George Washington's Favorite Beer: A Historical Perspective

George Washington, America's first president, was known to be fond of alcohol, including beer. In fact, he was both a drinker and a maker of drinks. He was particularly fond of dark beers, and his favourite brewer was Robert Hare Jr. of Philadelphia, who supplied him with porter. Washington also had a recipe for small beer, a low-alcohol beer, which was found in a notebook he carried as colonel of the Virginia militia.

George Washington's favourite beer was porter, particularly from Philadelphia

George Washington, the first President of the United States, was a lover of beer, and his favourite was porter, particularly from Philadelphia. In fact, he was so fond of the drink that he would have a silver pint cup or mug of beer placed by his plate during dinner.

Washington's preference for dark beers led him to the Porters produced by a brewer in Philadelphia named Robert Hare. In a letter, Washington's secretary requested:

> Will you be so good as to desire Mr Hare to continue to make the best Porter in Philadelphia 3 gross of his best put for Mount Vernon as the President means to visit that place in the recess of Congress and it is probably there will be a large demand for Porter at that time."

However, Hare's brewery burned down in 1790, much to Washington's dismay. In a letter to his secretary, Tobias Lear, Washington wrote:

> "I am really sorry—on public as well as private accts, to hear of Mr Hare's loss."

Washington's love for porter was such that he began to hoard it for his personal use, telling Lear:

> "You would do well to lay in a pretty good stock of his, or some other Porter."

Washington's fondness for beer was not limited to just drinking it. He also supplied it to his guests and even provided it to voters during his political campaigns. He also brewed his own beer, with a recipe for "small beer" (a weak beer consumed by children, servants and enslaved people) being found in a notebook he carried as colonel of the Virginia militia during the French and Indian War.

Washington also purchased beer from English brewers, including a "Hogshead [of] fine old Porter" from London brewer Benjamin Kenton in 1760, and four casks of "Dorsett Beer" (492 bottles) from London brewer Thomas Dale in 1762.

He also liked to add molasses to his beer

George Washington, the first President of the United States, was a lover of beer. Beer was a favourite drink of his, as it was for many people living in eighteenth-century America. In fact, beer was one of the most common beverages drunk in colonial America.

Washington not only drank beer himself and served it to his guests, but it was also one of the items provided for voters when he was a candidate for political office. He also supplied beer to soldiers and officers during the Revolutionary War.

Washington's fondness for beer extended to his time as a brewer. He was a homebrewer and kept a recipe for "small beer" in a notebook from 1757. This was a low-alcohol beer, which was consumed by servants, enslaved people, and children. The recipe included a quart of molasses, which was added while the beer was scalding hot.

Washington also often added molasses to his porter. In a letter from Washington's secretary, he requested that a brewer in Philadelphia continue to make their best porter for Washington, as he meant to visit and anticipated a large demand for the drink.

Washington's love for beer extended beyond just drinking it, as he also collected various beer glasses, mugs, and drinking vessels. He ordered these from England and frequently requested resupplies, possibly to build a collection of beer paraphernalia.

He had a recipe for small beer, a weak beer for servants and children

George Washington was a lover of beer. In fact, he was known to drink a pint of beer with his dinner, and he also served it to his guests. Beer was also one of the items provided for voters when he was a candidate for political office.

Washington's fondness for beer extended to his servants and enslaved people, who were customarily provided with a bottle of beer a day. He also had a recipe for small beer, a weak beer that was consumed by children, servants, and enslaved people. This recipe was found on the last page of a manuscript notebook he kept in the late 1750s, when he was a colonel in the Virginia militia during the French and Indian War. The recipe is as follows:

> Take a large Sifter full of Bran Hops to your Taste. Boil these 3 hours. Then strain out 30 Gallons into a Cooler, put in 3 Gallons Molasses while the Beer is scalding hot or rather drain 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 Yeast if the weather is very cold, cover it over with a Blanket & let it work in the Cooler 24 hours. Then put it into the Cask “” leave the Bung [hole] open till it is almost done working “” Bottle it that day Week it was Brewed.

Washington's recipe for small beer reflects the fact that beer was a common beverage for people of all ages and social classes in eighteenth-century America. It also highlights his interest in brewing, which was a skill shared by many of the Founding Fathers.

He drank beer at breakfast, as was common in the 18th century

Beer was a favourite drink of George Washington, and he often drank it at breakfast as was common in the 18th century. In fact, it was common for everyone, of all ages and social classes, to drink beer in colonial America.

Washington's love of beer started early in his life. As a colonel in the Virginia militia during the French and Indian War, a young Washington recorded a recipe for "small beer" in his notebook. This was a weak beer, with a low alcohol content, that was consumed by servants, enslaved people, and children. The recipe included bran, hops, molasses, and yeast, and was to be boiled and strained before being bottled and left to work in a cask.

Washington not only drank beer himself but also served it to his guests and provided it for voters during his political campaigns. Beer was also a staple for soldiers during the Revolutionary War, and Washington had to oversee the purchase and distribution of large quantities of beer for the Continental Army.

Washington's beer of choice was porter, a dark beer produced by a brewer in Philadelphia named Robert Hare. He also purchased beer from English brewers, such as Benjamin Kenton and Thomas Dale, but he encountered issues with the quality of their shipments. As a result, he began to favour American-made beer, writing to Lafayette in 1789:

> "We have already been too long subject to British prejudices. I use no porter or cheese in my family, but such as is made in America—both those articles may now be purchased of an excellent quality."

Washington also had beer brewed on his estate, Mount Vernon, by enslaved workers. He even had a recipe for small beer, which was likely brewed for "home use" and consumed by the Washington family, as well as the servants and enslaved people on the estate.

He bought beer from both American and English brewers

George Washington, the first President of the United States, was a lover of beer. He was also a maker of drinks, including beer. Washington's fondness for beer is well-known, and he is said to have enjoyed drinking it himself and serving it to his guests.

Washington bought beer from both American and English brewers. He is known to have purchased large quantities of beer and porter from both England and America before the Revolution. His purchases included a hogshead of beer, a cask containing 133 bottles of beer, and another order for 144 bottles of porter in 1757, 139 bottles of beer in 1758, and 144 bottles of "best porter" in 1759. These large amounts can be attributed to the fact that beer was one of the most common beverages in colonial America, and it took months for an order to arrive from Virginia to England and back, so he had to order enough to last for several months or even a year.

Washington's favourite domestic brewer in the colonial period was John Mercer of Frederick County, Virginia, who supplied him with a cask of beer for £3 9s 4d in April 1768. He also bought English beer, procuring a "Hogshead [of] fine old Porter" from London brewer Benjamin Kenton for £2 5s in March 1760, and four casks of "Dorsett Beer" (492 bottles) from London brewer Thomas Dale in April 1762.

Washington continued to buy comparable amounts of American porter after the Revolution, but his purchases of beer were more limited during this period. There are only two recorded purchases of beer after the war, one in 1792 from R. Haines & Son of Philadelphia, and another in 1793 on behalf of his nephew George Steptoe Washington and his brother. This decrease in purchases may be due to the fact that hops were grown on Washington's estate after 1785, and beer was likely being made in sizable quantities for "home use" at Mount Vernon after the Revolution.

Washington's love of beer extended beyond just drinking it. He also had a large collection of beer glasses, mugs, and other drinking vessels, many of which were ordered from England via the merchant Robert Cary. Washington frequently requested resupplies, often due to breakage or increasing usage. Some of the beer glasses he ordered included "6 fine white Enameld Ale Glasses" in March 1761, "6 Orange Bowle snake ½ pint Beer" in July 1762, "½ dozn handsome beer Glasses" in September 1765, and "6 Neat & fash [ionabl]e Cut Beer Glasses" in July 1772.

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