Today, many people turn their noses up at the thought of drinking a mild but this unfashionable drink has an amazing history and is worthy of another look – and taste!
As always, when it comes to history, there is a lot of debate but it seems to be unanimously agreed as to where the name came from. Originally, it simply meant ‘fresh’ or ‘unaged’ as opposed to ‘stale’, which was the term for beers that had been aged, particularly in the C18th when aged porters became particularly popular. You could have a ‘mild bitter’ or a ‘mild porter’. Quite when the term originated is disputed, with sources quoting anything from the 1600s to 1700s or maybe even earlier.
By the 1800s breweries could be producing three or four milds but these were not, at this time, weak beers. Milds were generally around 5.5% to 7% ABV and they could be either light and dark, with drinkers in different parts of the country having their particular favourite style. It tended to be dark in East Anglia, London, West Midlands, the North East and Wales but pale in Manchester and Stafford.
The impact of two world wars led to a general reduction in the alcohol content of most beers, leading to our current idea that mild is a dark, low strength beer. Regardless, it remained a popular beer accounting for a staggering 42% of all beer brewed in 1959. After this, the decline in popularity began, not helped by the stories of landlords pouring slops back into the mild casks. Also, a low alcohol and lightly hopped beer does not keep for long and this could lead to the beer going off before it could be sold.
A look at the Good Beer Guide from fifty years ago showed that, of the 119 different breweries listed, almost 70% produced a mild. There were 83 different milds and 17% of the breweries brewed both a light and a dark mild. The picture today might look rosier, with 474 milds listed on CAMRA’s brewery database (called Pilgrim). This is mainly thanks to the growth of microbreweries. However, the downside is that many of these are not brewed regularly and, particularly in London, finding a mild is not easy. Sadly, only around 2.5% of the milds on the database come from London. There are however some parts of the country where mild still prevails.
CAMRA has been committed to supporting this underrated beer style for decades and May has historically been the month for CAMRA’s Mild Campaign. The 2025 campaign has a delight in store. Sambrook’s Brewery is supporting the initiative by bringing back their mild beer festival; this time called ‘Born to be Mild’. At the same time, they will be hosting the London and the South East judging round of CAMRA’s Champion Mild of Britain competition. This will take place on Wednesday 7 May at the Brewery Tap in Wandsworth. It promises to be a great showcase for beers to be enjoyed by all those of a mild disposition, as well as the mild novice. For more details see here and the advert below.
Christine Cryne
