A few days ago… one of my regulars asked me how we keep our beer so consistently good. I paused and thought for a moment and then said, ‘I’ll show you…’, and off to the cellar we went. Sometime later, he paused, looked at me and said, “I will always drink my beer with greater appreciation for the time and effort it takes to deliver a great pint”. It struck me that despite his clear enthusiasm for Real Ale he really knew very little about it – he knew what he liked, and for some, that is enough. This post is essentially a version of that conversation, and for those like Jamie that wanted to know more.
What is it? Well, in simple terms it’s the unpasteurised ‘cheese’ of the beer world – it’s a natural living thing with subtle and beguiling flavours and character. It is neither filtered or pasteurised – or is it the finished article when it arrives in my cellar. So, when you stand behind the bar – the fizzy stuff served from a tap comes in a ‘Keg’, an upright barrel of uniform shape, the product is pasteurised and forced to the tap using Co2 or a combination of Co2 and Nitrogen (in the case of Guinness). Real Ale is served from a hand-pump and comes in a ‘Cask’, a barrel with a belly in the middle – best served on a stillage on its side – more on that later.
So back to the Real Ale and when it arrives in the cellar – in the cask along with the ale is residual yeast and finings, the ale %ABV or percentage ‘alcohol by volume’ will be lower than the finished product should be – not much but typically about 0.1 %ABV. This is where Cask or Cellar Conditioning comes in. Conditioning is a complex set of chemical and biological processes that change the beer from the point it is ‘racked’ – the process of taking the ale from the fermenting vessel and putting it in the cask – to the point that it is served. Getting the correct ‘condition’ is what in the trade we call ‘Cellermanship’.
Note: – To the purest that knows already, some real Ale is ‘conditioned’ at the Brewery, however that ale maturation continues in the cellar – Some beer have ‘primings’ added (additional sugars) etc… for the sake of not over complicating things – good cellermanship applies to all beer, irrespective of the nuisances of each Real Ale.
In very literal terms the Ale has continued to ferment at a very slow rate in the cask, in so doing it creates an amount of Co2, leaving the cask under pressure but that Co2 is a preservative. Having placed the cask in a rack or stillage we leave it alone – it literally needs to calm down. Once ‘calm’ and when needed based on rotation and the volume sold, we will ‘tap’ it. A cask has 2 holes, that are sealed – in the belly of the cask is larger round bung called a ‘Shive’ typically made of wood or plastic, in it is a small hole used to control air flow via a plug called a ‘Spile’ and the other close to the rim in the end of the cask is where the tap is driven home – it’s called a ‘Keystone’ and because we can, a tap is not called a tap – it’s called a ‘Spigot’. The process is to open the air hole and with a single swift tap of a mallet drive the spigot home, ensuring it is in the closed position – a soft spiral is then lightly tapped into the shive – soft spirals allow the beer to vent.
At the Docks we do this process very slightly differently to most… The average cellar is a dark and filthy place full of bacteria and fungi. And certainly, when I acquired the Docks so was the cellar here, spilt beer goes bad and turns into vinegar that ‘rots’, concrete floors literally break up and become a source of bacterial infection that ruins beer – the previous owners simply added another layer of concrete, but that too became infected. One of our first task was to dig out some 9 inches of old concrete, install new drainage, and lay new concrete – we started again, but now we have a cellar than can be washed down and maintained to a very high level of cleanliness.
It is impossible to avoid beer being spilt and every cellar will have bacteria but I’m proud of our cellar, I’m proud that we have had 100% Cask Marque score for our last 4 assessments. We achieve this through good hygiene practices with every barrel being cleaned with food grade anti-bacterial, we don’t use spirals made from soft wood like balsa or hard wood like teak, we use a special valve made of plastic which are sterilised before use – these devices allow the beer to ‘vent’ built-up Co2 when tapped and during the final fermentation. We date the cask, and dependant on the Ale will leave it from 12 to 48 hours at the perfect temperature – 12.3 degrees Celsius.
During this time, any residual yeast will ferment out and the finings will draw the dead yeast and any other sediments to the bottom of the barrel – we now have the perfect Ale clear and crisp as the brewer crafted it to be – ready to serve. At this point we do something else untypical… We ‘aspirate’ the cask using Co2, under very low pressure as the beer is drawn off, Co2 floods the cask maintaining the sterile condition and maintaining the freshness until almost the last pint is consumed. We do this because we don’t want the stale air from the cellar being drawn into the cask as the beer is drawn out and served. The bacteria will taint and age the beer – a seasoned real ale drinker can ‘tell’ the life of the beer due to this ‘ageing’, which can ruin a good beer in 24 hours.
Now we move to serving, and this too needs to be done properly starting with the beer lines that connect the cellar to the bar. I invested and replaced every part of the bar and cellar equipment including the lines at the same time of replacing the floor and drainage – importantly installing a ‘Line Cooler’ which essentially is a cooling jacket for the beer lines and the hand pumps which are also jacketed. The cellar temp is computer controlled at a steady 12.3 degrees Celsius, I want that temperature maintained to the point of serving. The line cooler keeps both the hand pumps and the lines at a steady 12.3. This ensures that even on a hot day, the beer in the line is not slowly warming up and degrading – it’s kept fresh. Next time you’re in just touch the brass base of the hand pump and you’ll notice it is colder than the ambient temperature, yes, it’s a financial overhead – but good beer takes time, effort and investment.
Cleaning the lines should never be a random process, but a fixed periodic and systematic process done using the correct chemicals. I won’t bore you with how it’s done, just as I won’t explain the process we use to maintain ‘beer clean’ glasses. Yes, Cask Marque assess our glasses – a good glass should have multiple rings left by the head as it drops down the glass while you enjoy a perfectly poured pint. It is my believe that a good pub starts with a good pint. We need to celebrate Real Ale, a uniquely British craft that should be maintained, promoted and shouted about – As long as the Docks is under my stewardship Real Ale will be that champion. Good drink and food well served… We are no ghastly gastro pub that serves lukewarm Ale of questionable quality.
If any of you would like to see my Cellar in person please do shout and I will happily arrange to give you a tour and answer any question you might have.
I hope you enjoy this brief intro to Real Ale and Cellar Conditioning,
Matthew
