26 BURTON WATERS—DRINKING AND BREWING. 
“3, Waters containing no gypsum but sulphates and carbonates of 
“the alkalies.” 
“Class 1. This class of waters is not widely extended; but as the 
“Burton well waters are typical of the class, and as so much of our 
‘best pale ale is brewed in that district, they form a very important 
“section. The more so, as‘the excellence of these waters for pale ale 
‘brewing undoubtedly gave Burton beer its great original pre-eminence; 
“and since it was the recognition of this fact which has led to the 
“artificial treatment of less excellent waters up to the Burton standard, 
“in order that these might give equally good results for pale ales.” 
Again, ‘It is generally admitted that the ordinary saline constituents 
‘of water exercise some influence upon diastatic conversion in the 
““mash tub.” 
And ‘The influence of the dissolved salts on the total maltose and 
“dextrin yielded is practically nil.” 
I will not quote their further opinions as to the action of 
salts upon the molecular composition of the wort as they are 
of a somewhat controversial nature. 
What is it then that makes our Burton well waters so 
exceptionally valuable for brewing purposes? The usual 
answer to this question is that it is the gypsum contained 
in these waters; this like many ‘usual answers” is only 
partially correct. 
Moritz and Morris say: 
“We know, for instance, that gypsum in fair quantity is essential to 
‘the production of sound pale bitter ales, but why this is the case is 
‘not by any means easy to explain. The older writers attributed its 
‘beneficial influence to the small quantity of albuminoids extracted by 
‘‘gypseous waters from any given malt. But this idea, like many others, 
‘‘was based on the assumption that the less nitrogenous matter in a 
‘wort, the sounder the beer. That this assumption is nonsense, we 
‘shall have subsequently occasion to shew.”’ 
‘The above considerations have led us to suppose that the connection 
‘between gypsum in a water and the resulting soundness, depends in some 
‘measure upon the removal of the coaguable albuminoids prior to the 
“cooling stage.”’ 
As regards other effects they say, 
‘It may be said that gypseous waters give pale beers and prevent 
“the extraction of the rank coarse flavour of the hop.” 
I have, in a large number of cases, seen gypsum added 
to spring waters until the amount they had taken into solu- 
tion was similar to the amount contained in the best Burton 
/ 
