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22-06-2023, 07:05
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https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOrpdv9_BMiE0UMrDlZ1qyIzpv4sALVJyiXiu-cE5koEA_IUtJ86I2eK6zCjCNH-qhkOnNP5m8yGz-2JcSIuushRvEjE52HjutVoTBVsSj96mwH1E8e3wx2dnA9pK01i 5OJVcJTbmIAUI5JYZpfHJXfEKNqD12bSDZNopmS2Z4fci3hcxb x5fZ8fEJo2w/w336-h400/Robinson_Einhorn_Lager.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOrpdv9_BMiE0UMrDlZ1qyIzpv4sALVJyiXiu-cE5koEA_IUtJ86I2eK6zCjCNH-qhkOnNP5m8yGz-2JcSIuushRvEjE52HjutVoTBVsSj96mwH1E8e3wx2dnA9pK01i 5OJVcJTbmIAUI5JYZpfHJXfEKNqD12bSDZNopmS2Z4fci3hcxb x5fZ8fEJo2w/s790/Robinson_Einhorn_Lager.jpg)
Now I'm done with all those travel posts, I can get back to where I was. With my head stuck firmly up the arse of the 1970s. Many thanks to the Sunday Mirror for also analysing a load of Lagers in 1978.Well, you aren't going to find gravities in the Good Beer Guide for these beers.
First we're going to look at the Lagers which were UK brands. Or at least ones brewed by UK regional brewers rather than large national or international concerns. OK, Scottish & Newcastle are in there. But McEwans Cavalier was very much a UK-only brand. AT least that's my excuse.
There's a good deal of variation in strength, ranging from 1030º to 1045º. Approximately very Ordinary Mild to Best Bitter. Though the majority are in the mid-1030ºs.
The rate of attenuation is mostly pretty high, averaging almost 85%. A good bit higher than the Bitters we looked at earlier, which for most regions averaged out around 79%. Which is important when we look at value for money.
You probably don't remember this, but Bitters averaged out at 1.17 degrees of gravity per penny. Quite a bit better than Lager's 1.05. But in terms of % ABV per penny, Lager is only just behind at 0.12, compared with Bitter's 0.12.
But look at the variation. Federation Ace of Clubs scores as well as some of the best value Northern Bitters. While S & N's Cavalier is one of the worst value beers of any type.
Of course, most of these were Lager-like liquids rather than beers which had been cold fermented and lagered. And were pretty dreadful. One of the people at Robinsons described Einhorn as "A beer we're not particularly proud of." Praise indeed. The Sunday Mirror tasters agreed, as it gets a pretty poor score of just 7 out of 12.
Speaking of scores, they are generally worse than for the Bitters, whose average was over 9. Though, weirdly, watery Cavalier was the only beer to score a perfect 12 out of both the Bitters and Lagers.
During the 1970s, most regional brewers decided that they needed a Lager in their portfolio. But mostly had neither the equipment, nor the inclination, to brew them properly. Which might explain why virtually none of the beer listed still exists today. The exception being Tennent's Pilsner. Which came from a brewery properly equipped for brewing Lager.
Things have sort of come full circle. Some of the current large-selling UK Lager brands are fermented warm with a top-fermenting yeast. Not naming any names.
International Lagers next time.
UK Lager in 1978
Brewer
Beer
Price per pint (p)
º gravity per p
% ABV per p
OG
FG
ABV
App. Atten-uation
score
Cameron
Icegold
33
1.16
0.13
1038.4
1005
4.35
86.98%
9
Federation
Ace of Clubs
27
1.29
0.13
1034.9
1007.2
3.60
79.37%
10
Hull
Top Score
38
1.00
0.11
1037.9
1005
4.29
86.81%
8
Sam Smith
Alpine Ayingerbrau
40
0.90
0.10
1036.1
1004.3
4.14
88.09%
11
Vaux
Norseman
34
1.14
0.13
1038.7
1005.9
4.27
84.75%
8
Greenall Whitley
Grunhalle
33
1.11
0.12
1036.7
1005.4
4.08
85.29%
8
Hydes
Amboss
35
0.99
0.10
1034.7
1008.55
3.39
75.36%
7
Lees
Gold Medal
36
0.94
0.11
1033.7
1002.7
4.04
91.99%
7
Matthew Brown
Slalom
30
1.24
0.14
1037.2
1004.75
4.23
87.23%
8
Oldham Brewery
Rheingold
30
1.17
0.12
1035
1007
3.64
80.00%
7
Robinson
Einhorn
34
1.06
0.12
1035.9
1004.1
4.14
88.58%
7
Thwaites
Stein
37
0.94
0.09
1034.6
1007.8
3.48
77.46%
8
Scottish & Newcastle
McEwans Cavalier
33.5
0.90
0.10
1030
1003.95
3.39
86.83%
12
Tennent
Pilsner
32
1.16
0.12
1037
1006.55
3.96
82.30%
8
Shepherd Neame
Hurlimann
48
0.94
0.00
1045
9
Hall & Woodhouse
Brock
36
0.90
0.10
1032.4
1005.5
3.50
83.02%
7
Palmer
Shilthorn
40
1.04
0.12
1041.4
1004.7
4.79
88.65%
9
Average
35.1
1.05
0.11
1036.4
1005.5
3.96
84.54%
8.4
Source:
Sunday Mirror - Sunday 08 October 1978, page 4.
More... (http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2023/06/uk-lager-in-1978.html)
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOrpdv9_BMiE0UMrDlZ1qyIzpv4sALVJyiXiu-cE5koEA_IUtJ86I2eK6zCjCNH-qhkOnNP5m8yGz-2JcSIuushRvEjE52HjutVoTBVsSj96mwH1E8e3wx2dnA9pK01i 5OJVcJTbmIAUI5JYZpfHJXfEKNqD12bSDZNopmS2Z4fci3hcxb x5fZ8fEJo2w/w336-h400/Robinson_Einhorn_Lager.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOrpdv9_BMiE0UMrDlZ1qyIzpv4sALVJyiXiu-cE5koEA_IUtJ86I2eK6zCjCNH-qhkOnNP5m8yGz-2JcSIuushRvEjE52HjutVoTBVsSj96mwH1E8e3wx2dnA9pK01i 5OJVcJTbmIAUI5JYZpfHJXfEKNqD12bSDZNopmS2Z4fci3hcxb x5fZ8fEJo2w/s790/Robinson_Einhorn_Lager.jpg)
Now I'm done with all those travel posts, I can get back to where I was. With my head stuck firmly up the arse of the 1970s. Many thanks to the Sunday Mirror for also analysing a load of Lagers in 1978.Well, you aren't going to find gravities in the Good Beer Guide for these beers.
First we're going to look at the Lagers which were UK brands. Or at least ones brewed by UK regional brewers rather than large national or international concerns. OK, Scottish & Newcastle are in there. But McEwans Cavalier was very much a UK-only brand. AT least that's my excuse.
There's a good deal of variation in strength, ranging from 1030º to 1045º. Approximately very Ordinary Mild to Best Bitter. Though the majority are in the mid-1030ºs.
The rate of attenuation is mostly pretty high, averaging almost 85%. A good bit higher than the Bitters we looked at earlier, which for most regions averaged out around 79%. Which is important when we look at value for money.
You probably don't remember this, but Bitters averaged out at 1.17 degrees of gravity per penny. Quite a bit better than Lager's 1.05. But in terms of % ABV per penny, Lager is only just behind at 0.12, compared with Bitter's 0.12.
But look at the variation. Federation Ace of Clubs scores as well as some of the best value Northern Bitters. While S & N's Cavalier is one of the worst value beers of any type.
Of course, most of these were Lager-like liquids rather than beers which had been cold fermented and lagered. And were pretty dreadful. One of the people at Robinsons described Einhorn as "A beer we're not particularly proud of." Praise indeed. The Sunday Mirror tasters agreed, as it gets a pretty poor score of just 7 out of 12.
Speaking of scores, they are generally worse than for the Bitters, whose average was over 9. Though, weirdly, watery Cavalier was the only beer to score a perfect 12 out of both the Bitters and Lagers.
During the 1970s, most regional brewers decided that they needed a Lager in their portfolio. But mostly had neither the equipment, nor the inclination, to brew them properly. Which might explain why virtually none of the beer listed still exists today. The exception being Tennent's Pilsner. Which came from a brewery properly equipped for brewing Lager.
Things have sort of come full circle. Some of the current large-selling UK Lager brands are fermented warm with a top-fermenting yeast. Not naming any names.
International Lagers next time.
UK Lager in 1978
Brewer
Beer
Price per pint (p)
º gravity per p
% ABV per p
OG
FG
ABV
App. Atten-uation
score
Cameron
Icegold
33
1.16
0.13
1038.4
1005
4.35
86.98%
9
Federation
Ace of Clubs
27
1.29
0.13
1034.9
1007.2
3.60
79.37%
10
Hull
Top Score
38
1.00
0.11
1037.9
1005
4.29
86.81%
8
Sam Smith
Alpine Ayingerbrau
40
0.90
0.10
1036.1
1004.3
4.14
88.09%
11
Vaux
Norseman
34
1.14
0.13
1038.7
1005.9
4.27
84.75%
8
Greenall Whitley
Grunhalle
33
1.11
0.12
1036.7
1005.4
4.08
85.29%
8
Hydes
Amboss
35
0.99
0.10
1034.7
1008.55
3.39
75.36%
7
Lees
Gold Medal
36
0.94
0.11
1033.7
1002.7
4.04
91.99%
7
Matthew Brown
Slalom
30
1.24
0.14
1037.2
1004.75
4.23
87.23%
8
Oldham Brewery
Rheingold
30
1.17
0.12
1035
1007
3.64
80.00%
7
Robinson
Einhorn
34
1.06
0.12
1035.9
1004.1
4.14
88.58%
7
Thwaites
Stein
37
0.94
0.09
1034.6
1007.8
3.48
77.46%
8
Scottish & Newcastle
McEwans Cavalier
33.5
0.90
0.10
1030
1003.95
3.39
86.83%
12
Tennent
Pilsner
32
1.16
0.12
1037
1006.55
3.96
82.30%
8
Shepherd Neame
Hurlimann
48
0.94
0.00
1045
9
Hall & Woodhouse
Brock
36
0.90
0.10
1032.4
1005.5
3.50
83.02%
7
Palmer
Shilthorn
40
1.04
0.12
1041.4
1004.7
4.79
88.65%
9
Average
35.1
1.05
0.11
1036.4
1005.5
3.96
84.54%
8.4
Source:
Sunday Mirror - Sunday 08 October 1978, page 4.
More... (http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2023/06/uk-lager-in-1978.html)