Burton Union

The Burton breweries were known for a recirculating fermentation system known as the Burton Union. Invented in the 1830s, the Union system was a row of casks connected to a common trough by way of a series of pipes. The practical purpose of the Union system was to allow excess barm (yeast foam) to be expelled from the casks without leaving excessive amounts of head space within the casks; the system was quickly refined to separate any expelled beer from the wasted yeast, allowing it to flow back into the casks to continue fermentation.

The Burton Union is credited with maintaining the strains of yeast used in Burton brewing in a relatively stable state until the mid-20th century.

While not widely used in commercial beer production anymore, the Burton Union principle is often looked on as a technical challenge for advanced homebrewers, and even a commercial approximation of the design is available for experimenters.

ee also

*Yorkshire stone square

External links

* [http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000132.html Tasting notes on Marston's Pedigree, a Union-fermented bitter]
* [http://www.ianmarchant.com/Images/images/34-Burton-Union-Set,-Marsto_jpg.jpgPhoto of the fermentation facility at Marston's]
* [http://bullwinkle.gardnerweb.com/Beer/burtonunion.html A homebrewer's attempt to simulate a Burton Union]

References

*"Classic Beer Style Series: Pale Ale, 2nd ed.", Terry Foster, 1999, Brewers Publications, ISBN 0937381691