|
Subject: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: GUEST,David Levine in Senegal (would you believe?! Date: 23 Feb 26 - 09:01 AM The song "When Jones's Ale Was New" has been going in my head today. What is the significance of "new" ale? And what is new ale? I imagine it is/was something that existed before all ale was in bottles. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: Pappy Fiddle Date: 23 Feb 26 - 10:32 AM My grandfather used to brew root beer in his basement. He had about 100 bottles in a rack. Every once in a while one of these bottles would explode. I think this was different from the root beer you buy in the store. It was alcoholic. I'll go out on a limb here and guess that in olden times, they stored their brews in containers that were not 100.00 percent airtight. So the alcohol would gradually evaporate out of the liquid and escape. So, "new" ale had a higher alcohol content. My brain is old but I seem to have memories back there somewhere of reading literature, more than once, where someone got real loaded drinking new ale. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: Steve Gardham Date: 23 Feb 26 - 01:03 PM Sounds reasonable, PF. The earliest record we have of the ballet is in the Stationers' Register for 1594, but the earliest copy I have is about 1656. The 'new' simply means 'new' as opposed to old ale which would have gone a little stale/flat.. 'All you that do this merry ditty view, taste of Joan's Ale, for it is strong and true.' intro. last few lines: And when the business was done, They every man departed home, And promised Jone again to come, When she had brew'd anew.' |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: The Sandman Date: 23 Feb 26 - 03:24 PM new ale is not generally as good as matured, an example is IPA,It was brewed with plenty of hops to preserve it on its journey to india, journey time, several months, apparently when it arrived it was not bitter at all. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 23 Feb 26 - 07:14 PM I have brewed alcohol since age 12: Cider Root Beer Birch Beer Ale IPA Wine Lager/Pilsner Even Absinthe (distilled) Brandy & "Calvados" The primary difference between beer and ale is the yeast. Beer yeast brews from the bottom ... ale from a top yeast. Formulas vary. In the Bible there are many references to wine. "New wine in old wine-skins" ... "Drink wine new in heaven" Sincerely, Gargoyle Pappy is close. Bottled with too much sugar/malt present ... the yeasty-beasties continue to grow. I have had many a bottle explode. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: Steve Gardham Date: 24 Feb 26 - 12:27 PM All that may well be true using modern technology but in the 16th century they seemed to prefer their ale newly brewed, I hope once the dregs were settled. When I used to brew my own and bottle it a somewhat unfussy neighbour used to neck the lot from the bottle, dregs and all, yeuch! I don't think he lived for much longer after I left. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: MaJoC the Filk Date: 24 Feb 26 - 01:40 PM Mayhap your neighbour had heard about the old ritual of giving the women in a party the dregs of the wine bottle (yeast an' all) "for your complexion, m'dears". |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: Pappy Fiddle Date: 24 Feb 26 - 04:45 PM Then there's Acts 2. The disciples are gathered together and speaking in tongues. Spectators all heard them speaking in their own language. They were all surprized and wondered what was going on. Somebody said "These men are full of new wine." But Peter said No, it's only 9 o'clock in the morning so that can't be it. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 24 Feb 26 - 05:40 PM Steve G - Pour the bottle slow into a glass ... then swirl the yeast in the bottle and take a big swig from the bottle. No need to taste. The extremely healthy B vitamins are in the yeast ... which Marmite is produced from. My friends, who drink my brew, always chug the yeasty beasties it promotes healthy colon colonies. Sincerely, Gargoyle The removal of the nourishing yeast by filtration is said to be a contributing factor to alcoholism. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: Steve Gardham Date: 24 Feb 26 - 05:45 PM He probably died of alcoholism then. I eat a lot of Marmite. The irony is I'm currently taking vit B supplements:-) |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 25 Feb 26 - 05:02 PM Current issue, February 2026, of National Geographic, first article is about Belgium beer yeast ... and attempts to save livers with no-alcohol. The Holy Grail is taste. IMHO - brewing is more complex than viticulture. Sincerely, Gargoyle Blessed be the marriage of hops and barley. |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: Dave the Gnome Date: 26 Feb 26 - 08:34 AM Don't forget that if the words of a folk song son't nake a lot of sense they are probably a euphamism for something else :-D I suspect in this case it is a reference to the newer (better) ale or the younger version of the narrator |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: MaJoC the Filk Date: 26 Feb 26 - 04:21 PM It's context-dependent:
|
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: GUEST Date: 03 Mar 26 - 10:10 AM When cask beer aka ‘naturally conditioned’ beer was first delivered the standard practice was to let it settle for a day or so before ‘tapping’ it, I.e. opening the cask by tapping in a soft spile, usually made of cane. This let some, but not all of the CO2 caused by natural secondary fermentation in the cask escape without bacterial ingress from the atmosphere. Most breweries in England ‘primed’ their product with sucrose to nourish the yeast and encourage this, it raised the alcohol content slightly and gave the beer a natural “fizz”. In warmer weather in the days before temperature controlled cellars with a/c this often made the beer quite fizzy initially and this was called ‘new’ ale or ‘green beer’. Drinkable, but a bit sweeter, more effervescent and often slightly hazy from the yeast particles. Draught Bass was particularly prone to this but many of the (mostly extinct now) regional bitters of England exhibited it. There you go, ‘new’ ale… |
|
Subject: RE: Folklore: What is 'new' ale? From: GUEST Date: 03 Mar 26 - 02:05 PM GArgoyle you may well be correct for modern America but back hee in ENgland ale was originally brewed without hops in fact it was illegal to use hops until (I'm guessing here) about ad 1390. If alcohol evaporates would the not liquor get stronger and thus "new ale" was weaker? |
| Share Thread: |
