_Small beers_--made from worts not exceeding the sp. gr. 1·025, or 9
lbs. per barrel.
_Middlings_--made from worts of the sp. gr. 1·030 to 1·050, and
averaging about 14 lbs. per barrel.
_Strong beers_--made from worts of the sp. gr. 1·040 to 1·080, extending
from about 35 lbs. per barrel upwards.
The densities of the worts employed for different kinds of beer vary
considerably, as will be seen by the following table:--
TABLE _of the Densities of Beers_.
|----------------------------------------------------|
| | Pounds | |
| Description. | per | Specific Gravity. |
| | barrel. | |
|----------------------------------------------------|
|Burton ale, Class 1 |40 to 43 | 1·111 to 1·120 |
| " " 2 |35 " 40 | 1·097 " 1·111 |
| " " 3 |28 " 33 | 1·077 " 1·092 |
|Ordinary ale |25 " 27 | 1·070 " 1·075 |
|Common " | 21 | 1·058 |
|Scotch ale, Class 1 |40 to 44 | 1·111 to 1·122 |
| " " 2 |33 " 40 | 1·092 " 1·111 |
|Porter (ordinary) | 18 | 1·050 |
| " (good) |18 to 21 | 1·050 to 1·058 |
| " (double) |{?} to 22| 1·055 " 1·060 |
|Brown stout | 23 | 1·064 |
| " (best) | 26 | 1·072 |
|Table beer |12 to 14 | 1·033 to 1·039 |
|Small " (com.) | 6 | 1·017 |
|----------------------------------------------------|
EXPORTATION OF BEER:--When beer is exported from any part of the United
Kingdom, either as merchandise or ships' stores, the brewer or exporter of
such beer is allowed a certain drawback of duty. The amount is
proportional to the quantity of malt or sugar inferred to have been used
in the brewing of the beer. Thus, if the original specific gravity of the
worts from which the beer was brewed were not less than 1·040, a drawback
is granted of 4_s._ 3_d._ per barrel. This is equivalent to a return of
the duty on 1-1/2 bushels of malt, with an allowance of 3_d._ for licence
duty, now charged in lieu of the abolished hop duty. For every additional
5 degrees of specific gravity, from 1040° to 1125° inclusive, a further
sum of 5_d._ per barrel is allowed.
[For further information connected with the above subject the reader is
referred to the separate articles--ALE, BEER, DEXTRINE, DIASTASE,
FERMENTATION, MALT LIQUORS, PORTER, SACCHAROMETER, SPECIFIC GRAVITY, WORT,
YEAST, &c.]
=Brewing Uten'sils.= The cleansing and preservation of brewing utensils,
beer casks, &c., has frequently engaged the attention of practical men and
brewers' chemists. To preserve them sweet they should always be thoroughly
cleaned before setting them aside. Contact with soap, or any greasy
material, should be carefully avoided. A scrubbing-brush and scalding-hot
water are generally sufficient to clean them. Great care should be taken
to remove every particle of yeast or fur on the sides and bottom; and
after being well drained they should be stowed away in some clean and cold
situation, properly exposed to the fresh air. Should they become tainted
or mouldy, a strong lye of pearl-ash, common salt, or quick-lime, may be
spread over them, scalding hot, with a broom or scrubbing-brush. Washing
them with oil of vitriol diluted with about 7 or 8 times its bulk of
water, is another excellent and very effective method. Fresh-burnt
charcoal has also been employed for the same purpose. In each case the
vessels must be subsequently thoroughly washed out with clean water, as
before. Steam, assisted by the action of a chain, has been successfully
applied to clean casks in several breweries. Bisulphite of lime has,
within the last few years, been highly recommended for sweetening and
cleaning vats, casks, &c. It is also said to prevent beer from developing
acidity. See CASKS, VATS, SPOROKTON, &c.
=BRICKS.= Brick-making scarcely comes within the province of this work. In
connection with hygiene, however, we may call the reader's attention to
the superior advantages of both hollow and waterproof bricks; the first,
for ventilation and lightness; the last, for preserving the dryness and
integrity of our homes under all the vicissitudes of climate, season, and
weather, either on damp soils or dry ones. Workman's "Patent Waterproof
Bricks" received a strong commendatory notice from the Commissioners of
the "Great International Exhibition" of 1851.
=BRILLIANTINE.= 1. Castor oil, 1 part; eau de Cologne, 4 parts. Mix. 2.
Honey, 1 _oz._; glycerin, 1/2 _oz._; eau de Cologne, 1/2 _oz._; spirit of
wine, 2 _oz._ Mix.
=BRINE= (for Meat). _Prep._ 1. A nearly saturated solution of common salt,
1 lb.; and saltpetre, 1 oz.; in soft water.
2. To the last add of sugar or treacle, 1/2 lb. Bay-salt is recommended
when the meat is to be kept for a very long period. Meat preserved in
brine that has been used for curing several times is said to become
poisonous. See PICKLING, &c.
=Brine, Red-Cabbage.= Red-cabbage leaves steeped in a strong solution of
common salt. Used as a test for acids and alkalies.
=Brine, Vi'olet.= From the petals of the blue violet, as the last. Used as
a test for acids.
=BRIOCHE PASTE= (bre-[=o]sh'). In _cookery_, a species of paste, or crust,
prepared of eggs and flour, fermented with yeast, to which a little salt,
a large quantity of sugar, and about half as much butter as the weight of
the flour used, are afterwards added, and well worked in. Used as an
addition to soup, and as a casing for lobsters, patties, eggs, &c.
=BRISK'NESS.= The natural briskness and sparkling of fermented liquors
depends on the gradual evolution of carbonic acid gas within the body of
the fluid, by the process of fermentation. See MALT LIQUORS, PORTER,
WINES, &c.
=BRIS'TLES= (br[)i]s'lz). The stiff hair of swine, &c. They are commonly
stiffened by immersion for a short time in alum-water; and are dyed by
steeping them for a short time in any of the common dyes used for cotton
or wool.
=BRITAN'NIA METAL.= _Syn._ TUTANIA. A superior species of pewter, used for
teapots, spoons, &c.
_Prep._ 1. Plate-brass, bismuth, antimony, and tin, equal parts, melted
together, and the resulting alloy added at discretion to melted tin, until
it acquires the proper degree of colour and hardness.
2. To the first alloy, prepared as in No. 1, add one fifth of its weight
of metallic arsenic, before mixing it with the melted tin.
3. Antimony, 1 part; brass, 4 parts; tin, 5 or 6 parts; melted together.
See QUEEN'S METAL (ALLOYS), PEWTER, &c.