Chapter 4

Molosses or Treacle has certainly been formerly made too much use of in the brewing of Stout Beer, common Butt Beers, brown Ales and small Beer when Malts have been dear: But it is now prohibited under the Penalty of fifty Pounds for every ten Pounds weight found in any common Brewhouse, and as Malts are now about twenty Shillings _per_ Quarter, and like to be so by the Blessing of God, and the Assistance of that invaluable excellent Liquor for steeping Seed Barley in, published in a late Book intituled, _Chiltern and Vale Farming Explained_: There is no great danger of that, Imposition being rife again, which in my Opinion was very unwholsome, because the Brewer was obliged to put such a large quantity of Treacle into his water or small wort to make it strong Beer or Ale, as very probably raised a sweating in some degree in the Body of the drinker: Tho' in small Beer a lesser quantity will serve; and therefore I have known some to brew it in that for their Health's sake, because this does not breed the Scurvy like Malt-liquors, and at the same time will keep open the Pipes and Passages of the Lungs and Stomach, for which purpose they put in nine Pounds weight into a Barrel-Copper of cold water, first mixing it well, and boiling it briskly with a quarter of a Pound of Hops or more one Hour, so that it may come off twenty seven Gallons.

_A Method practiced by a Victualler for Brewing of Ale or_ October _Beer from_ Nottingham.

His Copper holds twenty four Gallons, and the Mash Tub has room enough for four and more Bushels of Malt. The first full Copper of boiling water he puts into the Mash Tub, there to lye a quarter of an Hour, till the steam is so far spent, that he can see his Face in it, or as soon as the hot water is put in, throws a Pail or two of cold water into it, which will bring it at once into a temper; then he lets three Bushels of Malt be run leisurely into it, and stirred or mash'd all the while, but as little as can be, or no more than just to keep the Malt from clotting or balling; when that is done, he puts one Bushel of dry Malt on the Top to keep in the Vapour or Spirit, and so lets it stand covered two Hours, or till the next Copper full of water is boiled hot, which he lades over the Malt or Goods three Hand-bowls full at a time, that are to run off at the Cock or Tap by a very small stream before more is put on, which again must be returned into the Mash Tub till it comes off exceeding fine, for unless the wort is clear when it goes into the Copper, there are little hopes it will be so in the Barrel, which leisure way obliges him to be sixteen Hours in brewing these four Bushels of Malt. Now between the ladings over he puts cold water into the Copper to be boiling hot, while the other is running off; by this means his Copper is kept up near full, and the Cock spending to the end of brewing his Ale or small Beer, of which only twenty one Gallons must be saved of the first wort that is reserved in a Tub, wherein four Ounces of Hops are put and then it is to be set by. For the second wort I will suppose there are twenty Gallons of water in the Copper boiling hot, that must be all laded over in the same manner as the former was, but no cold water need here be mixed; when half of this is run out into a Tub, it must be directly put into the Copper with half of the first wort, strain'd thro' the Brewing Sieve as it lies on a small loose wooden Frame over the Copper, to keep back those Hops that were first put in to preserve it, which is to make the first Copper twenty one Gallons; then upon its beginning to boil he puts in a Pound of Hops in one or two Canvas or other coarse Linnen Bags, somewhat larger than will just contain the Hops, that an allowance may be given for their swell; this he boils away very briskly for half an Hour, when he takes the Hops out and continues boiling the wort by itself till it breaks into Particles a little ragged, and then it is enough and must be dispers'd into the cooling Tubs very thin: Then put the remainder of the first and second wort together and boil that, the same time, in the same manner, and with the same quantity of fresh Hops the first was. The rest of the third or small Beer wort will be about fifteen or twenty Gallons more or less, he mixes directly with some cold water to keep it free of Excise, and puts it into the Copper as the first Liquor to begin a second Brewing of Ale with another four Bushels of Malt as he did before, and so on for several Days together if necessary; but at last there may be some small Beer made, tho' some will make make none, because the Goods or Grains will go the further in feeding of Hogs.

_Observations on the foregoing Method_.

The first Copper of twenty four Gallons of water is but sufficient to wet three Bushels of Malt, and by the additions of cold water as the hot is expended, it matters not how much the Malt drinks up: Tho' a third part of water is generally allowed for that purpose that is never returned.

By the leisure putting over the Bowls of water, the goodness of the Malt is the more extracted and washed out, so that more Ale may be this way made and less small Beer, than if the wort was drawed out hastily; besides the wort has a greater opportunity of coming off finer by a slow stream than by a quicker one, which makes this Method excel all others that discharge the wort out of the Mash Tub more hastily. Also by the continual running of the Cock or Tap, the Goods or Grains are out of danger of sowring, which often happens in Summer Brewings, especially when the Cook is stopt between the several boilings of the wort, and what has been the very Cause of damaging or spoiling many Guiles of Drink.

This Brewer reposes such a Confidence in the Hops to preserve the wort from fixing even in the very hottest time in Summer, that he puts all his first running into one Tub, till he has an opportunity of boiling it, and when Tubs and Room are so scarce that the wort is obliged to be laid thick to cool, then the security of some fresh Hops (and not them already boiled or soak'd) may be put into it, which may be got out again by letting the Drink run thro' the Cullender, and after that a Hair Sieve to keep the Seeds of the Hop back as the Drink goes into the Barrel: But this way of putting Hops into the cooling Tubs is only meant where there is a perfect Necessity, and Tubs and Room enough can't be had to lay the wort thin.

By this Method of Brewing, Ale may be made as strong or as small as is thought fit, and so may the small Beer that comes after, and is so agreeable that this Brewer makes his Ale and strong keeping _October_ Beer, all one and the same way, only with this Difference, that the latter is stronger and more hopp'd than the former. Where little or no small Beer is wanted, there may little or none be Brewed, according to this manner of Working, which is no small Conveniency to a little Family that uses more strong than small, nor is there any Loss by leaving the Grainy in some Heart, where Horse, Cows, Hogs, or Rabbits are kept.

I am very sensible that the Vulgar Error for many Years, has been a standard Sign to the ignorant of boiling strong Worts only till they break or curdle in the Copper, which sometimes will be in three quarters of an Hour, or in an Hour or more, according to the nature of the Malt and Water; but from these in some measure I dissent, and also from those that boil it two or three Hours, for it is certain the longer worts boil, the thicker they are made, because the watry or thin parts evaporate first away, and the thicker any Drink is boiled, the longer it requires to lye in the Barrel to have its Particles broke, which Age must be then the sole cause of, and therefore I have fixed the time and sign to know when the wort is truly enough, and that in such, a manner that an ordinary Capacity may be a true judge of, which hereafter will prevent prodigious Losses in the waste of strong worts that have often been boiled away to greater Loss than Profit.

I have here also made known, I think, the true Method of managing the Hop in the Copper, which has long wanted adjusting, to prevent the great damage that longer boilings of them has been the sole occasion of to the spoiling of most of our malt Drinks brewed in this Nation.

CHAP. X.

_The Nature and Use of the Hop_.

This Vegetable has suffered its degradation, and raised its Reputation on the most of any other. It formerly being thought an unwholsome Ingredient, and till of late a great breeder of the Stone in the Bladder, but now that falacious Notion is obviated by Dr_.Quincy_ and others, who have proved that Malt Drink much tinctured by the Hop, is less prone to do that mischief, than Ale that has fewer boiled in it. Indeed when the Hop in a dear time is adulterated with water, in which Aloes, etc. have been infused, as was practised it is said about eight Years ago to make the old ones recover their bitterness and seem new, then they are to be looked on as unwholsome; but the pure new Hop is surely of a healthful Nature, composed of a spirituous flowery part, and a phlegmatick terrene part, and with the best of the Hops I can either make or mar the Brewing, for if the Hops are boiled in strong or small worts beyond their fine and pure Nature, the Liquor suffers, and will be tang'd with a noxious taste both ungrateful and unwholsome to the Stomach, and if boiled to a very great Excess, they will be apt to cause Reachings and disturb a weak Constitution. It is for these Reasons that I advise the boiling two Parcels of fresh Hops in each Copper of Ale-wort, and if there were three for keeping Beer, it would be so much the better for the taste, health of Body and longer Preservation of the Beer in a sound smooth Condition. And according to this, one of my Neighbours made a Bag like a Pillow-bear of the ordinary sixpenny yard Cloth, and boil'd his Hops in it half an Hour, then he took them out, and put in another Bag of the like quantity of fresh Hops and boiled them half an Hour more, by which means he had an opportunity of boiling both Wort and Hops their due time, sav'd himself the trouble of draining them thro' a Sieve, and secured the Seeds of the Hops at the same time from mixing with the Drink, afterwards he boiled the same Bags in his small Beer till he got the goodness of it out, but observe that the Bags were made bigger than what would just contain the Hops, otherwise it will be difficult to boil out their goodness. It's true, that here is a Charge encreased by the Consumption of a greater quantity of Hops than usual, but then how greatly will they answer the desired end of enjoying fine palated wholsome Drink, that in a cheap time will not amount to much if bought at the best Hand; and if we consider their after-use and benefit in small Beer, there is not any loss at all in their Quantity: But where it can be afforded, the very small Beer would be much improved if fresh Hops were also shifted in the boiling of this as well as the stronger worts, and then it would be neighbourly Charity to give them away to the poorer Person. Hence may appear the Hardship that many are under of being necessitated to drink of those Brewers Malt Liquors, who out of avarice boil their Hops to the last, that they may not lose any of their quintessence: Nay, I have known some of the little Victualling Brewers so stupendiously ignorant, that they have thought they acted the good Husband, when they have squeezed the Hops after they have been boiled to the last in small Beer, to get out all their goodness as they vainly imagin'd, which is so reverse to good management, that in my Opinion they had much better put some sort of Earth into the Drink, and it would prove more pleasant and wholsome. And why the small Beer should be in this manner (as I may justly call it) spoiled for want of the trifling Charge of a few fresh Hops, I am a little surprized at, since is the most general Liquor of Families and therefore as great Care is due to as any in its Brewing, to enjoy it in pure and wholsome Order.

After the Wort is cooled and put into the working Vat or Tub, some have thrown fresh Hops into it, and worked them with the Yeast, at the same time reserving a few Gallons of raw Wort to wash the Yeast thro' a Sieve to keep back the Hop. This is a good way when Hops enough have not been sufficiently boiled in the Wort, or to preserve it in the Coolers where it is laid thick, otherwise I think it needless.

When Hops have been dear, many have used the Seeds of Wormwood, the they buy in the London Seed Shops instead of them: Others _Daucus_ or wild Carrot Seed, that grows in our common Fields, which many of the poor People in this Country gather and dry in their Houses against their wanting of them: Others that wholsome Herb _Horehound_, which indeed is a fine Bitter and grows on several of our Commons.

But before I conclude this Article, I shall take notice of a Country Bite, as I have already done of a _London_ one, and that is, of an Arch Fellow that went about to Brew for People, and took his opportunity to save all the used Hops that were to be thrown away, these he washed clean, then would dry them in the Sun, or by the Fire, and sprinkle the juice of _Horehound_ on them, which would give them such a greenish colour and bitterish taste, that with the help of the Screw-press he would sell them for new Hops.

Hops in themselves are known to be a subtil grateful Bitter, whose Particles are Active and Rigid, by which the viscid ramous parts of the Malt are much divided, that makes the Drink easy of Digestion in the Body; they also keep it from running into such Cohesions as would make it ropy, valid and sour, and therefore are not only of great use in boiled, but in raw worts to preserve them sound till they can be put into the Copper, and afterwards in the Tun while the Drink is working, as I have before hinted.

Here then I must observe, that the worser earthy part of the Hop is greatly the cause of that rough, harsh unpleasant taste, which accompany both Ales and Beers that have the Hops so long boiled in them as to tincture their worts with their mischievous Effects; for notwithstanding the Malt, be ever so good, the Hops, if boiled too long in them, will be so predominant as to cause a nasty bad taste, and therefore I am in hopes our Malt Liquors in general will be in great Perfection, when Hops are made use of according to my Directions, and also that more Grounds will be planted with this most serviceable Vegetable than ever, that their Dearness may not be a disencouragement to this excellent Practice.

For I know an Alehouse-keeper and Brewer, who, to save the expence of Hops that were then two Shillings _per_ Pound, use but a quartern instead of a Pound, the rest he supplied with _Daucus_ Seeds; but to be more particular, in a Mug of this Person's Ale I discovered three several Impositions. _First_, He underboil'd his Wort to save its Consumption: _Secondly_, He boiled this Seed instead of the Hop; and _Thirdly_, He beat the Yeast in for some time to encrease the strength of the Drink; and all these in such a _Legerdemain_ manner as gull'd and infatuated the ignorant Drinker to such a degree as not to suspect the Fraud, and that for these three Reasons: _First_, The underboil'd wort being of a more sweet taste than ordinary, was esteemed the Produce of a great allowance of Malt. _Secondly_, The _Daucus_ Seed encreased their approbation by the fine Peach flavour or relish that it gives the Drink; and _Thirdly_, The Yeast was not so much as thought of, since they enjoyed a strong heady Liquor. These artificial Qualities, and I think I may say unnatural, has been so prevalent with the Vulgar, who were his chief Customers, that I have known this Victualler have more Trade for such Drink than his Neighours, who had much more wholsome at the same time; for the _Daucus_ Seed tho' it is a Carminative, and has some other good Properties, yet in the unboil'd Wort it is not capable of doing the Office of the Hop, in breaking thro' the clammy parts of it; the Hop being full of subtil penetrating Qualities, a Strengthener of the Stomach, and makes the Drink agreeble, by opposing Obstructions of the _Viscera_, and particularly of the Liver and Kidneys, as the Learned maintain, which confutes the old Notion, that Hops are a Breeder of the Stone in the Bladder.

CHAP. XI.

_Of Boiling Malt Liquors_.

Altho' I have said an Hour and a half is requisite for boiling _October_ Beer, and an Hour for Ales and small Beer; yet it is to be observed, that an exact time is not altogether a certain Rule in this Case with some Brewers; for when loose Hops are boiled in the wort so long till they all sink, their Seeds will arise and fall down again; the wort also will be curdled, and broke into small Particles if examin'd in a Hand-bowl, but afterwards into larger, as big as great Pins heads, and will appear clean and fine at the Top. This is so much a Rule with some, that they regard not Time but this Sign to shew when the Wort is boiled enough; and this will happen sooner or later according to the Nature of the Barley and its being well Malted; for if it comes off Chalks or Gravels, it generally has the good Property of breaking or curdling soon; but if of tough Clays, then it is longer, which by some Persons is not a little valued, because it saves time in boiling, and consequently the Consumption of the Wort.

It is also to be observed, that pale Malt Worts will not break so soon in the Copper, as the brown Sorts, but when either of their Worts boil, it should be to the purpose, for then they will break sooner and waste less than if they are kept Simmering, and will likewise work more kindly in the Tun, drink smoother, and keep longer.

Now all Malt Worts may be spoiled by too little or too much boiling; if too little, then the Drink will always taste raw, mawkish, and be unwholsome in the Stomach, where, instead of helping to dilute and digest our Food, it will cause Obstructions, Colicks, Head-achs, and other misfortunes; besides, all such underboil'd Drinks are certainly exposed to staleness and sowerness, much sooner than those that have had their full time in the Copper. And if they are boiled too long, they will then thicken (for one may boil a Wort to a Salve) and not come out of the Copper fine and in a right Condition, which will cause it never to be right clear in the Barrel; an _Item_ sufficient to shew the mistake of all those that think to excel in Malt Liquors, by boiling them two or three Hours, to the great Confusion of the Wort, and doing more harm than good to the Drink.

But to be more particular in those two Extreams, it is my Opinion, as I have said before, that no Ale Worts boiled less than an Hour can be good, because in an Hour's time they cannot acquire a thickness of Body any ways detrimental to them, and in less than an Hour the ramous viscid parts of the Ale cannot be sufficiently broke and divided, so as to prevent it running into Cohesions, Ropyness and Sowerness, because in Ales there are not Hops enough allowed to do this, which good boiling must in a great measure supply, or else such Drink I am sure can never be agreeable to the Body of Man; for then its cohesive Parts being not thoroughly broke and comminuted by time and boiling, remains in a hard texture of Parts, which consequently obliges the Stomach to work more than ordinary to digest and secrete such parboiled Liquor, that time and fire should have cured before: Is not this apparent in half boil'd Meats, or under-bak'd Bread, that often causes the Stomach a great fatigue to digest, especially in those of a sedentary Life; and if that suffers, 'tis certain the whole Body must share in it: How ignorant then are those People, who, in tipling of such Liquor, can praise it for excellent good Ale, as I have been an eye-witness of, and only because its taste is sweetish, (which is the nature of such raw Drinks) as believing it to be the pure Effects of the genuine Malt, not perceiving the Landlord's Avarice and Cunning to save the Consumption of his Wort by shortness of boiling, tho' to the great Prejudice of the Drinker's Health; and because a Liquid does not afford such a plain ocular Demonstration, as Meat and Bread does, these deluded People are taken into an Approbation of indeed an _Ignis fatuus_, or what is not.

To come then to the _Crisis_ of the Matter, both Time and the Curdling or Breaking of the Wort should be consulted; for if a Person was to boil the Wort an Hour, and then take it out of the Copper, before it was rightly broke, it would be wrong management, and the Drink would not be fine nor wholsome; and if it should boil an Hour and a half, or two Hours, without regarding when its Particles are in a right order, then it may be too thick, so that due Care must be had to the two extreams to obtain it its due order; therefore in _October_ and keeping Beers, an Hour and a quarter's good boiling is commonly sufficient to have a thorough cured Drink, for generally in that time it will break and boil enough, and because in this there is a double Security by length of boiling, and a quantity of Hops shifted; but in the new way there is only a single one, and that is by a double or treble allowance of fresh Hops boiled only half an Hour in the Wort, and for this Practice a Reason is assigned, that the Hops being endowed with discutient apertive Qualities, will by them and their great quantity supply the Defect of underboiling the Wort; and that a further Conveniency is here enjoyed by having only the fine wholsome strong flowery spirituous Parts of the Hop in the Drink, exclusive of the phlegmatick nasty earthy Parts which would be extracted if the Hops were to be boiled above half an Hour; and therefore there are many now, that are so attach'd to this new Method, that they won't brew Ale or _October_ Beer any other way, vouching it to be a true Tenet, that if Hops are boiled above thirty Minutes, the wort will have some or more of their worser Quality. The allowance of Hops for Ale or Beer, cannot be exactly adjusted without coming to Particulars, because the Proportion should be according to the nature and quality of the Malt, the Season of the Year it is brew'd in, and the length of time it is to be kept.

For strong brown Ale brew'd in any of the Winter Months, and boiled an Hour, one Pound is but barely sufficient for a Hogshead, if it be Tapp'd in three Weeks or a Month.

If for pale Ale brewed at that time and for that Age, one Pound and a quarter of Hops; but if these Ales are brewed in any of the Summer Months, there should be more Hops allowed.

For _October_ or _March_ brown Beer, a Hogshead made from Eleven Bushels of Malt, boiled an Hour and a quarter to be kept Nine Months, three Pounds and a half ought to be boiled in such Drink at the least.

For _October_ or _March_, pale Beer made from fourteen Bushels, boiled an Hour and a quarter, and kept Twelve Months, six Pound ought to be allowed to a Hogshead of such Drink, and more if the Hops are shifted in two Bags, and less time given the Wort to boil.

Now those that are of Opinion, that their Beer and Ales are greatly improved by boiling the Hops only half an Hour in the Wort, I joyn in Sentiment with them, as being very sure by repeated Experience it is so; but I must here take leave to dissent from those that think that half an Hour's boiling the Wort is full enough for making right sound and well relished Malt Drinks; however of this I have amply and more particularly wrote in my Second Book of Brewing in Chapter IV, where I have plainly publish'd the true Sign or Criterion to know when the Wort is boiled just enough, and which I intend to publish in a little time.

CHAP. XII.

_Of Foxing or Tainting Malt Liquors_.