Old ale
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Old ale is a term commonly applied to dark, malty beers in the UK, usually above 5% abv, often also called Winter Warmers;^[1] also to dark ales of any strength in Australia.^[2] Sometimes associated with stock ale or, archaically, keeping ale, in which the beer is held at the brewery. American brewed old ales will tend to be of a barley wine strength.

History

Historically, old ales served as a complement to mild ales, and in pubs of the era typically the landlord would serve the customer a blend of the sharper stock ale with the fruitier, sweeter mild ale to the customer's taste. In London especially, the aged ale would take on a sour, lactic acid note from the continuing fermentation in the cask. Because of the time required for the aging process, some investors would buy mild ale from brewers, age it into old ale, and sell it at the higher price. Eventually, brewers began to keep some beer behind at the brewery, age it themselves and sell it to the pubs. In some cases old ale was a blend of young and old. The "stock ale" was the brewery's very aged ale and was used to inject an "old" quality, and perhaps acidity to the blend.

Product

Some brewers will make a high abv old ale for bottling. Some of these can mature for several years after bottling, and may or may not be bottle-conditioned.

The "October" Keeping Ales are thought to have formed the basis for India Pale Ales shipped by the British East India Company.^{citation needed}

Another version was so-called "Majority Ale," a strong ale brewed on or around the birth of child intended to be drunk on the child's twenty-first birthday. ^[3]

Examples of old ales include:

• George Gale: Prize Old Ale
• Theakston: Old Peculier
• Fuller's: Vintage Ale
• Greene King: Olde Suffolk English Ale
• O'Hanlon's: Thomas Hardy's Ale

See also

• Barley wine
• Bitter (beer)

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Wheeler, Graham, and Roger Protz, Brew Your Own British Real Ale at Home. 1998, 2001, CAMRA Ltd. ISBN 1852491388

External links

• CAMRA description of Old Ale
• Durden Park Beer Circle