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20-01-2014, 08:13
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As promised, here are the two weaker classes of Mild Ales, 4d and 5d.

The 4d and 5d refer to the price, though as you see, there are some Milds that cost 6d a pint in the 5d table. I've really grouped them by gravity, as there are also quite a few I don't have a price for.

Some strange things happened to Mild in the first decades of the 20th century. Especially in London. Some of it seems to be the result of the price controls introduced in WW I. The usual trend is that when a style becomes popular, it begets multiple sub-styles. Pale Ale is a good example. First there was IPA, out of which PA and AK developed. But with Mild, the opposite happened. As Mild increased in popularity in the second half of the 19th century, the stronger varieties (XX, XXX and XXXX) gradually withered away. By 1914 the London brewers I have brewing records from were all down to just one Mild, X Ale.

Don't ask me why that happened. Possibly because, as the favourite of the working classes, Mild Ale was expected to be cheap. Which, at 2d a pint, it certainly was. As its popularity rose, so its gravity fell. Eventually Mild and Porter ended up with the same gravity, unsurprising since they cost the same price.

Here's an illustration of that in table form:




Whitbread Mild and Porter gravities


Year
Porter
X Ale


1837
1060
1074


1840
1062
1076


1850
1061
1070


1860
1054
1067


1870
1050
1061


1880
1056
1061


1890
1057
1060


1900
1056
1056


1914
1053
1053


Source:


Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives




In the latter years of WW I and the immediate post-war years, there was strict government control of brewing. Beers had controlled prices, based on their OG. Brewers, presumably trying to appeal to as broad a public as possible, started brewing Milds in several different price categories. It was simple enough, they just needed to parti-gyle beers of different gravities from the same worts.

When controls were lifted in 1921, brewers continued to make two or three Milds. Whitbread kept two, LA and X Ale. Though the sales of LA were much smaller than of X Ale and declined every year. It was the next war that killed off the weakest class of Mild. Restrictions on brewing materials and government controls forced down gravities so much, that there was barely a difference between Ale (the name usually given top the weakest type of Mild) and X Ale.

You can see that there were considerable differences in value for money amongst the 5d Ales. A few are only about 1030, while others are as high as 1037. Note that the 5d Ales mostly have a higher degree of attenuation than the 4d Ales. You might expect that brewers would have done the opposite, to try to get the highest possible ABV for the gravity. But I think they kept the FG relatively high to stop the beer tasting too thin. The FG's of the 4d Ales are very similar to those of the 5d Ales. And you have to remember that no-one knew the ABV of the beer they were drinking back then because brewers kept it secret.

None of the beers in the tables are particularly dark, but the darker ones (40 + something) are all 4d Ales. Camden XX is very pale. Mid-20's is a typical Bitter colour.

That's me done. Nothing left but the tables.



London 4d Mild Ales


Year
Brewer
Beer
Price per pint (pence)
FG
OG
colour
ABV
App. Atten-uation


1922
Camden
XX


1030.2
25




1923
Camden
XX


1029.9
25




1924
Camden
XX

1006.1
1029.9
27
3.15
79.63%


1925
Whitbread
LA

1004.0
1027.3
40 + 2
3.08
85.32%


1926
Buddon Bigg
Ale
4

1030





1926
Isherwood
Ale
4

1026.7





1926
Meux
Ale
4

1032.1





1926
Whitbread
LA

1005.5
1027.2
40 + 3
2.87
79.80%


1927
Buddon Bigg
Ale
4

1028.8





1927
Fuller
Ale
4

1036.5





1927
Isleworth
Ale
4

1033.1





1927
Meux
Ale
4

1028.7





1927
Truman
Ale
4

1029.7





1927
Whitbread
LA

1005.5
1027.2
40 + 4.5
2.87
79.76%


1927
Young & Co
Ale
4

1029.6





1928
Barclay Perkins
Ale 4d
4
1006.5
1028.8
34
2.95
77.43%


1929
Barclay Perkins
A

1007.5
1028.7
38
2.80
73.83%


1929
Whitbread
LA

1007.5
1027.1
40 + 1.5
2.59
72.29%


Sources:


Barclay Perkins brewing records


Camden Brewery brewing records document number ACC/2305/9/5 held at the London Metropolitan Archives.


Truman Gravity Book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/252


Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/001


Whitbread brewing records document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/090, LMA/4453/D/01/091, LMA/4453/D/01/092 and LMA/4453/D/01/095 held at the London Metropolitan Archives.





London 5d Mild Ales


Year
Brewer
Beer
Price per pint (pence)
FG
OG
colour
ABV
App. Atten-uation


1922
Barclay Perkins
5d
5
1006
1030

3.12
80.00%


1922
Beasley
MA
5
1010.4
1034

3.05
69.41%


1922
Camden
XXX

1008.9
1036.8
32
3.70
75.94%


1922
Cannon Brewery
X
6
1007.4
1036.4

3.77
79.67%


1922
City of London
X
6
1005.2
1034.2

3.77
84.80%


1922
Courage
6d
6
1007
1034
38
3.51
79.41%


1922
Hoare
X
6
1008.8
1034.3

3.31
74.34%


1922
Huggins
X
6
1006.5
1038

4.10
82.89%


1922
Truman
MA
5
1007.6
1029.6

2.85
74.32%


1922
Wenlock
X
6
1005.8
1037.2

4.09
84.41%


1922
Whitbread
MA
5
1004
1030.7

3.47
86.97%


1923
Camden
XXX


1036.6
32




1923
Cannon Brewery
X
6
1007.4
1034.9

3.57
78.80%


1923
City of London
X
5
1007.3
1033.3

3.37
78.08%


1923
City of London
X
6
1006.6
1035.6

3.77
81.46%


1923
Courage
X
5
1007.5
1034.5

3.51
78.26%


1923
Forest Hill Brewery
XX

1008.6
1037.1

3.70
76.82%


1923
Hoare
X
6
1011.8
1034.3

2.91
65.60%


1923
Huggins
X
6
1007.6
1037.6

3.90
79.79%


1923
Meux
MA
5
1006.4
1028.9

2.92
77.85%


1923
Truman
MA
5
1007.8
1030.8

2.98
74.68%


1923
Wenlock
X
5
1007.6
1034.1

3.44
77.71%


1923
Wenlock
X
6
1006.8
1037.3

3.97
81.77%


1924
Camden
XXX

1008.9
1036.6
33
3.66
75.76%


1924
Cannon Brewery
X
5

1031.7





1924
Courage
X
5
1007.9
1036.9

3.77
78.59%


1925
Courage
X
5
1007
1035.6

3.72
80.34%


1926
Cannon
Ale
5

1031.6





1926
Commercial Brewery
M.A.


1036.2





1926
Courage
Ale
5

1037





1926
Wenlock
Ale
5

1027.7





1928
Courage
X
5
1006.5
1035

3.70
81.43%


1929
Courage
X
5
1006.4
1037

3.98
82.70%


1929
Friary
Ale

1010.6
1039

3.68
72.82%


1929
Hoare
LA
5
1007.5
1034.1

3.45
78.01%


1929
Wenlock
Ale
5

1037.2





Sources:


Camden Brewery brewing records document number ACC/2305/9/5 held at the London Metropolitan Archives.


Truman Gravity Book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number B/THB/C/252


Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/001


Whitbread brewing records document numbers LMA/4453/D/01/090, LMA/4453/D/01/091, LMA/4453/D/01/092 and LMA/4453/D/01/095 held at the London Metropolitan Archives.




xxxx

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