British Cask Beer (real ale)

•  Scope of the presentation –  Finings –  End of packaging line – Cask sizes and fabrication – Cool store and primary distribution –  Secondary distribution – The pub cellar and cask beer – Cask to bar hand pull – Hand pump and pour

Last stage in the beer process Fining

•  Fining agents are added to UK cask beer to ensure they “drop bright” prior to serving.

•  There are two routinely used variants of finings, white and auxiliary.

•  Each time the beer is disturbed and then allowed to settle (re-fined) the action becomes less effective and after 7 or 8 actions will no longer fully perform.

Isinglass white Finings���From fishes swim bladders

These fish are farmed in tropical and sub tropical countries in SE Asia

Nile perch (Lates niloticus)

How does it work?

Isinglass from the swim bladder is refined and added to the beer

Live and dead yeast cells And NMPs (non molecular Proteins)

Isinglass adheres to Live yeast cells only

Isinglass/yeast cell flocs settle leaving dead yeast and NMPs in suspension

Auxiliary finings

So now comes the action of the silicated auxiliary finings to finish the job

Auxiliary finings loads all positive and neutral Particles with a negative charge

All beer particles now rendered available for Isinglass interaction

The combined flocs settle entrapping any unreacted Particles more efficiently

Cask Sizes and Fabrication

Three sizes regularly used in The UK from left to right Firkin (9 gallons 40lts) Kilderkin (18 gallons 80 lts) Barrel (36 gallons 160 lts)

Manufacture

Components are pressed and fabricated from 304 stainless steel.

Sections of steel coil are cut then formed on a press and trimmed for the two halves

Manufacture Ancillary parts are made

Chimes Keystones Shives

Manufacture Bringing the components together

Components are assembled and A second jig in a water bath welded on a jig checks bung orientation and

container integrity

Manufacture Fabricated casks are checked for contents and strength

Casks are filled with water and Lifted to a set height at a set angle. They are then dropped on to a steel Plate and the resulting distortion to The chime measured as well as the Seams being checked for leakage.

Manufacture

Contents checks are carried out then the casks are pickled prior to painting.

Manufacture Finished casks ready for delivery

Note the colour banding on The casks to aid repatriation To the owning brewery. In this case Oxford and Cambridge Blue which is the registered Band colours for Wells and Youngs

Palletisation at the end of packaging

•  Note layer pads •  Format •  Needs a clamp

truck •  Size selected by

layer for stability

Cool store and primary distribution With cask conditioned beer being a live and unpasteurised product, cool storage throughout the supply chain is most important. Temperature should be around 12°C or 55°F to both keep the beer fresh and allow fining to work.

Secondary Distribution

From the primary warehouse casks are delivered to the pubs and clubs on smaller lorries known as Drays. Most are not refrigerated due to the lower ambient temperatures in the UK but it is important that these vehicles are not loaded for too long before going on delivery routes.

The Pub Cellar and Cask Beer

In the cask beer journey the pub cellar is one of the most important stages between grain and glass.

- Temperature stabilisation at a target of 55°F - Settling and venting for normally 48 hours

- Hygiene cellar and lines spotless - Hard spile the cask after venting and between sessions

to keep in condition (carbonation) - Try your beers prior to serve, know how they should be

The Pub Cellar and Cask Beer

Casks lined up on stillage ready to Serve auto tilts Can be seen which Will raise the rear of the cask as it empties To ensure all beer is Extracted.

Cask to Bar Hand Pull

Arrangement of hand pulls And counter mounts is now Quite well defined in most Retail operations. Note the hybrid Bombardier Font. The three hand pulls tend to be known as the wickets and The best stump is the left end

Cask to Bar Hand Pull

It is important that the installation Is tailored for the needs of cask beer And the bar staff

Gas assist pumps Correct temperatures Separate coolers Line insulation pythons Easy to clean

Separate cooler Clean, Clean and more clean, cellar, pipes and glasses. Temperature control, separate python to get beer to the glass at 10 – 15 ° C. Sparklers on beers which require a creamy head and a softening of the hop character. Branded glasses pints and ½s.

Insulation right up to the hand pull

Beer pipes coming in under The bar are fully insulated As is the actual cylinder on the beer engine.

Hand pump

Note what is above and Below the bar. Both beer and cooling water Connections on the pump cylinder.

Hand Pump and Pour

Appearance in the Glass and flavour Intensity can be influenced By the use of a Sparkler. This is a plastic cap with fine holes through Which the beer is Forced by the pumping Giving agitation and aeration

Hand pump and Pour

Hand pump and Pour Without sparkler

Hand pump and Pour With Sparkler

Hand pump and Pour On the bar comparison

Settling Settled

www.ukbrewing.com���

All you need for the dispense of Cask Ale from my good friend Paul Pendyck • Stainless Steel and Plastic Firkins • Angram Beer engines • Shive and keystone bungs, hard and soft spiles • Cask and gravity taps, CaskWidge for vertical dispense • Cask breathers and check valves • and most importantly – the Know How!