British versus Foreign Beer (part three)

We've now got to the interview with a second brewer, this time from London.

He starts by confirming the small, middle-class market for Lager.

"After this conversation with a gentleman who spoke, as it may have been perceived, in the interests if the Burton trade, I sought an interview with another authority whose position gives him a strong claim to represent the immense brewing industry of London. I asked this gentleman whether he found that London beers were being pushed out, not merely by the introduction of the light lager, but by the popularity of the ales brewed at Burton.

"The consumption of lager beer has not," he replied, "reached in this country, or in London, anything approaching large proportions, as compared with the sale of English-manufactured beer. A certain quantity of German beer is consumed at restaurants and at places frequented by the middle class particularly, but it certainly has not become the ordinary beverage of the working man — even to the smallest extent. No doubt the modern taste for beer, both as regards the palate and the pocket, is in favour of a less heavy article than used to be brewed years ago. If it were possible to introduce the German system of brewing light beers something might be done to foster the trade; but it certainly would not answer the purpose of the English brewer to change his plant to produce a description of beer which is not sufficiently in favour to justify such an outlay of capital. Now, with regard to the other competitor, Burton ales, the consumption has been pretty steady for the past ten years, and possibly within the last year or two there may have been an increase; but the expansion has not been equal to the growth of population, and the consumption per head would, I think. show no rise. A great improvement in the brewing of ale throughout the country has tended to check the development of the Burton trade in the provinces generally."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

I've seen various explanations as to why Lager-brewing took so long to really catch on in Britain. This seems as good a one as any: the market wasn't big enough to justify the amount of money needed to re-equip a brewery.

The situation was different in this respect to much of the rest of Europe. Britain was already full of modern, well-equipped breweries. Whereas elsewhere modern kit and brewing methods only arrived with bottom fermentation.

You only need to look at the price charged for Lager compared to British beers to understand why the working classes weren't knocking it back down their local. It was way too expensive. What labourer was going to volunteer to pay double for his pint?

If Lager wasn't adversely affecting London brewers, was Burton-brewed Pale Ale?

"What of London in particular?"

"Here the consumption of Burton ale is very large, but it does not appreciably affect the sale of London ales, beer, and stout in those houses more particularly used by working men. The working man prefers London brewed ale, thinking that he gets meat as well as drink in it, for it is softer, sweeter, and heavier than the Burton brews. But then, again, it is a question of price. Burton beer to taste as full in the mouth as our London beer would have a higher gravity and be much more expensive. Probably an article to satisfy the palate of the working man brewed in Burton could not be supplied at a less price than 42s per barrel, as compared with 32s to 33s for the beer brewed is London."

"There is a cause for that?"

"The water at Burton is very hard and suitable for brewing beer which is intended to be kept, but it is not suitable for drawing out of the material the same amount of strength as that which is used in London. The softer water employed In the metropolis and in Dublin is much more serviceable for the production of the sweeter beer, which, whilst it is not so stable as that of Burton, will nevertheless keep in good condition and perfectly sound long enough for all practical purposes."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

And the answer? Not really. The London-brewed Ale they're talking about is Mild Ale. Just making that clear. The difference between this London Mild Ale and Burton Pale Ale is clearly all top do with the finishing gravity. Burton Pale Ales were extremely well attenuated by 19tth-century standards.

These tables illustrate the difference nicely:

Burton Pale Ales
Year	Brewer	Beer	Acidity	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation
1887	Bass	Pale Ale	0.117	1064.2	1009.3	7.08	84.75%
1887	Bass	Pale Ale	0.12	1063.5	1009.5	7.08	85.04%
1888	Bass	Pale Ale	0.189	1069.6	1010.6	7.58	83.82%
1888	Bass	Pale Ale	0.19	1069	1011.2	7.58	83.77%
1892	Bass	Extra Pale Ale		1059.2	1009.1	6.55	84.62%
1897	Bass	Pale Ale		1060.4	1004.1	7.41	93.21%
1897	Bass	Pale Ale		1062.8	1005.6	7.52	91.08%
1897	Bass	Pale Ale		1058.9	1005.4	7.03	90.83%
Sources:
Wahl & Henius, pages 823-830
"Chemie der menschlichen Nahrungs- und Genussmittel" by Joseph König, 1889, page 836
Wisconsin Dairy and Food Commission
"Report, returns and statistics of the inland revenues of the Dominion of Canada", By Canada. Dept. of Inland Revenue, 1898, pages 34-49

London Mild Ales
Year	Brewer	Beer	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation
1891	Barclay Perkins	X	1058.0	1015.8	5.58	72.78%
1891	Barclay Perkins	X	1057.0	1016.6	5.34	70.84%
1892	Whitbread	X	1060.9	1018.0	5.68	70.46%
1893	Whitbread	X	1058.2	1015.0	5.71	74.21%
1897	Fullers	X	1049.6	1012.2	4.86	75.42%
Sources:
Whitbread brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/01/058.
Barclay Perkins brewing record held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number ACC/2305/1/587.
Fullers brewing records

You can see that the finishing gravities of the Mild Ales are much higher, even though their OGs are lower than the Pale Ales.

Finally, had the beer preferences of Londoners changed?

"You have noticed of course, an alteration in the public taste of London?"

"Yes dining the last twenty-five years the tendency has been growing in London to drink ale rather than beer and stout, although there is still a large consumption. of the latter. Thirty or forty years ago most of the large firms in London brewed brown beer only, but at the present time there is no London brewery which does not make ale, and indeed it forms much the largest portion of the manufacture. We ourselves brew five times as much ale as we do beer and stout. By the way, it is a mistake to suppose that porter, as brewed in London, is of a heavy character. It is probably as light as any beer produced in this country except that which is brewed in a few country places. Porter, as you may know, obtained its name about 1730, when a brewer named Harwood succeeded in brewing a malt liquor combining the flavours of ale, beer, and "twopenny," then generally asked for in third parts. The publican drew from one cask, instead of three, and hence it was called "entire," and as the drink was healthy and nourishing and suitable for porters, it took its name from the class which chiefly patronised it. The dark colour is derived ftom the black or burnt malt, from which no saccharine worth mentioning is got, but it is used for the flavouring. There are several qualities of stout, of varying strength, and in those of the highest gravity (Imperial) there is the same amount, of strength as that which is to be found in the strong ales of Burton. Guinness's Irish stout appears to have taken the place to very large extent of London stout, especially bottled, but this observation of mine does not at all apply to the sale of stout in ordinary public-houses, which is affected solely by the increasing preference for ale. Stout is really a more nourishing and wholesome drink than many ales; but one reason why the latter have come into demand is the greater difficulty of detecting cloudiness or want of brilliancy in stout than in ale. Brilliancy in beer is now the essential requisite. In the olden days beer might be drunk as thick as soup; but people now will complain should there be the least 'greyness' in their ale. London and Burton brewers have been affected in the same way, for the country brewers have begun to manufacture stout for themselves, whereas in times past they brewed their own ale, and bought their stout in London."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

Pretty simple answer to that question. Porter-drinking went into decline after 1830, a date which doesn't appear to be arbitrary. The Beer Act of that year, which allowed pretty much anyone to open a beer-only pub, greatly boosted the popularity of Ale. Whitbread, Barclay Perkins and Truman all started brewing Ales in the 1830's. Before then they had only tied their pubs for Porter and Stout, allowing publicans to choose where they bought their Ales. Basically the opposite of what country brewers did.

A five to one ratio of Ale to Brown Beer doesn't sound typical of a London Porter brewery. In the brewing year 1892-1893, Whitbread brewed 306,774 barrels of Ale and 150,644 barrels of Porter and Stout*. Or just about exactly two to one.

The stuff about Guinness is interesting. How it had replaced Stout, but not in pubs. I'm not sure how true Guinness's dominance was, even in the bottled trade. London brewers were still churning out large quantities of Stout after WW I.

Just one part left in this series. But you're glad about that.





* Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/058 and LMA/4453/D/09/088.

10% off my Lulu books

Yes, yet another Lulu offer. They have one every few days, or so it seems.


Until the end of tomorrow there's 10% off my Lulu if you enter this code:

FORGIVE10

Go on, treat yourself.

Barclay Perkins Bookstore

A few hours in Toronto

My wake-up call is at 4:45. I'm already awake when the phone rings.

I don't piss around. A quick check of my email then it's down to reception to check out.

I take the tunnel between the hotel and terminal this time. Last night I made a scary dash across four lanes of traffic, dragging my bag behind me. Not the kind of thing I want to do on a regular basis. Thankfully it's pretty quiet - not so surprising given the ungodly hour.

I go straight through to airside and head towards the gate looking for somewhere to have breakfast. It doesn't take long to find somewhere. I sit down and order eggs, bacon and potato things. Plus coffee and orange juice. Eggs count as one of your five a day, don't they?

There's something novel about this United flight. The bugger is on time. Not that it particularly matters, as I've hours to kill in Toronto. Around eight, in total.

An annoying amount of time, that. Long enough to make you contemplate leaving the airport, but short enough to make you wonder if it's worth it. And worry about getting to and from the city. Especially with my experience of Toronto traffic last weekend.

Fortunately, there's a a simple solution. Gary Gillman, a regular commenter here, lives in Toronto. I missed him last weekend as he was out of town. This seems like the perfect chance to finally meet. We've arranged for him to pick me up at the airport. Sure enough, there he is when I emerge from the terminal.

It's still pretty early and the roads aren't too busy as we head into town towards Gary's apartment. Once we get off the motorway, he explains abour the neighbourhoods we're driving through. Toronto is a diverse place, that's for sure. I realise that I've barely dipped in a toe in terms of getting to know the city. Oh well, something for me to do next time.

Gary lives in one of the city's many residential towers. But one of the older ones. The view, as you can see, is pretty amazing:

Gary has a load of Canadian beer and whisky lined up for me to try. We kick off with some retro beers from bigger breweries. They're mostly OK. Though anything is likely to taste good sat out on the balcony looking out on the Toronto skyline.

It's all very civilised. Definitely much nicer than numbing my arse in the airport. We have a pleasant light lunch with Gary's wife, who, like him, is a lawyer.

We've just enough time to take in one last pub, the Granite brewpub. He suggests it because they specialise in cask beer. You don't have to ask me twice if I want to drink me some cask. That thirst is never sated.

It's reassuringly pub-like inside, with lots of dark wood and a bank of handpulls. This will do nicely. I've obviously only seen a fraction of Toronto's beer scene. Not surprising, really, given the hugeness of the place.

We drink a little excellent cask beer then it's in the car and back to the airport. Nice to have finally met Gary. And to have done something useful with these few hours.

In the duty free shop, I get a bottle of Canadian whisky Gary had recommended.

I have a final Maker's Mark in one of the airport's iPad bars. Where I check my email and order bourbon at the same time. It's actually dead handy when you get used to it. The bar overlooks my gate. Also dead handy. I can wait at the bar until my group is called. Which is exactly what I do.

I do my best to rest on the plane. When I land at Schiphol, I'll hve just enough time to go home for a shower and a change of clothes, then it's straight in to work.






Ah, I'm getting all nostalgic about these plugs, now my reports on the trip have finally drawn to a close. What fun it's been. Not for you? It's been something, I know that. We'll just have to disagree about exactly what it was.

Buy my book:

The Home Brewer's Guide to Vintage Beer.







Granite Brewery & Restaurant
245 Eglinton Ave E,
Toronto, ON M4P 3B7.
Tel: +1 416 322 0723
http://www.granitebrewery.ca/

British versus Foreign Beer (part two)

We're back with the Burton brewer discussing the differences between British and foreign beer. It's insightful stuff.

First he speaks of how Pale Ales are made in Burton:

"But, I was under the impression that in your own case the system of brewing remained unchanged?"

"That is true. We never vary. The traditions of 1889 were the same as those of '49. The finest pale ale consists of three things only — malt, hops, and water all of the very best. The finest hops, good malt, and first-class water can alone be relied upon to give the finest quality of beer."

"We are told that substitutes are used?"

"By the Brewers of the cheaper beers, yes. I regret, myself the permission which Mr Gladstone was instrumental in procuring for the brewers to use substitutes for malt. It has not been beneficial to beer generally; but it has not affected tbe higher classs of beer very much. The alteration in the incidence of the malt-tax allowed of the employment of maize, rice, raw barley, and raw corn, for malt. Many manufactured malt substitutes — such as saccharum. glucose, malto-dextrfns, and invert sugar - are chiefly made from maize or rice, and are, of course, quite pure and harmless. No great brewer, such as Bass, Allsopp, Worthington, and others, producing the typical and highest class of beer, would, I am sure, ever dream of using a malt substitute. None of them have ever employed hop substitutes and they are very rarely used even by the brewers of the cheaper classes of ales."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

It seems that in Burton little had changed in terms of techniques and materials in the preceding 50 years. One thing had definitely changed: the scale of brewing. By the late 19th century both Bass and Allsopp were brewing over 1 million barrels a year.

Would no big Burton brewer use malt substitutes? From what I've seen of 19th-century Pale Ale recipes sugar was pretty common. And in fairly hefty quantities, too. The motivation wasn't necessarily economy, but more concerned about acquiring a very pale colour for the finished beer.

This is something that is clear from looking at brewing records: British brewers used ingredients from everywhere in the world:

"I understand, further, that the high-class pale ales can be brewed from the finest materials only - have you any difficulty in procuring them?"

"We have to ransack the whole world for best barley and hops,"

"How did you find the last season?"

"It was an ordinary year. The yield of hops was disappointing, the actual quantity not fulfilling the promise on the poles. The barley was fair. Owing to the atmospheric drawbacks very fine samples of Englsh malting barley were rare, and we have to supplement the supply from all over the Continent, Algeria, Asia Minor, and South America, and other parts. Now, with regard to hops there is no room for doubt that the finest are to be found in East and Mid Kent, and in Worcester; but persistent rain, cold, and want of sunshine have told very heavily upon the gardens during the last few years, and it has been surprising that so many good hops have been grown. Much the same remark applies to the great Continental plantation, of which Nuremburg is the centre. Hops are chiefly cultivated in Belgium, Alsace, Bohemia, and Bavaria. In America the production of New York state, which represents the finest quality of the United States growths, has not been during the last few years a great one. The Pacific States are producing large crops of hops of good quality."

"Does this country export beer to Germany?"

Yes, and the returns are increasing. The exports to Belgium and to Holland are augmenting very largely, and in these countries English stouts of a heavy character have a firm hold. A great export trade in English beer is done with the Colonies, Australia being the chief customer both for bottled beer and in bulk. There is a very large demand for the highest classes of ale in the United States. They will have nothing cheap in America."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

 He's left out one of the main sources of foreign barley: the USA, or more particularly, California. This is obviously when the US hop industry was moving from the East to West Coast. Give it another couple of decades and New York was about done as a significant hop-growing region.

I'm not so sure about British beer exports to Germany being in any way significant. I don't have any real figures, unfortunately. I do know that of the 502,921 barrels exported from the UK in 1890, 150,565 barrels went to "other countries", which is just about everywhere other than British colonies or the USA*.

48,991 barrels is how much beer was exported to the USA in 1890**, in case you're wondering. Making it the third biggest receiver of British beer exports after Australasia and India.

Dutch newspaper adverts confirm that country's liking for British Stout, though Pale Ale crops up quite often, too.





* Brewers' Almanack 1928, page 115.
** Brewers' Almanack 1928, page 115.

Vienna Beer swindle

More about exotic Vienna Beer. And just how bad value it was.

And how those evil teetotal bastards were helping those nasty foreign German brewers. It seems to have somehow escaped the author that Vienna is in Austria.

"BEER.
The truth of the adage that "it is an ill wind which blows nobody good" is certainly illustrated in connection with the controversy upon beer adulteration, which has now been going on for some time past. The good has, unwittingly we presume, been done for the foreign brewers. We say unwittingly, because we cannot, says the Commercial Review, believe that the teetotal drink makers had an idea of assisting the consumption of foreign beer in this country when they attacked the production of Burton-on-Trent. Whatever their intention may have been, one thing is more than certain, which is that what they have done has already been the very making of the German brewers, not only in this country, but in our colonies also. Nothing could have happened better for them. They had long and industriously worked to bring their production into general favour with the British public without meeting with any marked success, but at last fortune smiled upon them in a most unexpected way. The opportunity offered, and, with the natural characteristic of the Fatherland, it was readily taken advantage of. While the little pot-and-kettle fight was going on in the columns of our daily press the Teuton was industriously at work. Many persons have given up drinking our "bitter" and taken to Vienna beer instead, but they have certainly not taken to aerated waters, as we presume was fondly hoped for by the originators of the fight, who have only succeeded in, while mauling others, getting very considerably mauled themselves. If we were to enquire fully into the component parts of all that we now eat and drink we are afraid that many things would fall out if favour with us. Perhaps if it were more generally known that soda-water is made from ordinary washing soda, fewer people would take that particular beverage than do at the present time. For ourselves we think that so long as a thing is not injurious to health, and is pleasant to take, we ought not to trouble ourselves about what it is made of. It seems to be quite a settled thing with many - who know nothing at all about the matter - that English beer is simply bad. Whether the German beer is good or not they of course do not know, but they have settled it that it is good, and take it accordingly. The trade which the German brewers are now doing here must be enormous. You can scarcely find a restaurant where Vienna beer does not make a prominent show upon the tables that used to be solely occupied by Bass and Allsopp, or other well-known English beer. The English brewers have themselves much to blame for this, for some of them have undoubtedly been turning out very inferior beer for some time past. With regard to the character of German beer, the general remark that is heard in favour of it is that it is so "nice and light;" but if our English brewers were to produce a very light beer nobody would have it. Many would call it beer and water, or small beer, perhaps "swipes" or some other uncomplimentary name; but such is human nature, particularly English nature. We believe that it will not be a very difficult matter for the English brewers to regain their lost ground, or at least some of it, but they must be up and doing at once. The Germans will not stop still; they are displaying a vast amount of energy and perseverance, and bribery also, to get their beer about everywhere. We believe that it is at present an enormously inflated trade, and that the mania for German beer-drinking is only a novelty which will wear off. The price which the public is charged for it, considering what it is - namely, small beer, is outrageous. The measures which it is retailed in are a gross swindle, and for that alone it ought not to be encouraged. But this is only the beginning. They will no doubt presently come to the same thing as the large coffee-cups now used in many foreign restaurants, which, although apparently full-size cups, really hold only about one-third of what such size cups should contain. True that the Vienna beer measures are not stated to hold pints and half-pints, but they are made to outwardly represent fully twice as much as they actually contain. We are aware that English beer may be and is retailed in some bars in glasses that do not contain any regulation measure, but those glasses are not to be compared for unfairness with the Vienna beer glasses. For the introduction of deceptive glasses into England we are indebted to the industrious foreigner. They were first introduced here by the ice-cream vendors, and, be it said to many an Englishman's discredit, the bad example was readily followed by them, and is kept up at the present time. We are sorry to have to believe that the large profit made upon the sale of this foreign beer is the great inducement for Englishman to sell it. Whether the present state of things will continue or not lies with the public and the English brewing trade. We confess ourselves to be in favour of good English beer, and we sincerely hope that we shall always be able to get it.
Birmingham Daily Post - Wednesday 26 December 1883, page 7.

Expensive, served in deceptively small measures, CO2 dispensed? It's reminding me awfully of something today. What could it be?

I thought there were rules about what measures beer could be served in? This is what the 1872 Finance Act says on the topic:

"8. Every person shall sell all intoxicating liquor which is sold by retail and not in cask or bottle, and is not sold in a quantity less than half a pint, in measures marked according to the imperial standards.

Every person who acts or suffers any person under his control or in his employment to act in contravention of this section shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding, for the first offence ten pounds, and not exceeding for any subsequent offence twenty pounds, and shall also be liable to forfeit the illegal measure in which the liquor was sold."

Any measure greater than a half pint had to be sold by Imperial measure. That doesn't sound like what was happening in this case.

British brewers were capable of brewing and did brew nice light beers. In fact their ability to do so is often quoted as one of the reasons Lager failed to catch on in Britain. British brewers made light Ales - especially in bottled form - with similar characteristics to Lager. That's what many Light Dinner Ales of Luncheon Ales were.

Of course, foreign Lager didn't capture British drinkers' affections for many decades. What happened in the 1880's really was a passing fad. Though small quantities of Lager did continued to be sold, both imported and domestically brewed, until Lager took off at the end of the 1950's.

Beginning of the end for Vienna beer?

It was the Lager of Vienna, in particular that of Dreher's Schwechat brewery, which first alerted Europe to the charms of bottom-fermentation. But it was soon overshadowed by beers from elsewhere and has been largely forgotten.

If this article is to be believed, in the 1880's it was already being threatened on it home turf by Bavarian competition:

"A BEER EXHIBITION.
(FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH CORRESPONDENT.)
Vienna, Friday Night.
Next April a Beer Exhibition will take place in Vienna. The committee includes the principal brewers of Austria-Hungary and several of the Viennese restaurateurs who organised the Cookery Exhibition held here in the spring. The idea is not improbably due to the competition of Bavarian beer, which has within the last few months largely increased in Vienna. Three or four vast establishments for the sale of Bavarian beer have lately been opened and are doing well. This is a serious matter for native brewers, who until now never realised the possibility that Pilsner and Lager might some day be supplanted by Bavarian competition. The fact is that even in Vienna if you want good native beer you must know where to get it. When of inferior quality it produces a malady very common in this country, where it is called catarrh of the stomach. The Bavarian ale that has hitherto made its appearance in Vienna is much lighter than that drunk in Munich and is, in the opinion of connoisseurs, a fair rival of the world-renowned Vienna Beer."
Freeman's Journal - Monday 29 December 1884, page 7.

Odd that they call it Bavarian Ale, eh?  Mention of it being lighter than the stuff sold in Munich has me wondering about the colour. Though I thought the first pale Munich Pale Lager was only brewed in the 1890's.

Of course, there's one thing that really did for Vienna Lager: WW I. Vienna went from being the capital of one of the largest countries in Europe to a provincial backwater. No surprise then that its Lager also lost its lustre.

British versus Foreign Beer

Here's yet another dead handy article I found while looking for something completely unrelated.

What makes it particularly interesting is that in it we hear a London and a Burton brewer speak. As representatives of the two largest English brewing centres, their words carry some weight

It starts with an account of the differences between British top-fermented beer and foreign Lager.

"British versus Foreign Beer.
[BY A CITY MAN.]
Statistics prove beyond all possible doubt that we are a beer drinking nation. There is no more popular beverage than the "Glass of bitter"; but people who have patronised the lager-beer saloons of Paris and Brussels, and who in certain parts of London visit the imitations of these establishments which have been set up and are apparently prospering, are beginning to ask whether, in regard to malt liquor, as in everything else, we shall not find very soon upon the labels of the beer bottles the familiar line, in small letters, "Made in Germany." In short they ask, "Is the British article to give way to the foreign ? Are our brewers to admit themselves hopelessly beaten? In order to obtain trustworthy information upon the comparative merits and popularity in this country of home-brewed and imported beers, with other points of interest concerning their production, I sought the views of an expert upon the whole question.

"Are foreign beers making any headway in this country ?" I asked. "Practically none at all," was the confident answer. "I am not sure whether the consumption is not less than it was. I may say that greater attention has been paid to the production of English beer, in consequence of the competition of the foreigner."

"Can you tell me what is the real difference between British beer and its foreign rivals?"

"The great distinction lies in the fermentation. The British fermentation is known as 'high,' the period of fermentation extending to about four days. The German is 'low,' taking place in a very low temperature, and occupying about a fortnight. In the 'high' fermentation the yeast is exuded on the surface; but on the German principle it is thrown to the bottom. Continental beer to be palatable should be drawn through ice. It must be cold or it loses its individual character. English beer, on the other hand, cannot be served in a brilliant condition at a low temperature, owing to the insolubility in cold of some of its properties. All English beer becomes 'grey,' or what is known as 'chilled,' in a temperature under 40°. The essential difference between foreign and English is really more the result of the methods of brewing than in the variation of the gravity and alcoholic strength. These, in foreign and British pale ales, approximate pretty closely to each other; but there is probably some difference in the nature of the alcohols of the two beers, caused by the different methods of fermentation. With regard to palatable qualities, German beers are always disfigured by the garlic flavour which may be distinguished in them."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

 The 1890's was when Germany was starting to out-produce the UK industrially. Hence the common occurrence of "Made in Germany" on items sold in Britain. Obviously some were worried that German beer was about to elbow aside its British rivals. We're still waiting for that to happen

 Now this is interesting. Figures for the quantities and origin of imported beer. Just the sort  of thing I love.

"All foreign beers Imported into this country are not German?"

"I should say the German, Austrian, Dutch, and Danish comprise twenty-nine thirtieths of the whole of the imports. No beer comes from France, and very little from Belgium. The following table gives the exact figures, and the significance of them lies in the comparison of the total of 33,000 barrels of Continental beer imported for home consumption with the product of the entire brewing industry of the United Kingdom, which in 1890 was 31,835,574 barrels."

FOREIGN ALE AND BEER IMPORTED INTO BRITISH ISLANDS DURING 1890.
Where from	Barrels.
Norway	1,498
Denmark	1,667
Germany	14,772
Holland (much of this is German)	14,543
Other Foreign Countries	462
Total Foreign Countries	32,942
Channel Islands and Isle of Man	137
Other British Possessions	11
Total Home Possessions	148
Total entered for Home Consumption	33,090

"Does not the introduction of this light beer however small, point to an alteration in or modification of the public taste?"

"It is certainly true that the taste for heavy beer has disappeared largely, except in some of the provincial districts, and more particularly is this noticeable in London. Pale ale has become the King of Beers. An immense quantity is sold on draught. 'A glass of bitter' is the morning cry of almost five millions of people. The consumption of old heavy stout and of beer has much diminished of late; the light mild ales replacing them to a large extent. Our own ales in the metropolis have increased enormously."

"Have you any idea of the total London consumption of beer?"

"unfortunately, none; and it would be impossible to guess, but the figures no doubt are colossal, and would run to millions of barrels, whereas the total amount of German beer coming into this country it probably about 20,000 barrels. I may say that London is so well supplied with the highest class of malt liquors that there is probably less consumption of bottled beer here than in the provinces."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

The amount of beer imported really was insignificant. Especially compared to the amount consumed domestically and that exported. Though you can see from this table that imports more than trebled between 1889 and 1890.

UK beer imports 1860 - 1900
Year	Exports	imports
1860		3,592
1870		5,058
1880		10,742
1890	502,921	35,081
1895		44,399
1900	510,845	50,875
Sources:
Brewers' Almanack 1928, p. 115
Brewers' Almanack 1955, p. 57

That the imports overwhelmingly came from Northern Europe is no surprise. That's where Lager was produced and that's all anyone was interested in importing. I am surprised that Austria gets no mention. The first Lagers imported came from Vienna. Is it being lumped in with German beer or had the trade really collapsed to such an extent?

It's around this period where adverts for Tuborg and Carlsberg beers start appearing in British newspapers so I can believe Denmark was a significant source of Lager imports. Not so sure if all the beer from Holland really was German. I'm not 100% convinced people in Britain would have realised Heineken was Dutch.

There's also something about the difference in bottling methods:

"German beer in bottle is a very poor and flabby beverage. It has to be Pasteurised."

The term "Pasteurised" has been adopted by brewers to describe the process of the destruction of germ organisations by the action of heat.

"It is only fair to tell you." added my informant, "that the success of English bottled beer depends upon the generation of its own gas in the bottle by the fermentation therein taking place. No fermentation goes on in the German bottle, for the beer is put into it charged with carbonic acid gas. When first bottled there is scarcely any 'life' in English beer, and the gas is produced in the bottle by the action of the yeast plant."

"There is an appreciable difference in the beer when the bottle is opened, is there not?"

"No amount of gas forced into the beer can give the piquancy and 'style' due to the carbonic acid gas produced in the bottle itself."
Isle of Man Times - Tuesday 31 January 1893, page 3.

Even as this article was being written, British brewers were starting to adopt foreign bottling practices and abandon bottle-conditioning in favour of artificial carbonation. Though it wouldn't be until after WW I that bottle-conditioning went into serious decline. The Burton brewer clearly wasn't enamoured of force-carbonated beer.

That's not even half the article I've gone through yet. Loads more fun to come.

Westy at Ton's

I was shocked to find Westvleteren 12 on sale at Ton Overmars, my local offie, tonight. 9.95 a pop, so not cheap. Decided to get one, anyway.

"How much was it?" was the first question Dolores asked.

"I was dead lucky. Because I'm a regular they let me buy six."

You should have seen her face. Just as well I was out of stabbing range.

Finish off the USA?

I been doing me some thinking. Always dangerous, that. With my trips for far this year I've done the East Coast, California and a bit of the Mid-West. That's a fair bit of the US.

The though is this: why don't I finish off the job. If I did Colorado and the Pacific Northwest, that would be most of the country covered. So I'm thinking Denver, Portland and Seattle. Should be do-able in a week or so. Around the middle of September is a possible date.

Live in one of those towns? E-mail me if you're interested in hosting some sort of talk/book-pimping event. Or if you're a brewer and fancy making a collaboration brew. I'm open to any reasonable suggestion.






I can't neglect this chance to plug my book.

The Home Brewer's Guide to Vintage Beer.

Crap value Lager

This was inspired by finding a price list. One that included the exotic Dreher Vienna Beer as well as popular British beers.

I was struck by how much more expensive Dreher's beer was. And that's without taking the strength of the beer into consideration. Being a mad collector of all sorts of numbers, I've technical details of quite a few of the beers listed. Which means I can come up with a comparison that takes the different strengths of the beers into consideration.

Let's start with the price list itself. It has some local brands, but also breweries active nationally or even internationally: Allsopp, Bass, Guinness, William Younger and Barclay Perkins. I'm slightly surprised to see Bass's IPA was more expensive than Allsopp's. I'd have expected them to cost the same.

Hampshire Telegraph - Saturday 02 December 1871, page 2.

Dreher's Vienna Beer was 50% dearer than the most expensive British beer, Bass East India Ale and more than double the price of the cheaper ones.

Dreher brewed several beers of differing gravities. I'm pretty sure the one we're after is the Märzen from 1869. That's the one sample of Dreher's beer which was made in Britain. That happens to be the best value possibility. But it's still 50% more per unit of alcohol than the worst value British beer, Younger's XP.  Coming in at almost double the price of Bass is impressive, as that was a pretty poor value beer.

Year	Brewer	Beer	Style	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	price per ABV point (shillings)	price per barrel (shillings)
1867	Barclay Perkins	TT	Porter	1054.0	1016.3	4.98	69.74%	8.43	42
1870	Barclay Perkins	X	Mild	1060.4	1016.6	5.79	72.48%	7.25	42
1870	Barclay Perkins	KK	Stock Ale	1084.5	1028.8	7.37	65.90%	7.33	54
1870	Barclay Perkins	KKK	Stock Ale	1095.3	1046.0	6.52	51.74%	8.28	54
1868	William Younger	XP	IPA	1055.0	1017.0	5.03	69.09%	12.33	62
1869	Allsopp	Pale Ale	Pale Ale	1068.5	1013.5	7.19	80.32%	9.18	66
1869	Bass	Pale Ale	Pale Ale	1067.0	1013.2	6.81	80.31%	9.98	68
1869	Dreher	Dreher's Beer	Märzen	1062.2	1019.8	5.54	68.22%	18.06	100
1870	Dreher	Pilsener	Pilsener	1051.3	1016.7	4.48	66.33%	22.31	100
1870	Dreher	Lagerbier	Lagerbier	1053.5	1017.6	4.65	65.96%	21.51	100
1870	Dreher	Märzen	Märzen	1054.7	1016.9	4.90	67.95%	20.40	100
Sources:
Barclay Perkins brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document numbers ACC/2305/1/572 and ACC/2305/1/573/1
William Younger brewing records held at the Scottish Brewing Archive, document number WY/6/1/2/21
British Medical Journal August 28th 1869, page 245
British Medical Journal Jan 23rd 1869, page 84
"Theory and Practice of the Preparation of Malt and the Fabrication of Beer" Julius E. Thausing, Anton Schwartz and A.H. Bauer, Philadelphia 1882, pages 748-751

Unsurprisingly, Mild is the best value. What does this really tell us? Something I've been saying for years: "Drink Mild!"

Grand Rapids day four

Another day, another breakfast meeting with the Langlies. And another plate of fried stuff. For me.

I wander around the hall a bit taking a last look at the shiny things. And drinking more beer, of course. They're getting more generous with the measures, which is good. I get stuck into the Lagunitas beers. Then unwisely get a homebrewed peanut butter Porter. I only realise what it is after tasting it. Not a big fan of peanuts in stuff.

I've a very important appointment at 12:30. Mark Linsner, whom I met in Chicago has a very special treat for me. It's a beer I've read about, but never expected to get to drink: Ballantine Burton Ale. I'm eternally grateful to him for giving me the cahnce to try this legendary beer. Me and Paul and Jamie.

"Brewed May 12th 1946, bottles November 1966" it says on the label. that's quite an impressive bit of age. It's difficult to get the crown cork off. Which might explain why it's surprisingly well carbonated for its age. This what I scribble down as I sip:

"Sherry, butterscotch, wood and toffee aroma. Sweet/bitter flavour. Raisin, toffee, caramel and perfume aroma. Bitterish finish. In amazing shape for a beer that's older than me. No trace of Brettanomyces."

As a follow-uop there's a 10-year-old bottle of Bass P2.

"Tar, toffee and liquorice aroma. Sweetish/bitter taste. Liquorice, treacle, raisin wood and alcohol aromas. Bitterish finish. Smoke, liquorice, treacle and tar aromas. Pretty nice, if a little thin. Definitely drinkable."

That's me done with tasting notes for another year.

The conference is starting to wind down with the final seminars taking place in the morning and early afternoon. There's only one I'm really interested in, Randy Mosher's about designing beer.

It's one of the better talks. Except it's clear that he has more than 45 minutes worth of material. Even rushing through the slides he still overruns. I get a chance to chat a little with him at the end end. He seems like a really nice bloke.

He says one thing that really sticks. He mentions one of his family telling him: "Remember you're only beer famous." I'll have to remind myself of that. I'm several ranks down from beer famous.

When I get out, the exhibition hall is closed. Things are really running down. Paul and Jamie are in another seminar for a while. What to do in the meantime? Find a bar.

I don't have to go far. Reserve is just a couple of blocks away. It's a wine bar selling 100-odd wines by the glass. But they have a few decent beers. And more importantly a decent bourbon selection. I chat with the barman as I sip. He shows me a video on his phone from last winter. It's him outside the bar with a pan of boiling water. It's so cold that when he throws it in the air in turns into a cloud of ice particles. Very impressive.

Soon it's time to go. Not just from the bar, but Grand Rapids, too, I meet the Langlies to say good bye then jump in a cab to the airport.

After checking in I drop by the bar. They're showing the England Italy game. I get a beer, but can't eat because the kitchen is closed. By the time I've finished my beer the bar itself is closing. It's only 7 pm.

The barman suggests I go airside where a bar will be open. It isn't. Well there are still people sitting there drinking, but they've stopped selling drinks. The England game is on. They're losing 2-1. Great. And my flight is delayed. Bloody United.

I don't have far to go when I get to Chicago. Just over the road from the terminal. I'm staying at the Hilton in the airport. I eat a hamburger in the bar and go to bed. I've a very early start. My flight is at 6:45 am. Let's hope I wake up.








Look, we both know what's coming next. I gently remind you that I have this wonderful book sitting on the shelves just longing for you to take it home with you.

The Home Brewer's Guide to Vintage Beer.








Reserve
201 Monroe Ave. NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
http://reservegr.com/

Adulterating Porter again

Porter and adulteration seem to have gone together like a glove and carriage in the 19th century. But relief came from an unlikely source later in the century.

The following passage comes from an article about the Licensing Act. It seems to have indirectly led to an improvement in beer quality.

"Another beneficial alteration has also taken place in the quality of the beer sold. Many London brewers have noticed a very large increase in the consumption of beer, and the publicans' orders have increased considerably since the Licensing Act was passed. Some of them say this increased consumption can be fully accounted for by the prosperity of the country, and that the Licensing Act has had nothing to do with it. Others, with perhaps more truth, say that the adulteration clauses have frightened the publicans, and prevented them from calling in the services and adopting the nostrums of the brewer's druggist or the cunning cellarman. The fear of losing his license, and the dread of fine and imprisonment, and the placarding of his offence on his own premises, have been too much for the publican, who has very wisely abandoned, for the present at all events, the general adulteration of beer. The darling method of preparing London porter for sale was till recently an addition of "foots" sugar and water, with salt, or a dash of green vitriol (copperas), to give the mixture a proper "head." Sometimes a little liquorice was used, and the brewer's druggist, whilst scorning "foots" sugar, supplied a treacly substance prepared, not from loaf sugar, but from the washings of sugar hogsheads and sugar bags, the liquid being afterwards boiled down to the proper consistency. This precious stuff will doubtless be considered nasty by fastidious porter drinkers, but it is nevertheless true that gallons of it have been sold for diluting porter, and that most of the porter drinkers of the metropolis have at times partaken of this delightful beverage. "Food Journal, Volume 3", 1873, pages 361 - 362.

Adulteration of Porter had been endemic. Water, suagr and copperas was the standardmix of adulterants, each with their own purpose. The reason why publicans resorted to this practice was simple: economics.

"Why such a mixture has been made admits of an easy explanation. In the first place, the porter when received from the brewers is not sufficiently lively for immediate consumption; and, in the second place, the price paid for it (about 32s. a barrel of 36 gallons) does not allow a sufficient margin of profit when the porter is sold at 1s. per gallon. To remedy these two serious difficulties, the publican who uses the saccharine adulterant, either in the shape of "foots" sugar or of the concentrated washings of sugar bags, etc., takes out of the barrel of porter about six or eight gallons, and adds this to the stout. The stout is thus diluted, and the profit increased on its sale, whilst the barrel of porter is made up to the original bulk by the addition of the saccharine adulterant and lukewarm water in variable proportion.

The increase in the temperature by addition of the water causes the porter to ferment, the yeast left in it acts on the sugar, and the fermentation thus set up causes the porter to sparkle and carry a head till the barrel is empty. In this manner the public are deceived, and, as an illustration, we may cite the case of a publican who always used "foots" sugar in the way described. The brewery from which he obtained his usual supplies having been temporarily closed for enlarging the premises, he had to obtain his beer from a brewery famed for the goodness of the beer brewed there. The publican was afraid to add the sugar to this beer, being doubtful whether it would bear the usual manipulation, and he feared such a mixture would not suit the taste of his customers. The consequence was that this genuine porter drove away the custom from the house, till, in self-defence, he was compelled to resort to his old practice. So much for custom.

As to the profit to the publican by this adulteration, the price of the sugar and water is about twopence a gallon, a price which leaves a good margin of profit when it is sold as beer at a shilling a gallon."
"Food Journal, Volume 3", 1873, page 362.

Through much of the 19th century the retail price of Porter was little more than the wholesale price. For a period in the 1850's, when the malt tax was increased to pay for the Crimean War, they were exactly the same. A publican simply couldn't survive without at least watering his Porter.

To see the effect of that watering, let's look what it would have done to Whitbread's Porter from 1872. That had an OG 1057.3 and an ABV of 5.2%.  Here's what it would have looked like after water additions:

6 gallons of water added
OG	47.75
ABV	4.33

8 gallons of water added
OG	44.57
ABV	4.04

That's a fair drop in ABV, especially with 8 gallons of water added.

The Licensing Act introduced stiff penalties for adulteration, and the police and Excise officers were allowed to take samples of any booze for sale in a pub.

"Mr. Bruce's Act has, doubtless, caused a panic amongst beer adulterators, and it is hoped that the vigilance of those entrusted with obtaining samples will cause this panic to subside into a wholesome dread of the penalties of the law. Fear under such circumstances is a wholesome feeling, and one that will do much good to the general public. There is one very ugly word in the adulteration portion of the Licensing Act which is underlined in the next sentence. "Every person who knowingly sells or keeps, or exposes for sale, any intoxicating liquor mixed with any deleterious ingredients," etc. The prosecution will, in some cases, have great difficulty in supplying evidence to prove that a person knowingly sells adulterated drink, and without such evidence the case must fall to the ground. However, a prosecution or two will show the blemishes in the Act, and happily the subject of drunkenness is of such national importance that the Act must be altered where necessary to carry out the original intentions of the legislature. The matter cannot rest if guilty persons can escape, and there is reason for confidence in public opinion to remedy any defects in the part of the Act dealing with the adulteration of intoxicating liquors. It is only necessary to set the machinery of the Act vigorously in motion, and there is no doubt all adulterators will be on their guard, when detection means ruin, and when they may be pounced upon at any moment by those who have to obtain samples for analysis."
"Food Journal, Volume 3", 1873, pages 362 - 363.

You'll see why getting caught could mean ruin below. This is part of the Act as it relates to adulterarion:

"Adulteration.

(1.) Every person who mixes or causes to be mixed with any intoxicating liquor sold or exposed for sale by him any deleterious ingredient, that is to say, any of the ingredients specified in the First Schedule to this Act, or added to such schedule by any Order in Council made under this Act, or any ingredient deleterious to health ; and

(2.) Every person who knowingly sells or keeps or exposes for sale any intoxicating liquor mixed with any deleterious ingredient (in this Act referred to as adulterated liquor),

shall be liable for the first offence to a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month, with or without hard labour; and for the second and any subsequent offence to a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds; or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months, with or without hard labour, and to be declared to be a disqualified person for a period of not less than two years nor exceeding ten years, and shall also in the case of the first as well as any subsequent offence forfeit all adulterated liquor in his possession, with the vessels containing the same.

Where the person so convicted is a licensed person, he shall further, in the case of a second or any subsequent offence, be liable to forfeit his license, and the premises in respect of which such license is granted shall be liable to be declared to be disqualified premises for a period of not less than two years nor exceeding five years.

In the case of a first offence and any subsequent offence until the license is forfeited, the conviction shall be recorded on the license of the person convicted.

Where a licensed person is convicted of any offence under this section and his license is not forfeited for such offence, the police authority of the district shall cause a placard stating such conviction to be affixed to the premises. Such placard shall be of such size and form, and shall be printed with such letters, and shall contain such particulars, and shall be affixed to such part of the licensed premises as the police authority may think fit, and such licensed person shall keep the same affixed during two weeks after the same is first affixed ; and if he fails to comply with the provisions of this section with respect to keeping affixed such placard, or defaces or allows such placard to be defaced, or if the same is defaced and he fails forthwith to renew the same, he shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding forty shillings for every day on which the same is not so undefaced, and any constable may affix or re-affix such placard during the said two weeks, or such further time as may be directed by a court of summary jurisdiction."
Intoxicating Liquor (Licensing) Act, 1872, pages 7 - 8.

The section about forfeiting the licence is what I meant. Second time you were caught your landlording days were over. Even for the first offence there was the humiliation of having to put up a placard telling your customers what you had done.

The fines are pretty big if you consider a barrel of Porter only cost 32/-. But forfeiting the liquor, and the vessels it was in, could have added quite a bit to a landlord's financial damage. Half a dozen hogsheads of Porter were worth more than £16, without taking into account the value of the hogshead itself.

Was the Act really effective in halting, or at least curtailing adulteration? I'm not sure. I do know that there's much less written about it after 1870. Which implies it was declining. What I need is another of those reports where they sampled the same beer at the brewery and in pubs. They tell you what was really going on.