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George Washington's beer recipe
London Telegraph ^ | 05 May 2011 | Jon Swaine

Posted on 05/06/2011 7:55:23 AM PDT by Pharmboy

Before devoting his time to defeating the British in the Revolutionary War and being the first president of the United States, George Washington enjoyed brewing his own beer.

A handwritten recipe for "small beer" created by Washington in 1757, while serving in the Virginia militia, has been published by the New York Public Library. The recipe, which was found in Washington's "Notebook as a Virginia Colonel", lists the ingredients as bran hops, yeast and molasses –...

"Take a large Sifter full of Bran Hops to your Taste," Washington instructed. "Boil these 3 hours then strain out 30 Gall into a cooler [and] put in 3 Gall Molasses while the Beer is Scalding hot." "Let this stand till it is little more than Blood warm then put in a quart of Yeast if the Weather is very Cold [then] cover it over with a Blanket & let it Work in the Cooler 24 hours then put it into the Cask".

A 15-gallon batch of Washington's beer is to be made to mark the library's centenary by the Coney Island Brewing Company, under the name "Fortitude's Founding Father Brew".

(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Food; History
KEYWORDS: beer; brew; brewer; generalwashington; godsgravesglyphs; oenology; washington; zymurgy
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Since the photo of the recipe is an AP deal, I could not post it. Please click to go to source to see it.
1 posted on 05/06/2011 7:55:26 AM PDT by Pharmboy
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To: Pharmboy

George Washington was also one of the United States’s biggest whiskey distillers while he was alive. My kind of man.


2 posted on 05/06/2011 7:58:15 AM PDT by No Truce With Kings (Ten years on FreeRepublic and counting.)
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To: No Truce With Kings

I think the idea of making your own beer is very cool. Have you seen the price of beer lately? I wonder if it is really difficult to make?!


3 posted on 05/06/2011 8:00:46 AM PDT by momtothree
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To: Pharmboy

I think they ought to make enough to distribute around the country...I’d definitely tip a pint of George Washington’s Ale.


4 posted on 05/06/2011 8:00:52 AM PDT by Scott from the Left Coast
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To: Pharmboy

Bump.


5 posted on 05/06/2011 8:01:32 AM PDT by allmost
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To: indcons; Chani; thefactor; blam; aculeus; ELS; Doctor Raoul; mainepatsfan; timpad; ...
While this is certainly not Earth-shattering news for the RevWar list, I posted it for two reasons: 1) it's the start of the weekend and beer is always appropriate then and 2) it's about the General's party side.

I've had this one, and if you like porters, it's a good one.

Ye Olde RevWar/Colonial History/George Washington ping list

6 posted on 05/06/2011 8:02:39 AM PDT by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
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To: Pharmboy

What the he** is a Gall? Is that short for gallon?


7 posted on 05/06/2011 8:02:39 AM PDT by calex59
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To: momtothree
I think the idea of making your own beer is very cool. Have you seen the price of beer lately? I wonder if it is really difficult to make?!

Pretty soon, beer will become more expensive than gasoline. I need a recipe for brewing my own fuel. :)

8 posted on 05/06/2011 8:04:23 AM PDT by He Rides A White Horse ((unite))
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To: calex59

Yes...in another article about this, I believe they said it was short for a gallon.


9 posted on 05/06/2011 8:05:14 AM PDT by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
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To: No Truce With Kings

He was also an entrepreneur. I understand he lost a big chunk of change on an aborted Canal-building scheme on the Potomac into W.VA and the Ohio River. Eventually the project got done later as the C&O Canal

I can imagine why our Founding Fathers emphasized freedom of a person and his property.

Now our governing philosophy is organizing special interest groups to suck off the Government tit.


10 posted on 05/06/2011 8:05:39 AM PDT by PGR88 (I'm so open-minded my brains fell out)
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To: He Rides A White Horse
Pretty soon, beer will become more expensive than gasoline. I need a recipe for brewing my own fuel. :)

They are all over the internet. They have kits you can buy to save from having to buy separate ingredients. From what I've heard, you can brew some good beer with the kits.

11 posted on 05/06/2011 8:06:45 AM PDT by calex59
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To: calex59
Given the proportions for the final batch, I think they meant 'gill' rather than 'gall'.

A gill is a quarter of a pint or a half cup.

Note that this is a recipe for small beer. I am sure that additional water was added later.

The chef is here. Good eats for everyone.

'La bonne cuisine est la base du véritable bonheur.' - Auguste Escoffier
(Good food is the foundation of genuine happiness.)

LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)

12 posted on 05/06/2011 8:10:57 AM PDT by LonePalm (Commander and Chef)
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To: calex59

I’m sure it takes some skill, one that will give better results over time. I tend to lean towards places that brew their own beer when I want a beer, which isn’t too often.


13 posted on 05/06/2011 8:13:48 AM PDT by He Rides A White Horse ((unite))
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To: No Truce With Kings

In the “History of Beer” documentary, the American Revolution started in beer taverns in the colonial states, as they were the only meeting places were people could talk. Beer was even THE staple of “health drink” given to the Colonial army so in essence, beer is as American as apple pie.

Crap. I just woke up on the left coast and I want beer over coffee. Sheesh


14 posted on 05/06/2011 8:18:42 AM PDT by max americana (FUBO)
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To: momtothree

my 24 y/o son started brewing his own beer recently. It is easy, but takes a while.


15 posted on 05/06/2011 8:27:38 AM PDT by VRWCmember
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To: momtothree

My hubby brews his own. It’s not very difficult, just messy and smelly depending on what type one is brewing. It also helps to have an extra sink dedicated for the carbouy (5 gal glass bottle) to sit in while the brew ‘works’.


16 posted on 05/06/2011 8:28:22 AM PDT by Vor Lady
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To: momtothree

From my understanding, beer is easy to make. I don’t know about good beer.


17 posted on 05/06/2011 8:30:03 AM PDT by dangerdoc (see post #6)
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To: VRWCmember

If I may be so bold to ask... does it taste good? I know a neighbor of ours brews his own but he isn’t really picky about beer. I know that micro-breweries have become popular simply because the beer doesn’t taste commercial/anything you can buy at a local 7-11.


18 posted on 05/06/2011 8:36:06 AM PDT by momtothree
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To: Vor Lady

Have you tried it? Is it good? (I want YOUR opinion since some “cooks” tend to believe they are top chefs!! LOL)


19 posted on 05/06/2011 8:38:41 AM PDT by momtothree
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To: momtothree
I've been breewing beer for the past two years and while cost to some is an issue, there are better reasons.

If you start brewing, you'll need to invest some money up front. Here's a quick list.....starter kit, includes brew kettle, carboy for fermentation, siphon, tubes, hydrometer, some basic chemicals and bottle caps.....all that will run about $200. this is for the extract kits, where you don't have to have two separate large containers for grain mashing. So a kit will cost $25 - $30, yeast another $6 and you can brew two cases of delicious beer for $35 all-in.

It tastes way better than Miller, Bud or Coors....you get tasty ales, IPAs and porters. You get the pure enjoyment of making your own beer and either sharing it with others or simply slamming it home in your man cave.

Oh yes, brewing your own is waaaay better than buying beer and it's waaaay more than simply the price.

20 posted on 05/06/2011 8:41:32 AM PDT by irish guard
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