The London and Country Brewer | Page 6

the Hair-cloth admits of, for these must be
swept, when the other is only turned at once; however these last three
ways are now in much request for drying pale and amber Malts,

because their fire may be kept with more leisure, and the Malt more
gradually and truer dyed, but by many the Hair-cloth is reckoned the
best of all.
Malts are dryed with several sorts of Fuel; as the Coak, Welch-coal,
Straw, Wood and Fern, &c. But the Coak is reckoned by most to
exceed all others for making Drink of the finest Flavour and pale
Colour, because it sends no smoak forth to hurt the Malt with any
offensive tang, that Wood, Fern and Straw are apt to do in a lesser or
greater degree; but there is a difference even in what is call'd Coak, the
right sort being large Pit- coal chark'd or burnt in some measure to a
Cinder, till all the Sulphur is consumed and evaporated away, which is
called Coak, and this when it is truly made is the best of all other Fuels;
but if there is but one Cinder as big as an Egg, that is not thoroughly
cured, the smoak of this one is capable of doing a little damage, and
this happens too often by the negligence or avarice of the Coak-maker:
There is another sort by some wrongly called Coak, and rightly named
Culme or Welch-coal, from Swanzey in Pembrokeshire, being of a hard
stony substance in small bits resembling a shining Coal, and will burn
without smoak, and by its sulphureous effluvia cast a most excellent
whiteness on all the outward parts of the grainy body: In Devonshire I
have seen their Marble or grey Fire-stone burnt into Lime with the
strong fire that this Culme makes, and both this and the Chark'd
Pit-coal affords a most sweet moderate and certain fire to all Malt that
is dryed by it.
Straw is the next sweetest Fuel, but Wood and Fern worst of all.
Some I have known put a Peck or more of Peas, and malt them with
five Quarters of Barley, and they'll greatly mellow the Drink, and so
will Beans; but they won't come so soon, nor mix so conveniently with
the Malt, as the Pea will.
I knew a Farmer, when he sends five Quarters of Barley to be Malted,
puts in half a Peck or more of Oats amongst them, to prove he has
justice done him by the Maker, who is hereby confin'd not to Change
his Malt by reason others won't like such a mixture.

But there is an abuse sometimes committed by a necessitous Malster,
who to come by Malt sooner than ordinary, makes use of Barley before
it is thoroughly sweated in the Mow, and then it never makes right Malt,
but will be steely and not yield a due quantity of wort, as I knew it once
done by a Person that thrashed the Barley immediately from the Cart as
it was brought out of the Field, but they that used its Malt suffered not a
little, for it was impossible it should be good, because it did not
thoroughly Chip or Spire on the floor, which caused this sort of Malt,
when the water was put to it in the Mash-tub, to swell up and absorb
the Liquor, but not return its due quantity again, as true Malt would,
nor was the Drink of this Malt ever good in the Barrel, but remain'd a
raw insipid beer, past the Art of Man to Cure, because this, like Cyder
made from Apples directly off the Tree, that never sweated out their
phlegmatick crude juice in the heap, cannot produce a natural Liquor
from such unnatural management; for barley certainly is not fit to make
Malt of until it is fully mellowed and sweated in the Mow, and the
Season of the Year is ready for it, without both which there can be no
assurance of good Malt: Several instances of this untimely making Malt
I have known to happen, that has been the occasion of great quantities
of bad Ales and Beers, for such Malt, retaining none of its Barley
nature, or that the Season of the Year is not cold enough to admit of its
natural working on the Floor, is not capable of producing a true Malt, it
will cause its Drink to stink in the cask instead of growing fit for use, as
not having its genuine Malt-nature to cure and preserve it, which all
good Malts contribute to as well as the Hop.
There is another damage I have known accrue to the Buyer of Malt by
Mellilet, a most stinking Weed that grows amongst some Barley, and is
so mischievously predominant, as to taint