How it was done in the early '60s

[asd]

Hi,

Here is my father's recipe from very early 1960's. We were in Pembrokeshire.

Yeast was either obtained from the local baker's, or else from someone's well (the yeast was kept down the well to keep it cool and fresh between brews), and yeast from the well was called "Barm". Barm top fermented, unlike the baker's yeast.

As a child, it tasted pretty good - I would be given a sip now and again!



Regards,

Simon.

[barney]

Thats cool, Your dad would have loved the Internet.

[dave-o]

Is that 14lb of malt extract and 5lb of sugar in what is likely to end up about a 6 - 6 1/2 gallon brew?

Not surprised you liked it!

[boingy]

I'm thinking it's probably 4lb and a mark on the sellotape...

[dave-o]

That's a massively high sugar ratio then.

[Shadowknight]

These days it would have three hops with hop additions in 5 stages, some fancy-dan yeast and a staggered tempurature fermentation.

Beer, simply. Good stuff.

[asd]

Hi,

I seem to remember that a variation was to put liqourice in to get an approximation of a stout.

Simon.

[asd]

Hi Boingy et al,

It was definitely 14lb of extract!

Simon.

[Jim]

Hi Boingy et al,

It was definitely 14lb of extract!

Simon.

Aye, they were hard drinkers in those days!

[dave-o]

It's reminiscent of Smiffy's 18% homebrew from Gavin and Stacey!

[boingy]

Blimey. I did a quick calc, based on a 7 UK gallon batch and 4lb and got 1.047 OG so I assumed that was correct.
With 14lb it's more like 1.088, and bottled in 4 or 5 days. Yowser. I wonder how long they matured for and how much sediment there was in the bottles...

[asd]

Hi,

my recollections of when I was a 5 to 10 year old was that it usually took about a week to ferment - it was kept really warm, not the 16-20 degrees we see now. We fermented it in a wooden barrel, which got passed around. No-one seemed too fussed with sterility. I wonder whether the barrel built up it's own yeasts in the pores, etc. over and above the huge amount that was pitched.

There were no finings, it was just put in bottles, sometimes just "as was" sometimes with 1/2 a teaspoon of sugar, and left until it was "ready" - usually cleared in a couple of weeks. It did have a lot of yeast in the bottom of the bottle, for sure!

Simon.

[danbrew]

Great little snap shot of the past that. Thanks for putting it up.

[dave-o]

No-one seemed too fussed with sterility..

With those levels of alcohol, any nasties were probably poisoned to death!

[asd]

Hi,

I'm now thinking of trying to do this brew, but as an AG. Will try to get hold of live baker's yeast.

Note "add yeast when blood heat" (37C or so!). "Anything to keep it warm" - so much for ferment at 20C

When I tasted Saison and Biere De Gare, for the first time, it really reminded me of this Pembrokeshire homebrew.

Also now knowing more, I seriously think that the wooden barrel really could have added Brett, or else something exotic. The barrel must have been an 18 gallon kilderkin which was passed around for fermenting in.

Also, look!!, late hopping! Hops added at 15 minutes! No 60 minute additions!

Plus sugar, so a bit Belgian! What more do we want!