American Beer, as it Was
We have something unique. We being myself and Jeffrey Browning Sr., Partner and Master Brewer at Brewport in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
What is this something unique, you ask?
Just the brewing books of Alphonse Gosch, the Assistant Brew Master of the Home Brewing Co. in Bridgeport that span the two decades from 1900 to 1919. These journals cover the growth years up to the brewery’s demise when Prohibition came. Oddly, these books did not come from the brewer but from his friend and co-worker, John Jacob Reichel, whose descendants passed them to us. John Jacob had attended a brewing school in New York City but never attained a senior brewing role in the company, perhaps because he was a strong union man and became an official in the brewery workers’ union. In contrast, the Assistant Brew Master, Alphonse Gosch, was a cabinet maker who learned to brew through hands-on experience at another brewery in Bridgeport. We are grateful to John Jacob for keeping this wealth of information, which is something quite rare as so many brewery records from that period were irretrievably lost thanks to Prohibition — the so-called “noble experiment.” We are also grateful to John Jacob’s descendants who passed the information on to us. I should point out that it took me some five years to sort out the data in these books onto spreadsheets suitable for analysis and then a further year to research the backgrounds of the people involved. All this has been turned into a book, which we hope to publish shortly.
The brewery started in 1852 and passed through several hands until being acquired by Charles Hartmann in 1887, who ran it until his death in 1896. It was then bought by a consortium of three men: John H. Spittler, Sigmund S. Loewith, and Louis Kutscher, Jr. Mr. Spittler had previously been a saloon keeper although his father had been Secretary of the Quinnipiac Brewing Co. in New Haven, Connecticut. Mr. Loewith ran an insurance and real estate business but had earlier been a liquor wholesaler. Mr. Kutscher, however, was a brewer who had been a partner with his brother in what was described as a “weiss beer brewery” that had been founded by his father. The three men ran the brewery as the Hartmann Brewing Co. until 1912 when the name was changed to that of the Home Brewing Co. With the coming of Prohibition it became the Home Products Co., making non-alcoholic beer and soda. That lasted only a couple of years before the premises were finally closed and the equipment was sold.
Alphonse Gosch joined the Hartmann Brewing Co. in 1900 with the title of Assistant Brewery Foreman and became Assistant Brew Master in 1905. In that same year, Walter Loewith, son of Sigmund and a Yale chemistry graduate joined the company, at first as the company’s chemist but in 1910 he had become chemist and Superintendent. The importance of this piece of what appears to be nepotism is that we do not know whether the two men carried out brewings separately. If they did so, since we have only the books written by Gosch, then our figures for brewery production would be incorrect. We do have one piece of evidence that Walter Loewith did not directly carry out brewing for in one year he entered a notebook with exactly the same information as had Gosch.
The brewery itself was fairly big with a 250-barrel kettle with a mash tun and cereal cooker, since almost invariably they used flaked corn as well as malt. The flakes were mashed with a proportion of the malt and the temperature raised, sometimes to boiling point, in order to achieve the right temperature when this mash was added to the rest of the malt in the mash tun. However, in the last couple of years of the brewery’s life the cooker developed a hole and all brews were then made with both flakes and malt added directly in the mash tun. That is exactly what many brewers do today and we can do the same in our re-creations of these beers.
There are some points about the brewing that will be of interest to brewers of today; the first being that a proportion of sugar was used in most of the beers. This may have been a cost saving issue but I think the sugar was added as a brew extender. That is they could fill the kettle from a limited amount of grain in the mash, then raise the wort gravity to the target level by adding the sugar. This was in the form of what they called “grape sugar” and would have consisted of 80% dextrose and 20% water.
A second point is that Gosch was primarily the brewer, which is to say that he seemed mainly to produce the wort that was fermented under the supervision of somebody else. So we have no information on the yeast(s) used or whether different strains were used for lager than for ale. Gosch does, however, give us sufficient data on finishing gravities so we are able to determine apparent attenuation and alcohol strength of the beers.
A final point concerns hops — the weights of the additions are recorded, as are the years in which the hops were harvested. But there is nothing about the varieties used or their alpha acid content since, at that time, hop chemistry was not well enough understood to have made it a consideration for a practicing brewer. I have assumed that the variety was Cluster, since these are known to have been widely available at the start of the 20th century. In order to obtain some idea of the bitterness levels of the various beers I have also assumed that the alpha acid content of these hops was 3% in order to calculate IBU levels. There is some evidence that this value is about right but it would complicate matters to go into that here. The hops were added to the boil at different times, with a portion added to the kettle at the start of wort run-off, which could be interpreted as “first wort hopping.” This was likely to reduce the risk of wort boil over.
The Beers
Gosch’s data for the years 1903 to 1908 is somewhat sparse, but from 1909 to 1918 Hartmann/Home Brewing Co. produced about 50,000 barrels annually, falling to about 25,000 in 1919, the year in which the “revenue men” closed them down. The great bulk of their production consisted of only two beers, Lager and Pale Ale; the total number of batches brewed listed by Gosch was just over 2,500 and these two beers accounted for 92% of them. Significant amounts of a Dark Ale were produced up to 1911 but ceased to be brewed thereafter. There were several specialty beers brewed occasionally, namely Golden Age Ale, Bock, Holiday Lager, Holiday Ale, Porter, and Weiss Beer (which, strangely, did not include any wheat in the recipe).
The Golden Age Ale and the Bock were brewed most years from 1904 to 1916 but the Holiday Ale and Holiday Lager ceased to be brewed after 1910. The Weiss Beer was brewed only five times from 1903 to 1905. Since Louis Kutscher Jr. had been a weiss beer brewer previously I assume that the appearance of this beer in Home Brewing Co.’s portfolio was solely his idea. We do not know who was responsible for brewing at the company from the takeover in 1896 to the arrival of Alphonse Gosch in 1900. It seems likely that it was Mr. Kutscher as he was the only partner with brewing experience. The real point here is that, sadly, we know nothing about what was brewed prior to Gosch’s arrival.
There are only two entries for Porter; the one in 1905 is incomplete but we do have good details on the one brewed in 1904. This is rather odd, for the brewery continued to advertise itself as “Brewers of Ale, Lager beer and Porter” for many years after this. Could that mean that Porter was brewed separately at another, perhaps smaller, facility? At any rate, the 1904 brew was produced with black and “caramel malt,” the latter also being used in the Dark Ale. Gosch gives no details as to the properties of this caramel malt so we have to guess what it might have been in our recreation of this beer. Today, caramel malts come in a wide variety. Depending on the level of roasting they vary in color from as little as 10 °L to as high as 140 °L, and in flavor from a light caramel nuttiness to a rich, almost harsh roastiness. Since caramel/crystal malts appear to have been invented only around 1880 it is unlikely that the technology for producing them had advanced very far by 1904. I have therefore assumed that the caramel malt used in this recipe was quite highly roasted, perhaps to a color of 80 °L or more. Of course, I could be wrong in that assumption, but the beer brewed in my attempt to re-create the recipe turned out to be an excellent porter, so I rest my case.
The Basic Recipes
What follows on pages 50–51 are the recipes I have brewed in my recreation of the originals. I give IBU values based on the hops containing 3% alpha acid as discussed earlier. For the main beers, Pale Ale and Lager in particular, there were quite a few variations in the proportions of ingredients and in brewing procedures. Rather than giving purely average numbers, I have (arbitrarily) selected what I consider to be a representative example on a purely subjective basis. In the brewing journals, base malt additions are referred to simply as “malt” with no qualifier; we can be fairly certain that it was pale malt, although perhaps not quite so pale as many modern pale malts. My guess is that it was the same quality for both ales and lagers and was likely a six-row malt. Six-row was too high in protein for brewing stable, all-malt beers. However, it was high in starch-reducing enzymes allowing the use of a high proportion of starch-containing adjuncts, such as rice, in the mash. This approach helped to give a lighter, crisper beer and was advocated in the 1890s by Anton Schwarz, owner and editor of The American Brewer and who, in 1880 had founded the “First Scientific Station for Brewing.” This method was widely adopted by brewers of the day and in the early 1900s, when the Home Brewing Co. was in business, growing of two-rowed barley had almost died out according to brewing journals of the time.
All of the Home Brewing Co.’s recipes involved the addition of salt, which is perhaps not a common practice today. I think there is something to be said for it as salt adds a mellowness that is especially useful in what are otherwise somewhat thin beers. Our water supply at Brewport is less than 50% total dissolved solids and the water used by the Home Brewing Co. was probably very similar since it was supplied by the same company. You should bear that in mind when considering the treatment of your own brewing water. The additions at Home Brewing Co. ranged from 2.5 g per 5 gallons (19 L) giving 50 ppm Na+, 80 ppm Cl– for ales and 5 g per 5 gallons (19 L) or 104 ppm Na+, 160 ppm Cl–) for lagers. I think it is essential to include a salt addition in trying to re-create these beers especially if your water is
low in chloride and sodium.
Historic Recipes
These recipes are exactly as I made them except they are all based on a 65% brewhouse efficiency. All of them use Cluster hops (pellets) because we think this variety is the one most likely to have been used at the Home Brewing Co. and we wanted our recreations to be as authentic as possible. However, since they were used only for bittering in most cases you may want to substitute other varieties. Throughout I used the dry yeasts SafAle S-04 for the ales and SafLager S-23 for the lagers. That was because we do not know what yeasts were used by the Home Brewing Co. and these are the strains we used at Brewport. Again, you could use other relatively neutral yeasts if you wish and the beers will still be as authentic as is possible.
I have purposely listed the Pale Lager and Pale Ale first, although you may think they are very ordinary beers. Perhaps they are but remember that they were the Home Brewing Co.’s best selling beers and are worth consideration on that basis alone.
Home Pale Lager (1915)
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.048 FG = 1.010
IBU = 22 SRM = 3 ABV = 4.9%
Home Brewing Co.’s Assistant Brew Master Alphonse Gosch gives no information as to whether this beer was lagered at low temperature. He does say the beer was racked to casks after eleven days, which suggests it was not further processed.
Ingredients
6.25 lbs. (2.83 kg) 2-row pale malt
2 lbs. (0.9 kg) flaked corn
1 lb. (0.45 kg) dextrose sugar (0 min.)
5.8 AAU Cluster hops (first wort hop) (0.8 oz./23g at 7.2% alpha acids)
5 g table salt (NaCl) (0 min.)
SafLager S-23 (or a favorite lager strain) yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by step
Mash the malt and flaked corn at 154 °F (68 °C) with 12 qts. (11 L) of water for 60 minutes. Add boiling water to raise the mash temperature to 158 °F (70 °C). Let rest for 10 minutes then run off and sparge with water at about 170 °F (77 °C) to collect 6.25 gallons (24 L) of wort. Add the hops to the kettle, run in the wort. Bring to a boil and boil for 60 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the sugar and salt carefully, stirring with a long spoon to make sure the sugar is fully dissolved.
Chill to 40–45 °F (5–7 °C)* and pitch the yeast. Ferment at this temperature for 7–10 days then raise to 65 °F (18 °C) for 2–3 days for a diacetyl rest. Rack** the beer, prime and bottle condition or keg and force carbonate to 2.5 v/v. Serve at about 40 °F (4 °C).
* I am quite sure that this was the temperature used at the Home Brewing Co. so for full authenticity you should do the same. If you cannot maintain this temperature try to keep as close to it as possible.
** I do not believe the Home Brewing Co. used a lengthy low temperature lagering stage but you may do so if you prefer.
Partial mash version: Reduce both the pale malt and flaked corn to 1 lb. (0.45 kg) each. Add 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) Briess Golden Light liquid malt extract and 1 lb. (0.45 kg) Briess Golden Light dried malt extract. Mash the pale malt and flaked corn at 152–154 °F (67–68 °C) in a grain bag in 1 gallon (3.8 L) of water for 45 minutes. Remove the bag and allow it to drain into the pot, then rinse the grain with 1 gallon (3.8 L) hot water. Stir in the malt extracts and then add water to make up to 6 gallons (23 L) wort. Add the hops and boil for 40 minutes. Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe.
Home Pale Ale (1913)
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG =1.049 FG = 1.009
IBU = 24 SRM = 3 ABV = 5.2%
There is very little difference between the Pale Lager and Pale Ale in terms of OG and FG, and the Pale Ale is just slightly more bitter than the Pale Lager. The main differences are that the Pale Ale used twice as much sugar and was mashed at a lower temperature than was the Lager. Both of these factors would have made the ale thinner in body than the lager so that the small difference in IBU would probably have been more noticeable on the palate. Strangely, this beer was casked after 16 days!
Ingredients
6 lbs. (2.7 kg) 2-row pale malt
1.5 lbs. (0.7 kg) flaked corn
1.5 lbs. (0.7 kg) dextrose sugar (0 min.)
6.5 AAU Cluster hops (first wort hop) (0.9 oz./25 g at 7.2% alpha acids)
5 g table salt (NaCl) (0 min.)
SafAle S-04 (or favorite ale strain) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by step
Mash the malt and flaked corn at 148 °F (64 °C) using 11 qts. (10 L) water for 60 minutes. Add boiling water to raise the mash temperature to 153 °F (67 °C). Run off and sparge to collect about 6.25 gallons (24 L) of wort. Add the hops and boil for 60 minutes; then carefully stir in the dextrose making sure it is fully dissolved. Stir in the salt.
Cool to 60–65 °F (15–18 °C) and pitch the yeast. Ferment 7–10 days at this temperature, rack the beer and prime and bottle condition or keg and force carbonate to
2.2 v/v. Serve at around 40 °F (4 °C).
Partial mash version: Reduce the pale malt to 1.5 lbs. (0.7 kg) and add 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) Briess Golden Light liquid malt extract. Mash the pale malt and flaked corn at 152–154 °F (67–68 °C) in a grain bag in 1.5 gallons (5.7 L) of water for 45 minutes. Remove the bag and allow it to drain into the pot, then rinse the grain with 2 gallons (8 L) hot water. Stir in the malt extracts and then add water to make up to 6 gallons (23 L) wort. Add the hops and boil for 40 minutes. Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe.
Home ULIA Porter (1904)
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.053 FG = 1.012
IBU = 33 SRM = 40 ABV = 5.4%
This was a one-off brew that may look to have been a little harsh due to the quite high proportion of black malt and the low level of pale malt, but it proved to be a very nice brown porter when I reproduced it. My research has not turned up the meaning of “ULIA.”
Ingredients
7 lbs. (3.2 kg) 2-row pale malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) caramel malt (80 °L)
1 lb. (0.45 kg) black malt
2.5 lbs. (1.1 kg) flaked corn
9 AAU Cluster hops (first wort hop) (1.25 oz./35g at 7.2% alpha acids)
2.5 g table salt (NaCl) (0 min.)
SafAle S-04 (or favorite ale strain) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by step
Mash the malts and flaked corn at 149 °F (65 °C) using 15 qts. (14 L) water for 60 minutes. Add boiling water to raise mash temperature to 153 °F (67 °C) and hold for 10 minutes. Run off and sparge to collect about 6.25 gallons (24 L) of wort. Add the hops and boil for 60 minutes, then add the salt.
Cool to 60–65 °F (15–18 °C) and pitch the yeast. Ferment 7–10 days at this temperature, rack the beer, prime and bottle condition or keg and force carbonate to 2.2 v/v. Serve at about 40 °F (4 °C).
Partial mash version: Reduce the pale malt to 2 lbs. (0.9 kg) and flaked corn to 2 lbs. (0.9 kg). Add 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) Briess Golden Light liquid malt extract and 0.5 lb. (0.23 kg) Golden Light dried malt extract. Mash the pale malt and flaked corn at 149–150 °F (65–66 °C) in a grain bag in 2.5 gallons (9.5 L) of water for 45 minutes. Remove the bag and allow it to drain into the pot, then rinse the grain with 2 gallons (8 L) hot water. Stir in the malt extracts and then add water to make up to 6 gallons (23 L) wort. Add the hops and boil for 40 minutes. Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe.
Home Golden Age Ale (1910)
(5 gallons/19 L, all grain)
OG = 1.082 FG = 1.015
IBU = 80 SRM = 5 ABV = 8.8%
This is by far the Home Brewing Co.’s biggest and hoppiest beer and is one that we have brewed on a 20-barrel scale at Brewport. The hops were added in portions at various times but actually were in the boil long enough to attain as full a utilization as possible. The FG figure above was measured after 20 days fermentation when it was casked and dry hopped at the rate of 0.7 lb./barrel. It may have fermented down farther as it was bunged down 17 days after casking. Brewed as it was from just malt and sugar it is an easy beer to replicate.
Note that in terms of alcohol content this beer could be called a barleywine. However, because of the high proportion of sugar, resulting in a low finishing gravity, the beer will not have the fullness of palate that a true barleywine should have.
Ingredients
11 lbs. (5 kg) 2-row pale malt
3.5 lbs. (1.6 kg) dextrose sugar
25 AAU Cluster hops (first wort hop) (3.5 oz./99g at 7.2% alpha acids)
1.8 oz. (51 g) Cluster hops (dry hop)
5 g table salt (NaCl) (0 min.)
SafAle S-04 (or favorite ale strain) yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by step
Mash the malt at 148 °F (64 °C) using 15 qts. (14 L) water for 60 minutes. Add boiling water to raise mash temperature to 153 °F (67 °C) and hold for 10 minutes. Run off and sparge to collect about 6.25 gallons (24 L) of wort. Add the hops and boil for 60 minutes; then carefully stir in the dextrose followed by the salt. This is a lot of sugar so be very careful to make sure it is fully dissolved before proceeding.
Cool to 60–65 °F (15–18 °C) and pitch the yeast. Ferment 7–10 days at this temperature. Add the dry-hop addition. After a few days on the dry hops, rack the beer, prime and bottle condition or keg and force carbonate to 2.2 v/v, serve at about 40 °F (5 °C).
Extract only version: Replace the pale malt with 6.6 lbs. (3 kg) Briess Golden Light liquid malt extract and 1 lb. (0.45 kg) Golden Light dried malt extract. Dissolve 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kg) liquid malt extract in 2 gallons (8 L) warm water and top up to 5 gallons (19 L) with more water. Add the hops and bring to a boil. Boil for 40 minutes. Very carefully stir in the dried malt extract and the rest of the liquid malt extract, and then the sugar making sure this large amount of sugar is fully dissolved before chilling. Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe.
