Small Beer
As I said before, small beer is too frequently neglected, because the
master or mistress of a family drink but a small quantity of it. I
verily believe there would be less good small beer consumed in a
family of servants and workmen, than if it were inferior and bad in its
quality. It may be thought strange by adding the name of good to
small beer, but it must be acknowleged that there is a great disparity
in the quali
certainly depends on what length you draw from quantity of malt.
Small beer should be let down into the tun much warmer than ale; and as
soon as it shews an inclination to work it should be cleansed; it will
then work well in the casks, and will have a quick, lively taste. Small
beer, not having a sufficient strength, cannot support a long
fermentation in the tun: for if it is worked cold, and left too long in
the tun, it will drink flat and unpleasant.
Now, as I said before, there will be no more good small beer consumed
in a family, than if it were ever so bad; for when a workman or
servant has occasion for a pot of small beer, if bad, he will, perhaps,
drink a part of it, and throw the remainder away, and, very likely,
carelessly leave the cock dropping, in order to get rid of such a bad
commodity the sooner. Now, on the other hand, if the small beer was
good, the consumers would take care to leave the cock, &c. secure,
well knowing they should not have a better substitute.
More
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A Very Necessary Caution
It is a common practice, when casks are scalded or cleansed, to expose them to the sun and wind to dry, and there leave them till the time of cleansing, then they are placed in the cellar, &c. and the beer immediately cleansed into them; when the su... Attending The Working Tun
Attention should be paid to the beer when in the tun. It is a custom with many brewers to put their yeast for that brewing into the tun at one time: I will prove that practice to be very erroneous; for by adding the quantity of yeast you intend to u... Boiling Of The Worts
Many brewers boil their worts from one to two hours; this is very much practised in private families;--a great part of the time the wort is in a simmering state the fire perhaps is not attended to, the person who has the care of the brewing is, as I... Cleanliness In The Cellar
Care should be taken to keep the cellar clean, (especially those who are situated near the south aspect; or shallow, where the sun has any power,) by scraping the yeast from the bung-holes of the casks; else in warm weather it will smell offensive, ... Cleansing
It is a practice with many people to keep their beer in the tun from four to six days; by that time the yeast will fall to the bottom of the tun, and the beer will be in a flat, dead state; it will always be heady beer, being kept so long before it ... Cooling Of The Worts
As soon as the wort is out of the copper the next thing is to get the heat out as soon as possible, and to get it in a state for fermentation. Most private brewers, and many victuallers, separate their worts into tubs, bowls, pans, &c. for cooling; ... Improvements In The Mash Tun
Mash Tuns should have false bottoms, to take up as occasion may require;--they should be about two inches clear of the fixed bottom, with holes therein, about a sixth part of an inch in diameter. The false bottom answers two good purposes; First,... On Hops
Many professed brewers are particularly attached to the colour of the hops, that is, they are partial to those of a fine green colour; these are certainly to be prefered, if they were ripe when gathered:--to prove their goodness, rub them between yo... On The Drying And Qualities Of Malt
I shall here give a few observations on malt, which was my principal reason for introducing this work to the public, well knowing that many who profess the art of brewing have very little knowlege of the nature and quality of the malt and hops they ... On Waters
Waters differ in their quality, that is to say, in extracting the goodness from the Malt; it is, therefore, very necessary for every one who professes the brewing of Beer, to be well acquainted with the nature and quality of the Water he brews with;... Small Beer
As I said before, small beer is too frequently neglected, because the master or mistress of a family drink but a small quantity of it. I verily believe there would be less good small beer consumed in a family of servants and workmen, than if it were... Some Observations On The Grinding Of Malt
Much depends on the grinding of Malt. Many people give directions to have their malt ground small, having an idea that the water will mix itself with, and have a more free access to it, than when ground in a more coarser state; but this idea is very...