Since last week was all about the Irish Stout, it only seems right that I balance the scales by offering up an English beer this week; thus, we’ll be discussing the English mild! Like chefs who test their skills by cooking an egg, many brewers consider the mild to be their real test of brewing. Mild requires a brewer to be able to make a beer that is light but malt-forward, impactful but not overbearing, rich but not heavy, and low enough in ABV to be drunk by the pint while watching your favorite football team (take “football” in either sense of the word).
A challenge? Yes, but certainly one that every brewer should strive to meet because this is truly one of the great and classic world beer styles.
Style
I once heard someone at a beer festival describe the mild as being “like a bitter, but dark.” In my head, I ran across the hall and gave the miscreant a solid swing across the head with a cricket bat. Although the two styles share a country of origin, the English mild and the English bitter are not all that similar. And while the English bitter has been for centuries a mainstay of the beer world, milds have only recently mounted an impressive comeback from the “Endangered Beers” list.