Pre-Pro Cream/Present Use/Sparkling Ale

A comment on a previous post about Heinrich Kreische, someone asked if my book, Historic Texas Breweries, had recipes. The answer is that it doesn't. I haven't found any historic recipes. But I do have access to a couple of resurces that can help us out. I hope to revise my book over the winter and add these recipes.

First, the folks over at Home Brew Digest have Wahl & Henius'American Handy Book of the Brewing, Malting and Auxiliary Trades available online. And I also consulted The Essentials of Beer Style by Fred Eckhardt.

I thought I would start with Cream Ale, Present Use Ale as described by Wahl & Henius, and modified with information on a 1901 Sparkling Ale described by Eckhardt. The beer had an original gravity of 1056-1057. It could be made with either all grain or a 70-30 mix of malt and corn or rice. According to Wahl & Henius, the beer had an alcohol by volume of 6%. The only pre-Prohibition ale listed by Eckhardt had 60 IBUs, which is as hoppy as a modern IPA. So I sat down and came up with this recipe:

Wahl & Henius-Eckhardt Ale

• 8 lbs liquid malt extract (I recommend Williams Brewing's American lager which has 30% corn extract)
• 1 1/2 ounces Cascade hops/60 minutes
• 1 1/4 ounces Cascade hops/30 minutes
• 1 1/4 ounces Cascade hops/10 minutes
• American Ale Yeast

OG = 1056 IBU = 60 (yes, 60) ABV = 6%