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How long is it since my last big table? Just a few days? Far too long.
Today's topic: Whitbread Pale Ales in the decades either side of 1900. It's a time when Whitbread was expanding their range of Pale Ales.
Their PA had been around for a while. Since the 1860's. A decade later the enigmatic FA was added. I assume the initials stand for "Family Ale". I could, as so often before, be wrong. But that's my theory and until someone throws a better one at me or, god forbid, some real evidence turn up, I'm sticking to it. Hang on. Why don't I search the internet?
Now isn't that interesting. I'll take the article below as proof positive that FA means Family Ale:
Where was I? Whitbread's Pale Ales. That's it. By the 1890's, a third had appeared, 2PA. Nothing very exciting, just a slightly weaker version (OG 1053º) of the standard PA (1060º). They were often party-gyled together. In 1899 there was another newcomer: IPA. This was about the same gravity as FA, 1050º."REPORTS AND ANALYSESIN no respect probably do the public suffer from more mischievous imposition than in the tricks of bottlers, who put up inferior ales and beer under well known hands, employing for this purpose second-hand labels, and adopting all sorts of devices to "clear" the ale chemically, and to give to it a fictitious character. Messrs. Whitbread & Co., the great and well-known brewers, have placed the bottling of their ales and beer in the hands of Mr. Baker, of Gray's Inn Road; and, besides inspecting his Stores, which are replete with excellent arrangements on a very large scale, we have analysed samples of all the various kinds of ale and beer, and we take pleasure in stating that the results are in all respects worthy of the high reputation of Messrs. Whitbread, and testify to the skill, care, and honesty of their bottling agent. The following is the result of the analyses made by Dr. Paul, the principal English authority on this subject.
AND
DESCRIPTIONS OF NEW INVENTIONS
IN MEDICINE, SURGERY, DIETETICS, AND THE
ALLIED SCIENCES.
WHITBREAD & Co.'s BOTTLED ALES AND STOUT.
I have examined the six samples of bottled beer received from Mr. Baker, of Gray's Inn Road, and now beg to hand you the results of my analyses.
Specific gravity Original gravity of wort Amount of alcohol Amount of extract Acetic acid Strong Ale 1013.45 1081.3 7.19 6.1 0.15 Pale Ale 1009.93 1059.86 5.32 4.9 - Family Ale 1011.44 1057.04 4.82 5 0.14 Extra Stout 1026.8 1076.66 5.26 8.9 0.13 London Stout 1020.83 1067.03 4.88 7.2 0.15 London Cooper 1016.03 1058.8 4.52 5.9 0.18
All these samples were of excellent quality; and the original gravities of the worts from which they were brewed showed that the full proportions of malt had been used in each. The pale ale was remarkable, from being almost wholly destitute of acid ; and on this account would probably be specially adapted for invalids."
"The British Medical Journal, March 9th, 1872", page 27.
Whitbread Pale Ales 1890 - 1910
Date
Year
Beer
Style
OG
FG
ABV
App. Attenuation
lbs hops/ qtr
hops lb/brl
boil time (hours)
boil time (hours)
Pitch temp
pale malt
SA malt
PA malt
other sugar
total
16th Jul
1890
2PA
Pale Ale
1055.41010.06.0181.95%11.692.991.751.7557º78.57%
21.43%20th Oct100.00%
1890
FA
Pale Ale
1054.81012.05.6778.12%11.012.731.671.6757º23.81%
55.56%20.63%16th Jul100.00%
1890
PA
Pale Ale
1060.11013.06.2378.37%11.693.251.751.7557º78.57%
21.43%17th Nov100.00%
1890
PA
Pale Ale
1059.61015.05.8974.81%11.533.001.331.6757º58.14%
18.60%23.26%1st Apr100.00%
1891
2PA
Pale Ale
1053.21011.05.5879.32%10.122.431.331.6757º21.74%
57.97%20.29%27th Jul100.00%
1899
2PA
Pale Ale
1053.21015.05.0571.80%11.012.561.51.7558º36.49%
41.89%21.62%8th Aug100.00%
1899
PA
Pale Ale
1057.61015.05.6473.97%12.023.121.5258º78.95%
21.05%28th Feb100.00%
1900
FA
Pale Ale
1050.21015.04.6670.15%11.972.6621.7558.5º14.15%65.09%
20.75%10th Jan100.00%
1900
IPA
IPA
1056.61016.05.3771.73%12.993.201.51.7558º13.16%
65.79%21.05%19th Feb100.00%
1900
IPA
IPA
1051.31014.04.9472.72%12.962.911.51.7558º13.57%66.52%
19.91%25th Jun100.00%
1901
2PA
Pale Ale
1053.71014.05.2673.95%9.852.391.51.4257.5º13.89%
63.89%22.22%15th Nov100.00%
1901
FA
Pale Ale
1052.11014.05.0473.12%12.012.771.51.7557.5º14.15%
65.09%20.75%13th Jun100.00%
1901
FA casks
Pale Ale
1050.41013.04.9574.21%11.712.661.51.7557.5º13.89%
63.89%22.22%16th Nov100.00%
1901
IPA
IPA
1050.11012.05.0576.07%12.042.691.51.7558º27.91%
51.63%20.47%18th Nov100.00%
1901
PA
Pale Ale
1060.91017.05.8172.10%11.093.051.51.7558º12.35%
67.90%19.75%21st Feb100.00%
1902
FA
Pale Ale
1050.41014.04.8272.23%12.002.681.51.7558.5º14.15%
65.09%20.75%20th Feb100.00%
1902
IPA
IPA
1049.91013.04.8873.93%11.972.651.51.7557.5º14.15%
65.09%20.75%17th Apr100.00%
1906
2PA
Pale Ale
1056.81018.05.1368.30%9.462.381.51.7558.5º15.29%
64.33%20.38%30th Apr100.00%
1906
FA
Pale Ale
1049.61013.04.8473.78%11.992.611.51.7558.5º17.39%
62.32%20.29%11th May100.00%
1906
FA (Butts)
Pale Ale
1050.11015.04.6570.08%12.032.671.51.7558.5º17.39%
62.32%20.29%14th May100.00%
1906
IPA
IPA
1050.61014.04.8472.34%12.092.681.51.7558.5º17.39%
62.32%20.29%12th May100.00%
1906
PA
Pale Ale
1063.41022.05.4765.29%12.013.401.331.8358.5º17.65%
58.82%23.53%19th Aug100.00%
1910
2PA
Pale Ale
1054.01017.04.9068.53%8.962.121.51.7559º20.09%
60.27%19.64%13th Aug100.00%
1910
FA
Pale Ale
1047.61013.54.5271.66%10.792.281.51.7559º23.44%
57.81%18.75%15th Aug100.00%
1910
IPA
IPA
1049.91014.54.6870.92%10.922.361.51.7559º22.39%
59.70%17.91%27th Sep100.00%
1910
PA
Pale Ale
1061.01021.05.2965.57%8.992.431.751.7557º19.11%
60.51%20.38%Sources:100.00%
Whitbread brewing records held at the London Metropolitan Archives documents: LMA/4453/D/01/056, LMA/4453/D/01/065, LMA/4453/D/01/066, LMA/4453/D/01/071, LMA/4453/D/01/076
To be honest, I can't see why they bothered with so many very similar brews. The FA and IPA were slightly more heavily hopped for their strength than PA, but not by much. Between the two of them, the differences were negligible. So why bother?
In case you were wondering, only IPA and PA made it past WW I. 2PA was discontinued in 1916, FA in 1918. But you were longing to know that, weren't you.
Almost forgot. One thing I did want to point out was the place of IPA in the strength hierarchy of Whitbread's beers. The bottom. That's where it was, along with FA. They were the weakest beers produced by Whitbread. So don't start that IPA was a strong beer crap. I've overwhelming eviddence that demonstrates the exact opposite.
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