Brewers and Brands from yesteryear - Mackeson Milk Stout

Actor Bernard Miles in his Mackeson advert

Looks good, tastes good and by golly it does you good! Originally spoken by actor Bernard Miles, this was the ambitious but memorable advertising slogan associated with Mackeson Milk Stout. Miles himself was a well known fine character actor, appearing in such classic wartime films as In Which We Serve and One of Our Aircraft is Missing. However, with his distinctive rural drawl, it is the Mackeson association that some best remember him for and indeed, the adverts he appeared in helped to make the beer one of the strongest beer brands of the 1950's/60's. 

So what is the story of Mackeson Milk Stout and is the advertising slogan just made up marketing guff, or is there any substance to the claims?

Mackeson was originally brewed by the Hythe Brewery in Kent which was established in 1669. The Mackeson family invested in a partnership of the brewery and their involvement increased over the years until in 1894 Henry Mackeson, who originally trained as a chemist became head of the business. His brother George joined the partnership and together they were responsible for introducing new equipment and an updated range of beers to meet a changing market place.

In 1900 Mackeson and Co were incorporated changing the name of the business and they acquired various patents for use of sugars or lactose in the production of beer. In 1909 Mackeson Milk Stout, a bottled beer was introduced to commemorate the 240th anniversary of the brewery in Hythe, it was the very first Milk Stout in the world to be brewed.

The beer became very popular and the ever resourceful brothers Henry and George quickly capitalised on this, licensing production of the new beer to be brewed by other brewers across the country. In 1920 the Mackeson brand attracted the attention of a larger brewer in Simonds of Reading and the brothers took the opportunity to retire selling their shareholding in the business. Simonds would eventually sell out themsleves, with Mackeson and Co being acquired by Whitbread in 1929. 

In Whitbread Mackeson had a good custodian and the brand grew hugely under their control. During the late 1950's its is claimed that Mackeson accounted for half of Whitbreads beer production nationally and was brewed in four different breweries. In the early 1960's Whitbread were brewing 425,000 brewers barrels per anum and it held a 25% share of the stout market. A draught version was also experimented with at this time but Mackeson would remain solely a bottled beer until cans were also introduced in 1971.

Sadly, in 1968 brewing at Hythe ended and through the late 1970's the brand began to decline as dark beers fell out of fashion with the introduction of the more popular lighter easier drinking lagers. Mackeson and Milk Stout in general was perceived as being an older persons drink and they were depicted as such in popular TV programmes of the late 1960's and early 1970s - those of a certain age will remember Coronation Streets Ena Sharples and Mini Caldwell were often shown enjoying a bottle or two of Milk Stout in the Snug Bar of the Rovers Return!

Mini Caldwell and Ena Sharples in Coronation Street

By 2012 Mackeson had fallen way down the list of important brands for Whitbread (now Inbev) and it was now being brewed at Hydes of Manchester. The abv of Mackeson was recorded as 4.3% in the late 1980's but reduced to 3% and then further reduced to 2.8% in 2012 to qualify for duty relief. The exact production site of Mackeson today is unclear since the Hydes Brewery closed. However, a version of Mackeson is still brewed by the Carib Brewery in Trinidad as a Triple stout at 4.9% abv. It is very popular with young men and Carib uses the advertising slogan King of the Night.

Carib Brewery Mackeson

So back to dear old Bernard Miles and the health claims of the original Mackeson advertising slogan. Certainly when Henry and George Mackeson first conceived the beer, stout was recommended as an energy source when convalescing and the brothers hoped that the adding a significant amount of lactose would enhance this (they added 9 lbs per 36 gallon barrel). Indeed, the bottle label at the time claimed that each pint of Mackeson had the energising effects of 10 ounces of pure dairy milk and the label also featured an illustration of a milk churn. Lactose is a component of milk and a sugar that cannot be turned into alcohol by the brewing process - this gives the beer a sweet creaminess in terms of flavour.  

It was claimed that Mackeson could help cure a number of ailments including indigestion and headaches and was recommended for nursing mothers and invalids. Of course in the early 20th century poor diets certainly contributed to various illnesses so a bottle of Mackeson would in some cases aid your health, assuming you were able to convert the lactose into energy (some people are lactose intolerant so unable to convert). However, the beer did not contain actual milk and the bottle label with its milk churn was at one time deemed misleading so this was removed (although it has since reappeared).

My view is that Bernard Miles and his advertising slogan certainly stretched the truth and there is no way the beer can aid specific ailments. However much like other beer, it can be good for you in limited amounts especially as it has been boiled so would be devoid of any impurities, unlike some of the water that was drunk in the early 20th century. Furthermore lactose can help give you energy so there is an element of truth in the health claims.

As for the beer itself and what it tastes like, I have been unable to get any to actually taste myself. However I will rely on esteemed beer writer Roger Protz for his thoughts published in one of his blogs. Roger comments, its certainly not sweet as has a good level of bitterness, but there is a creamy chocolate flavour with a hint of old fashion confectionery known as milk drops. Sounds like a nice well balanced beer and its easy to see why this became so popular.

Mackeson is a rare find these days although some supermarkets do continue to sell it, but milk stout as a beer style is becoming more popular and has found a niche in the craft beer sector and many such brewers have one in their range. Mackeson was the original milk stout and I'm sure at its low abv would not stand up that well against its craft beer peers, however I think you have to recognise that this was a beer of its time and applaud that it became a fantastic brand enjoyed by many people.  Who knows, we might see it as old fashioned now, lots of things come full circle.....!

Sources

Letslookagain.com

Protz on beer

Brewery History Society