X marks the strength

As an adoptee of the delicious golden nectar that is XXXX Gold, brewed by Castlemaine Perkins, I've sometimes wondered exactly where the name came from. Nothing refreshes quite like a Milton Mango (Fourex Gold tinnies), and given the lower alcohol volume of a Gold, I can still drink 40 of them and legally operate a motor vehicle (dramatisation, may not be factually correct).

The origin of the XXXX branding is apparently derived from the long-standing tradition of using X's to indicate the strength of an ale, which makes sense when referring to XXXX Bitter, though doesn't quite add up if the same logic is applied to the midstrength variety. This throwback originated alongside Castlemaine Perkins's introduction of XXX Sparkling Ale when the brewery first began operations in 1878.

The discovery of this new information contradicts my earlier assumptions that the four X's was simply a substitute for nobody born in the state of Queensland knowing how to spell 'beer'.

That's what I learned today, and to mark this occasion, I might just crack a Mango in tribute.