exclusively in the north of England), practically consists in pumping the
fermenting wort from one to the other of two superimposed square vessels,
connected with one another by means of a man-hole and a valve. These
squares are built of stone and kept very cool. At the end of the
fermentation the yeast (after closing the man-hole) is removed from the top
square.

_Racking, &c._--After the fermentation and cleansing operations are
completed, the beer is racked off (sometimes after passing a few hours in a
settling tank) into storage vessels or trade casks. The finest "stock" and
"pale" ales are stored from six weeks to three months prior to going out,
but "running" beers (mild ales, &c.) are frequently sent out of the brewery
within a week or ten days of mashing. It is usual to add some hops in cask
(this is called _dry hopping_) in the case of many of the better beers.
Running beers, which must be put into condition rapidly, or beers that have
become flat, are generally _primed_. Priming consists in adding a small
quantity of sugar solution to the beer in cask. This rapidly ferments and
so produces "condition."

_Fining_.--As a very light article is desired nowadays, and this has to be
provided in a short time, artificial means must be resorted to, in order to
replace the natural fining or brightening which storage brings about.
_Finings_ generally consist of a solution or semi-solution of isinglass in
sour beer, or in a solution of tartaric acid or of sulphurous acid. After
the finings are added to the beer and the barrels have been well rolled,
the finings slowly precipitate (or work out through the bung-hole) and
carry with them the matter which would otherwise render the beer turbid.

_Bottling_.--Formerly it was the general custom to brew a special beer for
bottling, and this practice is still continued by some brewers. It is
generally admitted that the special brew, matured by storage and an
adequate secondary fermentation, produces the best beer for bottling, but
the modern taste for a very light and bright bottled beer at a low cost has
necessitated the introduction of new methods. The most interesting among
these is the "chilling" and "carbonating" system. In this the beer, when it
is ripe for racking, is first "chilled," that is, cooled to a very low
temperature. As a result, there is an immediate deposition of much matter
which otherwise would require prolonged time to settle. The beer is then
filtered and