BEER 321 



saleable produce at three barrels. As, however, it forms no part of pur present task; 

 to enter into the financial statistics of brewing, wo return to the object more imme- 

 diately in view, merely throwing out, en passant, the above hints for the benefit of 

 those whom they may concern. 



If the analyses of malt and malt-wort are requisite to enable the brewer to perform 

 his operations with safety and success, the analysis of beer is not loss indispensable 

 to qualify him for the harassing labour of competition with his neighbours, and for the 

 protection of his interest against Excise confiscation. Although beer may have been 

 brewed of the requisite gravity for justifying a drawback on exportation, yet this is 

 very far indeed from ensuring a return of the malt-duty, even to the limited extent 

 awarded by law. The question is, How are the Excise officials to know the real 

 weight of the wort from which the beer was brewed ? This may be ascertained by 

 the following method, which should take the place of the present indefinite system : 

 Having agitated a portion of the ale or beer so as to dissipate its carbonic acid gas, 

 measure out exactly 3,600 grains' measure of it, and pour these into a retort ; then 

 distil with great care into a receiver surrounded by ice-cold water about one-third of 

 the whole fluid, or rather more than this if the ale or beer is known to be highly 

 alcoholic. Next weigh the distilled fluid, and then ascertain its specific gravity, 

 from whence, by any, of the proper tables of alcohol, the total quantity of absolute 

 alcohol in the distilled fluid may be known. This alcohol is to be converted by cal- 

 culation into its equivalent of sugar, at the rate of 171 parts of sugar for every 92 of 

 alcohol found ; after which the sugar must be brought into pounds per barrel by the 

 rule before given, which is 52 Ibs. of sugar for every 20 Ibs. of gravity. The amount 

 of vinegar is next to be determined by any of the known forms of acidimetry. (See 

 ACIDIMETEY.) This vinegar, or acetic acid, must, like the alcohol, be also converted 

 into its representative of sugar, by assigning 171 of sugar to every 102 of anhydrous 

 acetic acid present in the beer, this sugar being, as before, converted into pounds per 

 barrel. To the beer remaining in the retort, sufficient distilled water is then to be 

 added, that the entire bulk of fluid may once more be equal to 3,600 grains' measure ; 

 and the temperature of the mixture having fallen to 60 F., its specific gravity must 

 be determined in the usual way, and this reduced to pounds per barrel, by multiplying 

 the excess above 1,000 by 360, and dividing the product by 1,000. The whole of these 

 weights, added together, gives the original weight of the wort. Thus, for example, 

 we will suppose that 3,600 grains of a particular beer have given 1,300 grains of a 

 dilute alcohol, of specific gravity 0'9731, and consequently containing about 17-J- per 

 cent, by weight of alcohol ; again, that the same quantity of beer, when tested by 

 ammonia, has indicated 30 grains of acetic acid ; and lastly, that the spent wash, when 

 filled up with distilled water to its primary bulk, has, at 60, a specific gravity of 

 T016 ; then the total alcohol would be in 360 grains, or the representative of a barrel, 

 22| grains, and the acetic acid in the same quantity, 3 grains : hence we have tha 

 following results : 



Grs. of sugar. Brewers' Ibs. 



Alcohol, 22| grains, equal to . . . 42'2 cr 16. 

 Acetic acid, 3 grains .... 5' 1'9 



Spent wash, of specific gravity 1 '01 6 . ... ,, 5'76 



Total weight . . 23'66 



It might be thought that the proper kind of sugar to select in this instance as the 

 representative of alcohol and acetic acid should be grape-sugar, whose atomic weight 

 is 180 ; but it has been shown by Dr. Ure that the kind of sugar actually employed 

 in the construction of our saccharometer tables must have been cane-sugar, the 

 atom of which is 171 ; and hence the reason why it must be employed in this cal- 

 culation. 



AJLE, Pale or Bitter ; brewed chief y for the Indian market and for other tropical 

 countries. It is a light beverage, with much aroma, and, in consequence of the regula- 

 tions regarding the malt-duty, is commonly brewed from a wort of specific gravity 

 1-055 or upwards; for no drawback is allowed by the Excise on the exportation of 

 beer brewed from worts of a lower gravity than 1'054. This impolitic interference 

 with the operations of trade compels the manufacturer of bitter beer to employ wort 

 of a much greater density than he otherwise would do ; for beer made from wort of 

 the specific gravity 1'042 is not only better calculated to resist secondary fermentation 

 and the other effects of a hot climate, but is also more pleasant and salubrious to the 

 consumer. Under present circumstances the law expects the brewer of bitter beer to 

 obtain four barrels of marketable beer from every quarter of malt he uses, which^ is 

 just barely possible when the best malt of a good barley year is employed. With 



VOL. I. If 



