Revolutionary Beers

Anyone have any knowledge of beers/ingredients that date from the Revolutionary War Era - from a homebrew/recipe perspective? I've been observing the Color Guard of a Mass chapter of the SAR (sons of the american revolution) with the ol' man for a few years now and would like to mess around with some period-specific homebrews - maybe bring some to sample at historical/holidya events.

Surprisingly, I haven't met any reenactors who do much homebrewing. I feel like there should be some good info out there (or out HERE, for god's sake, i'm sure there was a whole lotta' brewin' here in boston back then!) but I've had a hard time tracking it down. Ayy books? pamphlets? recipes?

I suppose I have to mention (and reference another post in a different forum) that the Sam Adams historical 4-pack was a complete and total dissapointment for me. Every beer missed the mark - I couldn't even drink the Honey/Ginger whatever. Sad!

www.beertown.org/pra/index.html is a reconstruction of a tavern ale that was designed for Ben. Franklin's 300th. Great stuff!

I've never tried this one. Note how they call 11% ABV a small beer!

George Washington's Beer Recipe

(Note: Following this recipe exactly will result in a beer with an alcohol content of about 11 percent -- making it at least twice as potent as most of today's commercially brewed domestic beers.)

To Make Small Beer:

Take a large siffer full of bran hops to your taste-boil these 3 hours. Then strain our 30 gall[o]n into a cooler put in 3 gall[o]n molasses while the beer is scalding hot or rather draw the molasses into the cooler. Strain the beer on it while boiling hot, let this stand till it is little more than blood warm. Then put in a quart of ye[a]st if the weather is very cold cover it over with a blank[et] let it work in the cask-Leave the bung open till it is almost done working-Bottle it that day week it was brewed."

Ales of that time used molasses, because it was cheap. I can tell you, it will take over a recipe very quickly.

Years ago Anchor produced a Spruce Beer for the GABF. It got mixed reviews but I loved it. It used Blue Spruce sprigs in place of hops and had a very unusual character. Part of their pitch was Colonial Troops received a portion of their pay in just such a brew. If you are intersted I can recreate a recipe I brewed a few times.

Brewpastor said:

Years ago Anchor produced a Spruce Beer for the GABF. It got mixed reviews but I loved it. It used Blue Spruce sprigs in place of hops and had a very unusual character. Part of their pitch was Colonial Troops received a portion of their pay in just such a brew. If you are intersted I can recreate a recipe I brewed a few times.

Click to expand...

i hate to cause someone else to dig through the notes (this can be a weekend-eating task if you organizational skills are as hapharard as mine!) but i am definitely interested!

...Also very interesting about the Washington brew. I might tinker with a scaled-down version! Thanks!

This probably more than you would want, but this issue(Nov) of BYO has an article by a guy who brewed a 1776 Porter using traditional methods. He roasted his own grains using a wood fire etc. Didn't use any any modern equipment at all, not even a thermometer. BYO.com is supposed to have the recipe for it but they don't have that issue online yet.

Here is an extract recipe I just wrote up. For all grain use something like 10# of 2-row with the specialty grains.

spruce beer

Recipe Specifics
----------------
Batch Size (Gal): 5.00 Wort Size (Gal): 5.00
Total Grain (Lbs): 6.25
Anticipated OG: 1.05219 Plato: 12.904
Anticipated SRM: 17.6
Anticipated IBU: 31.1
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75 %
Wort Boil Time: 60 Minutes
Pre-Boil Amounts
----------------
Evaporation Rate: 5.00 Percent Per Hour
Pre-Boil Wort Size: 5.26 Gal
Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.04958 SG 12.28 Plato

Grain/Extract/Sugar
% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
80.0 5.00 lbs. Briess DME- Gold America 1.04600 8
16.0 1.00 lbs. Crystal 55L Great Britian 1.03400 55
4.0 0.25 lbs. Chocolate Malt America 1.02900 350
Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.

Hops
Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.50 oz. Columbus Pellet 15.00 31.1 60 min.

Extras
Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.00 Oz Spruce Tips Other 60 Min.(boil)
1.00 Oz Spruce Tips Other 10 Min.(boil)

Yeast
-----
WYeast 1056 Amercan Ale/Chico

Yards brewing out of Philly has a couple beers they've conceived in cooperation with the old city tavern here in Philly. I picked up a case of Thomas Jefferson Tavern Ale last week and absolutely love it. Their website says that there are a few other brews in this series in circulation, including, I think, a George Washington Porter and a Ben Frankiln Spruce. I plan to get some to try at first opportunity.

Wether or not they're sharing recipes is another matter alltogether.