A Shot of Beer History #9: Explosion at Macardle-Moore Brewery

Irish breweries are no strangers to calamities over the last few centuries, and at around 7pm on Monday 15th of June 1903 a thunderous explosion rocked the brewery site of Macardle, Moore & Co. at Cambricville in Dundalk county Louth. Initial reports stated that the site was 'matted close with dying and with dead' and that four men had succumbed to their injuries, but luckily this turned out not to be the case.

On that evening, after most of the employees had finished work, a flow of porter was seen to be coming out the door of the brewhouse. This was immediately followed by the explosion which tore the roof off the four-storey building and launched the 3 ton copper kettle - one of two on the site - 120 feet into the air and landed 400 feet away. The brew kettle was reported to contain 100 barrels or over 3,000 gallons of porter at the time. Bricks from the collapsed front wall of the brewhouse showered the adjoining buildings, damaging roofs and windows and much internal damage was done to the structure itself.

Two of workmen still in the brewery at the time were injured by falling debris, they were George Finn and Frank McKenna. A man named Patrick[?] Byrne and a boy named J. [or Patrick?] Hodgenson who were waiting to collect spent grains from the brewery, and were close to the explosion, were more seriously injured. They were all attended on the site by local doctors before being transferred to the Louth Hospital, with two other injured parties. Finn, McKenna and two of the others were discharged almost immediately, as their complaints were minor, while Byrne and Hodgenson, who had suffered head injuries, were kept a little longer before also being discharged.

The explosion seems to have occurred due to a faulty or stuck safety valve on the kettle, and no damage was done to any other stock of beer apart from the porter in the kettle at the time. Within days local contactors with help from specialists from England and Dublin were working on the reconstruction of the building and reinstallation of equipment.

So a lucky escape for all those caught in the blast, and it seems that brewing resumed a few weeks later, as the spent grains that Messrs. Byrne & Hodgenson had come to collect were being offered for collection again at the brewery.

Liam K

More of my history of Macardle's Ale and the early history of the brewery itself can be read here.

From reports taken from the following newspapers - The Dundalk Examiner and Louth Advertiser 20th June 1903, The Newry Reporter 18th June 1903, and The Belfast Weekly Telegraph 20th June 1903.

Images of the damage and the kettle lying on the ground can be seen here.

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. Newspaper research was thanks to The British Newspaper Archive, who have kindly let me share the above images. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #8: The Case of a Naggin Too Much ...

A curious case presented itself in the village of Moneygall in Offaly in 1869 and was reported in the local newspaper, where an inspector of weights and measures found that there were many cases where the volumes of measures used in certain public houses for serving ale and porter to the customer were incorrect, but not in favour of the publican - in most cases the loss was on the side of the seller. Nevertheless, the publicans were summoned to appear in front of the local magistrates and as examples, a pair of half-gallon measures were produced belonging to two publicans, a Mr. McDonnell and a Mrs. Wafer. Both measures had been found to be correct six months previous but now held a naggin more than they previously did according to the inspector. This would equate to over 4% extra liquid per measure, which would amount to a moderate but notable loss to the publican over time.

The magistrates were at a loss as to how this could happen, but the puzzle was solved when a tinman called Mr. Waters took to the stand and gave the following explanation. He described how 'when the "buys" called for "a half gallon," and finished it, they were in the habit of "drivin' down the bottom with the butt of a whip," in order that the next "measurement" might be larger.' This could certainly be achieved quite easily with measures that had an inset rim around the base, which most certainly did by way of manufacture. He also confessed that 'when he made the vessels he did "hansell" them' himself. (A 'hansel' appears to be an old and obsolete name for the handle of a flail, so possibly also a whip.) So this seems to have been a common practice - in Moneygall anyhow - and a good reason to bring your whip on your drinking sessions!

The session chairman joked that Mr. Waters should not be allowed to make vessels for the houses in which he was in the habit of drinking, much to the laughter of the assembled audience, before another magistrate - a Captain Garvey, who appears to be a bit of a spoilsport - interjected to point out that a heavy penalty could be imposed on any person who sold unjust measures.

The bench eventually dismissed all the cases where the loss was with the seller, as no fraud on their part could possibly be intended, although all measures were to be readjusted to the satisfaction of the inspector.

Perhaps the publicans kept a closer eye on the bases of their measures and those who carried whips or flails into their house after that, but it was certainly an ingenious way of getting a larger pour of porter!

Liam K

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. Newspaper research was thanks to The British Newspaper Archive and the quoted article appears in The Kings County Chronicle of 3rd February 1869. The photo of the measure - and the measure itself - is the author's own. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #7 - How Old Are Beer Kegs?

We've all seen them, those rows and stacks of beer kegs that line the street outside our public houses - battered, bashed and tarnished. Most people don't give them much thought, apart from having to dance and dodge around these obstacles as they run errands or go about their daily business.

But have you ever wondered how old beer kegs are? Not barrels or casks, actual beer kegs, or at least something that sounds like them. Well it seems that something akin to a modern, metal beer keg has been around since at least 1840 if we go by this description in an engineering journal from that year ...

Ale and Porter Preserved. - In order to save ale and porter in good condition for a considerable length of time it is, for the most part, kept corked down in bottles; and though this method answers exceedingly well, yet it is subject to this inconvenience, that it causes, where a small quantity, as one draught, for instance, is only required, all the rest of the ale or porter in the bottle to go to waste, which must prove both expensive and inconvenient. It is pressure that is the main cause of keeping ale, &c., so well in bottles, and an apparatus is in use by which liquids may be constantly under pressure in casks as well as in corked bottles. The vessel is made in the form of a cask of strong tin, strongly braced by iron hoops, which stands on its end. At the upper end is a cock, soldered to a tube, which is immersed to within an inch of the bottom of the cask. At the same end is a condensing syringe, by means of which air can be forced into the cask; and whenever this is effected it is obvious that the liquor will have a tendency to escape through the tube and out at the cock with a force proportionate to the degree the air is compressed by the action of the syringe. If the cock be then turned the liquor will rush out with violence, foaming, at the same time a great quantity of froth, or what is usually termed a cauliflower head. Every time the ale is drawn from the cask, the air it contains is not exposed to the atmosphere, whilst the liquor is kept under pressure, and no vent peg is necessary. It is said all the advantages of bottling are obtained by the above process, without one half of the waste and inconvenience attending on the former system.

That certainly sounds like a prototype modern beer keg. A pressurised, metal beer container where the liquid is forced from a tap at its top, using apparatus that sounds somewhat familiar to any in the pub trade, albeit without the external tubing and using just manually applied pressurised air instead of forced pure carbon dioxide.

So it seems that those beer kegs we are familiar with are heading for being two centuries old?

Although anything resembling modern keg ale was still a quite a few years away!

Liam K

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. The above information was sourced via Google Books - Mechanics' Magazine and Journal of Engineering, Agricultural Machinery, Manufactures, and Shipbuilding, Volume 32 Knight and Lacey - 1840.. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #6 - The Irish Reinheitsgebot

In 1778 there were a series of brewing related acts passed in Ireland for 'the improvement of His Majesty's Revenue and the more effectually processing of the Frauds therin.' Of interest is what appears to be an Irish version of the Reinheitsgebot, the Bavarian purity law which dictated what could, or more importantly what could not, be included in the beers brewed there. The relevant Irish acts read as follows:

VIII. And be it further enacted by the authority afore said, That from and after the twenty fourth day of June one thousand seven hundred and seventy eight, no common or retailing brewer, or other retailer of beer or ale, shall make use of any madder, molosses[sic], sugar, honey or composition or extract of sugar, or make use of any broom, wormwood, gentian root, or any drug or herb, or of any ingredient whatsoever in the brewing, making, or working of any beer or ale, other than water, malt, hops, and barm; and that all beer or ale brewed or mixed with any ingredients other than water, malt, hops, and barm, shall be forfeited; and that every such common or retailing brewer, or other retailer of beer or ale offending therein shall forfeit for every such offence the sum of ten pounds.

IX. Provided that no penalty or forfeiture herein mentioned shall extend or be construed to extend to the infusing of broom, wormwood, ground ivy, or other ingredient into beer or ale by the retailer, after the same is brewed and tunned, for the purpose of making purl or jill, or broom or wormwood beer; or to the using any ingredient or ingredients necessary for the making of porter in making brewing the same.

So we can see that fines were to be levied onto brewers who used adjuncts in their brewing (a relatively common occurrence in the 18th century according to the scant recipes available at the time) as this would presumably have an effect on the tax revenue garnered from malt and hops, and it was probably enacted for that reason more so than any concerns regarding the quality of the beer or the risk of poisoning. The act did not apply to the brewing of porter (or if any adjuncts were added to other beers post brewing) so it could be brewed with whatever the brewer wanted to use.

If this act was never repealed* then there are quite a few Irish brewers that need to forfeit their beers and pay up that ten ponds, or its equivalent!

Liam K

* It was, see John reply below.

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. The above information was sourced via Google Books. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #4: On Beer Festivals - Irish Provincial Narrowness vs. English Degrading Eccentricities

On Wednesday 21st of May 1873 the following editorial appeared in the Irish newspaper, The Freeman's Journal:

The wit and ingenuity of the world would seem to be on the side of frivolity and wickedness. The efforts made to entice men and women to the profane, the foolish, the enervating, and the contemptible, are far greater and more intense than the efforts to regenerate, to restrain, to correct. The follies of our day are characteristics almost superior to the genuine achievements which we can really boast. Fashion in itself is a sufficient indictment against us. The attractions of life are usually foolish in act or seeming, and sometimes they are wicked and pernicious. Any bad play put upon our stage is certain to attract attention and to gain applause. Any novel contemptibility is hailed as a stroke of genius; and the man who invents such a monstrosity as a barmaid show, a baby show, or a beer show, is instantly elevated to the rank of a benefactor. The lower senses are invariably appealed to in these clever designs; and we are sorry to see that success is often achieved by the assistance of those whose duties should preserve them from such a foul abuse of power. The latest sensation is, as we have hinted, a beer show. Babies, barmaids, pugs, and monkeys having had their year, the folly of the age finds relaxation in beer. It is needless to say that the scheme is due to the brain which originated these splendid absurdities; and it is also needless to say that the brains of those who assist at the show will be none the better for the exercise. In Woolwich Gardens [London] there are just now some five and thirty specimens of the national beverage. The visitor pays for a tasting order, and having made up his mind, or as much of that guide as remains after the discharge of a solemn duty, he votes for a particular beer. If we remember that even half a glass of beer all round will give the taster a gallon of intoxicating liquor, we can estimate his judgment, his sagacity, and his condition. To the ordinary mind there is a leering impudence in this scheme which is at once disheartening and irritating. The audacity which enables a man to submit to this sort of pastime to a civilised people is very suggestive of the spirit of the age. But the truth of the case is humiliating, indeed. These things succeed. Thousands of young men will visit the gardens and taste the beer and record their votes, and the proprietor, who is rapidly gaining a reputation for unequalled cleverness, will probably make more money in a month than a man of genius and industry can in a year. In a community like ours, where religion and morality have a real influence, a beer show is happily an impossibility. The idleness of wealth is one of the curses of England, for idleness is ever wicked or inane. In Ireland what is sometimes called our provincial narrowness saves us from many of the degrading eccentricities of our rich neighbours, and preserves for us that stern regard for decency which is one of our it most praiseworthy qualities.

There are lots of quotable terms in this diatribe on beer festivals and their visitors, I think my favourite is 'leering impudence?'

Regardless, enjoy your next splendid absurdity - wherever, however and whatever that may be ...

Liam K

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. Newspaper research was thanks to The British Newspaper Archive, who have kindly let me share the above image. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #3: Macardle's Coronation Brew ...

In July 1911 this advertisement appeared in Dundalk, Dublin and national papers:

MACARDLE'S CORONATION BREW

Which was supplied under Contract to the Troops while encamped in the Phoenix Park during the King's Visit, has been so much appreciated that Macardle, Moore & Co Ltd, the Irish Army Brewers, Dundalk, have arranged for Special Brews of this Pure Pale Bitter Ale (1,053°), which they can deliver, carriage paid, to any Canteens or Messes in the Kingdom, at usual prices.

THE TRADE SUPPLIED.

The supply of ale and porter to the army by Irish breweries is far from unusual, as canteens were regularly supplied with local beers, but what is of interest here is that this this appears to be a specific ale brewed for the soldiers of the 'Irish Army' on duty - or more accurately, perhaps, off duty - during the visit of King George V to Ireland on his post coronation tour. What is also of interest is that we are told it is a pale bitter ale and that the original gravity was 1,053°, which depending on how well it fermented meant was probably between 5% and 6% alcohol by volume.

So if we are ever asked did an Irish brewery brew an ale to commemorate - in a way at least - the coronation of a British monarch we can say yes, Macardle, Moore & Co. certainly did, and we even know its style and alcohol content ...

Liam K

[Image from The Dundalk Examiner and Louth Advertiser -15th July 1911]

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. Newspaper research was thanks to The British Newspaper Archive, who have kindly let me share the above image. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #2: The 'Nearly' & Others ...

I am no stranger to the historic - and fiscally prompted - short-serve pint, with terms such as the 'Meejum' or 'Medium,' and 'Small-Pint' appearing here on occasion, but it's nice to come across new geographical variances of names for this size of serve.

Up in the north of Ireland, in Bangor County Down in 1933, a hotel owner was charged with serving something other than the pint or half pint of beer that the law required. In the Marine Hotel a customer called for and was served a 'Nearly' by the barman - an amount which was 'nearly a pint'. The reason being that due to recent taxation, a pint of beer had gone from 6d to 7d, but 'for a few working-men who really could not afford to buy the whole pint' a pint glass was filled to 1 inch of the brim and sold for 6d. This, it was reported, was a common practice in Bangor and this size of pour was also called a 'Blue', a 'Royal' and a 'Schooner,' the latter being a size of pour also familiar to any Australian readers, although not a short pour.

The charge was proven but the case was discharged without a conviction or fine.

Liam K

Here's my long piece on the Meejum and the Loop-Liner - again!

[Image and report from The North Down Herald and County Down Independent - Saturday 28th January 1933]

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. Newspaper research was thanks to The British Newspaper Archive, who have kindly let me share the above image. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!

A Shot of Beer History #1: The Real Baby Guinness ...

Did you know that prior to the invention of the mini cocktail composed of Baileys floating over Tia Maria in a shot glass called a Baby Guinness that there was a real version?

It was quite an English thing and didn't seem to make it back to Ireland, but it was Guinness stout in a third-of-a-pint bottle and was certainly an important size of serve if newspaper mentions are anything to go by. It was certainly around from the early 1900s to the 1960s, and possibly before and after. By the way, that same size of bottle was used here in Ireland for our relatively low alcohol barley-wine ...

Liam K

[Image from The Portsmouth Evening News from 2nd June 1956]

Please note, all written content and the research involved in publishing it here is my own unless otherwise stated and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission, full credit to its sources, and a link back to this post. Newspaper research was thanks to The British Newspaper Archive, who have kindly let me share the above image. DO NOT STEAL THIS CONTENT!