though it’s still a little under 5 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt. Quite low for a Pale Ale of this strength. Though it still comes out over 50 IBU.

Two types of hops: Pacific from the 1930 harvest and Kent from 1932. 

1933 William Younger Export
pale malt	7.25 lb	58.00%
grits	5.25 lb	42.00%
Cluster 90 min	2.00 oz
Fuggles 30 min	2.00 oz
Goldings dry hops	1.00 oz
OG	1054
FG	1016
ABV	5.03
Apparent attenuation	70.37%
IBU	53
SRM	4
Mash at	156º F
Sparge at	160º F
Boil time	165 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

This is a YouTube video about this recipe: 

 

And here's a short YouTube video I made about Eighty Shilling.

  

Let's Brew - 1913 William Younger 80/-

Yet another Eighty Shilling which isn’t what we now think of the style. But of the older type of Scottish beer that I call Shilling Ales.

The gravity has fallen again. But the FG has remained the same, making it even less well attenuated than the 1885 version. Barely over 50%. Which must have made for a very sweet and sticky beer.  Especially as the hopping rate has fallen again. Dropping from 5 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) in 1885 to just 3.5 Lbs in 1913.

Lots of changes in terms of the recipe. From no adjuncts in 1885 to over 40% grits. That’s quite a change. There’s barely any more base malt. It doesn’t sound like a great recipe with all that maize. I have tried a recreation of one Younger’s beer with a similar proportion of grits and it was much better than I expected.

Sugar has also appeared. Glucose is my guess. The brewing record just says “syrup”. I’ve guessed glucose, but it could also have been a type of invert. In addition, there’s caramel for colour correction. Which leaves this version looking like a dark Mild.

Three types of hops were used: Kent from the 1912 harvest and Pacific from 1910 and 1912. 

1913 William Younger 80/-
pale malt	6.50 lb	51.42%
grits	5.25 lb	41.53%
glucose	0.75 lb	5.93%
caramel 2000 SRM	0.14 lb	1.11%
Cluster 135 min	0.75 oz
Cluster 60 min	0.50 oz
Fuggles 30 min	0.25 oz
OG	1056
FG	1027
ABV	3.84
Apparent attenuation	51.79%
IBU	30
SRM	20
Mash at	151º F
Sparge at	160º F
Boil time	135 minutes
pitching temp	59.5º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

Here's a short YouTube video I made about Eighty Shilling.

 

 

This is Sixty Shilling

 Another new video. This time looking at a 60/- recipe.

 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1885 William Younger 80/-

Another Eighty Shilling that isn’t like the modern version. Instead, it’s of the Shilling Ales type. That is, sort of a bit like an English Mild Ale.

If you can remember the 80/- from 1851, that was a much stronger beer, with an OG about 20º higher. And a ABV pushing 7%. It doesn’t help that the rate of attenuation is even worse here. This brew was a parti-gyle with 60/-.

The recipe remains pretty simple. With a 100% malt grist, consisting of three types of pale malt, one Scottish and two foreign. There’s no sugar, even though it was present in some of Younger’s other beers.

The hopping rate is a good bit lower than in 1851: 5 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt, as opposed to 7 lbs.  This is reflected in the somewhat lower (calculated) IBUs.

There were five types of hops, all from the 1884 season: two Kent, Californian, Spalt and American.

1885 William Younger 80/-
pale malt	14.75 lb	100.00%
Cluster 90 min	1.25 oz
Spalt 60 min	1.25 oz
Fuggles 30 min	0.50 oz
OG	1064
FG	1027
ABV	4.89
Apparent attenuation	57.81%
IBU	45
SRM	5
Mash at	154º F
Sparge at	175º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	58º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

Here's a short YouTube video I made about Eighty Shilling.

 

 

This is Eighty Shilling part three

 I explain another 80/- recipe. 1933 William Younger Export.

  

Let's Brew - 1851 William Younger 80/-

Just for demonstration purposes, here’s a recipe of a Shilling Ale 80/-. Which, as you must be bored of hearing by now, has no connection with modern 80/-. Other than the name, obviously.

It has a pretty decent gravity of 1085º, though a poor rate of attenuation leaves it under 7% ABV. Which is pretty typical of Shilling Ales. They mostly have quite high finishing gravities.

Like the 60/- from the same year, the recipe is very simple. Though the two beers weren’t parti-gyled together, the recipes are pretty much the same. Two types of pale malt, one of which was Scottish. And that’s it for the grist.

There were three types of English hops: Kent, East Kent and Farnham. Pretty classy ones. With latter two generally being the most expensive types of hops. There’s no indication of the vintage of any of the hops. 

1851 William Younger 80/-
pale malt	26.25 lb	100.00%
Goldings 90 min	2.50 oz
Goldings 60 min	2.00 oz
Goldings 30 min	2.00 oz
OG	1085
FG	1034
ABV	6.75
Apparent attenuation	60.00%
IBU	72
SRM	8
Mash at	154º F
Sparge at	184º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	56º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

Here's a short YouTube video I made about Eighty Shilling.

 

And here's a video about this specific recipe: 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1851 William Younger 60/-

Another in my series of Sixty Shilling recipes. This time in the form of a mid-19th-century Shilling Ale.

It’s a good bit stronger than the Thomas Usher 60/- from 1885. That was only 1041.5º and 3.5% ABV. Whereas this is considerably higher in OG, though less highly-attenuated.

As is usual for recipes from the earlier decades of the 19th century, the recipe is very simple. Just two types of base malt, one of which was Scottish. Though sugar was already allowed at this point, it wasn’t much used. Especially in Scotland.

The hopping is pretty light for the period. Made up of a couple of different types of Kent and Farnham hops. The combination of light hopping and high FG must have left the finished beer rather sweet and full-bodied. 

1851 William Younger 60/-
pale malt	16.25 lb	100.00%
Goldings 105 min	1.00 oz
Goldings 60 min	1.00 oz
Goldings 30 min	1.00 oz
OG	1072
FG	1030
ABV	5.56
Apparent attenuation	58.33%
IBU	36
SRM	7
Mash at	151º F
Sparge at	184º F
Boil time	105 minutes
pitching temp	56º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

 

 

This is my short YouTube video about Sixty Shilling..

 

This is Eighty Shilling part two

 I explain the recipe of 1913 William Younger 80/-. Yum. All those grits!

 

Let's Brew - 1885 Thomas Usher 60/- B

If you’ve looked at my YouTube video on Sixty Shilling, you’ll know that this beer has no relationship with the modern type. This being a Shilling Ale. The older type of Scottish Ale that was roughly equivalent to an English Mild. While modern 60/- is a type of Pale Ale.

The recipe is pretty simple: just base malt and sugar. With not the slightest indication of what that type of sugar might be. I’ve gone for cane sugar. It could also have been some sort of invert. There really was just a single type of base malt. What’s more surprising is that it was Scottish.

At just 5 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt, the hopping rate is pretty low. A lot lower than Usher’s Pale ales, which received 9 lbs per quarter. There were two types of hops: Californian from  the1883 harvest and Alsace from 1884. 

1885 Thomas Usher 60/- B
pale malt	8.00 lb	88.89%
cane sugar	1.00 lb	11.11%
Cluster 90 min	0.75 oz
Cluster 60 min	0.75 oz
Strisselspalt 30 min	0.50 oz
OG	1041.5
FG	1015
ABV	3.51
Apparent attenuation	63.86%
IBU	39
SRM	4
Mash at	155º F
Sparge at	175º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

  

For those who missed it, this is my short video on 60/-.

 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1928 Thomas Usher PA 70/-

Continuing with a little series of Scottish beers, here’s an interwar 70/-. It’s a great example because the gravity of 1048º is typical for a 7d per pint beer.

The names 60/-, 70/- and 80/- clearly derive from the prices and gravities of the last set of WW I price controls. Some brewers simply called their beers 6d, 7d and 8d PA. Maclay, for example. While Thomas Usher went for 60/-, 70/- and 80/-.

Unlike with 60/- and 80/-, 70/- hadn’t really existed before WW I. In the older type of Scottish beer, what I call Shilling Ales, the beers went 40/-, 50/-, 60/- then jumped to 80/-/ I’ve no idea why that was, but it seems pretty consistent across breweries.

There’s not a huge deal to the recipe. Base malt, flaked maize and sugar. The latter being split between something simply described as “invert” and dextro-laevulose, a type of partially fermentable fructose syrup. I’ve substitutes No. 2 invert for both.

There’s no description of any kind of the hops. I’ve guessed Goldings. I could be wrong. Th hopping rate is a lower than in London: 7 lbs per quarter (3365 lbs) of malt compared to 10 lbs. 

1928 Thomas Usher PA 70/-
pale malt	8.00 lb	78.05%
flaked maize	1.25 lb	12.20%
No. 2 invert sugar	1.00 lb	9.76%
Goldings 105 min	1.00 oz
Goldings 60 min	1.00 oz
Goldings 30 min	0.75 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.25 oz
OG	1048
FG	1014.5
ABV	4.43
Apparent attenuation	69.79%
IBU	37
SRM	7
Mash at	150º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	105 minutes
pitching temp	60.5º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

Here's a short video about the Seventy Shilling style:

 

1951 Maclay PA 6d

To follow on from my recent video about Scottish 60/-, I thought I'd publish a recipe for a post-war version. Even better than that, it's a beer I drank myself. In fact, it's about the only Scottish-brewed 60/- I've ever drunk.

You might find the name confusing. 6d was the price this type of beer retailed for per pint between the wars. It would have been double that price by 1951, but the name remained. At least in the brew house. I'm sure that in pubs it was called either 60/- or Light.

The recipe is pretty typical for Scotland, with just a single type of malt, plus adjuncts and sugar. I say one type of malt. There were actually three, all of them pale malt. Having a blend of base malts was pretty typical in the UK. So that, when a supply of malt ran out and was substituted, there wouldn't be a sudden big change in the flavour of the beer.

The two sugars were No. 1 invert and something called DCS. I know that the latter was invert-based and dark, so I've substituted No. 3 invert. Caramel would have been added at racking time to take the colour to around 20 SRM. At least to some of the beer. Knowing what Scottish brewers were like, the chances are it was sold in every shade from as-brewed to almost black. All achieved through the addition of caramel at racking.

The two mashing temperatures are before and after an underlet.

There were three types of English hops, no vintage specified. 

1951 Maclay PA 6d
pale malt	5.50 lb	85.21%
flaked rice	0.33 lb	5.11%
No. 1 invert sugar	0.50 lb	7.75%
No. 3 invert sugar	0.125 lb	1.94%
Fuggles 90 min	0.50 oz
Fuggles 60 min	0.50 oz
Goldings 30 min	0.50 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.25 oz
OG	1030
FG	1012
ABV	2.38
Apparent attenuation	60.00%
IBU	21
SRM	4
Mash at	148/157º F
Sparge at	165º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	61º F
Yeast	WLP028 Edinburgh Ale

 This is my recent video on the 60/- style:

 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1893 Bentley IPA

Isn’t this exciting? A Yorkshire IPA. And one which might even satisfy a style nazi of today.

With an OG of 1064º, it’s a full-strength Pale Ale. Though a not too great level of attenuation leaves it a shade under 6% ABV. That’s the racking gravity. I’m sure the real FG was lower.

There’s not a great deal to the recipe. Just two types of pale malt, one English, the other Middle Eastern. Along with some sugar which is only described as “Garton”.  As they were a big invert sugar producer, I’ve guessed for No. 1. As I assume they were trying to keep the beer pale.

Interestingly, there are no adjuncts. By this time, most brewers had adopted adjuncts, usually in the form of flaked maize.

There were three types of copper hops: Hallertau from the 1892 harvest along with Kent from 1892 and 1886.  It’s weird to see hops as old as that in a fancy Pale Ale. The dry hops were Kent from the 1892 season. 

1893 Bentley IPA
pale malt	9.75 lb	77.23%
No. 1 invert sugar	2.875 lb	22.77%
Fuggles 110 mins	2.50 oz
Fuggles 90 mins	2.50 oz
Hallertau 30 mins	2.50 oz
Goldings dry hops	1.00 oz
OG	1064
FG	1019
ABV	5.95
Apparent attenuation	70.31%
IBU	84
SRM	8
Mash at	152º F
Sparge at	170º F
Boil time	110 minutes
pitching temp	60º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire Ale Timothy Taylor

 

Let's Brew - 1894 Cannon KKK

Strongest of Cannon’s range was KKK. Not that it’s all that strong by 19th-century standards.

My guess is that this was considered an Old Ale or Stock Ale. Not 100% sure about that. Though their parent company, Tomson & Wooton, called their KKK a Stock Ale.

No surprises in the recipe. Which has just a single type of malt, described as “Scotch”. Interesting, given how far Kent, where the brewery was located, is from Scotland.

A single type of hops, too. East Kent from the 1893 harvest. Pretty fresh, given that this beer was brewed in January. The hopping rate is a little lower than in XXX. Which isn’t what I would have expected. Though the dry-hopping is heavier.

As I believe this was a Stock Ale, it’s logical that it would have been aged. Probably for at least twelve months. 

1894 Cannon KKK
pale malt	14.50 lb	100.00%
Goldings 90 min	2.00 oz
Goldings 30 min	2.00 oz
Goldings dry hops	0.50 oz
OG	1062
FG	1015.5
ABV	6.15
Apparent attenuation	75.00%
IBU	46
SRM	5
Mash at	150º F
Sparge at	163º F
Boil time	90 minutes
pitching temp	59º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1099 Whitbread ale

 

Let's Brew Wednesday - 1897 Fremlin Double Stout

Now here’s a surprise: Fremlin didn’t parti-gyle their Porter and Stout. Which, certainly by this late in the 19th century, is what I would have expected.

The recipes are also surprisingly different. There’s far more base malt in the Stout, 65% as opposed to just 43%. There’s about half as much of the two coloured malts, around 9% of the grist in total. Which leaves the Stout a bit paler than the Porter. The opposite of what I would have expected.

Fewer oats are also present. Again, around half of what’s in the Porter. It implies that Fremlin marketed two strengths of Oatmeal Stout. One based on the Porter and one on the Double Stout.

There’s less of the cane sugar, but it still makes up almost 20% of the grist. That’s an awful lot still. Especially for a Stout, which would be expected to be quite full-bodied.

A slightly higher hopping rate was employed than in the Porter, 7.5 lbs per quarter (336 lbs) of malt, compared to 6.5 lbs. That, combined with the higher gravity, leaves the bitterness level of the finished beer quite a bit higher at 71 IBU.

Was this beer aged? I’ve no real idea. There’s no indication in the brewing record. I don’t think it was vatted. Maybe a couple of months in trade casks. 

1897 Fremlin Double Stout
pale malt	9.75 lb	66.87%
brown malt	0.75 lb	5.14%
chocolate malt	0.50 lb	3.43%
oat malt	0.50 lb	3.43%
brown sugar	2.75 lb	18.86%
caramel 1000 SRM	0.33 lb	2.26%
Fuggles 120 mins	2.00 oz
Fuggles 60 mins	2.00 oz
Goldings 30 mins	2.00 oz
OG	1072
FG	1017.5
ABV	7.21
Apparent attenuation	75.69%
IBU	71
SRM	38
Mash at	154º F
Sparge at	175º F
Boil time	120 minutes
pitching temp	58º F
Yeast	Wyeast 1099 Whitbread Ale