Has anybody brewed historic milds?

[JKaranka]

I just got a copy of "Mild! plus". I was wondering if anybody had attempted anything in the style of the historic mild styles presented in the book. I'm definitively NOT starting with the XXXX imperial mild with an OG above 1.100 and yeast with low attenuation...

... so I was wondering if the following looks ok. I went on purpose for an XXX due to it being potentially drinkable, in a post 1880 style (has invert sugar), and a mix of hops that would regularly be used at the time. Even the yeast is potentially something I would usually not go for, S33, which is meant to have a slightly low attenuation. Again, true to style.

Mash (medium-high temperature, or rests at increasing temperatures):
7.5# mild malt
7.5# maris otter
0.5# brown malt

90 minute boil:
- 90m - 3oz Cluster, 3oz Spalt
- 30m - 2oz East Kent Goldings

Added to FV: S33 yeast, 1.5# invert sugar.

Expecting OG 1.095, FG 1.027, 9%abv, 53 IBU, 10SRM.

 

[Epimetheus]

I thought Milds had moderate ABV percentages. Not criticizing, I am still learning and will have to research them again. I brewed two batches of lower ABV English Mild types that were quite pleasant.

 

[roastquake]

I've read a couple of those books (pale ale, scotch ale) and it seems that in Britain, in the 1800's, beers where brewed waaay stronger than they are now. Also, the nature of ingredients would have been much different, so there's probably no true way to duplicate historic brews. Not sure where I heard or read this, but I think some of those big beers where meant to be watered down or mixed with other beers

 

[JKaranka]

Not sure if they were watered down as there's lots of punters complaining about the decreasing strength of ale overtime. It seems that low gravity ales didn't start until fairly recently with World War I and increasing prices of beer. Before then most milds were OG 1.050-1.060. I love modern light dark milds but I'm quite keen on trying the beer they came from.

What I've learnt in a nutshell. Mild and pale ale were 100% pale malt until the ~1860s, when Mild became darker than pale ale with addition of caramel. Mild tended to have slightly darker (lower quality) malt, making it darker than pale ale. Pale ale had around twice the hops and was dry hopped. Mild was stronger than pale ales and IPAs, with OG in the band from 1.060 to 1.120. Mild was less attenuated than pale ale, maybe due to shorter conditioning times or less attenuating yeast.

From the 1880s Mild tended to have adjuncts like sugar, corn or rice, but not as much as pale ale and IPA that could be up to 30% sugar to keep them pale. Later on gravities started to drop and more brewer's caramel and invert syrup were added to turn milds darker, but for a long time they must have been just slightly darker than pale ales. They also outsold pale ales by lots to one for about sixty years.