There Stands Jackson Like a Cold Pint

As I always say there are few things better than either a good craft beer and an interesting read about history. One of the few things that can possibly be better is having both combined into a single product. If you've read up on the Civil War Beer Series in Frederick that I've been keeping tabs on then the odds are that you are reading this post for the very same reason.

A poster on a Civil War message board that I sometimes frequent alerted me of other beers that are named for events and people in the conflict in a thread in which I brought up the subject of the beer series in Maryland.

According to this poster, the brewery is called Blue & Gray Brewing Co. and is based in a town famous for one of the many epic clashes of the war,  Fredericksburg, Va. In case you can't blow up the screen cap that I took, I'll let you know a few of the historical brews this place makes.

The first being Stonewall Stout which is obviously named for General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson. Temporary Insanity is named for General Dan Sickles who was the first person to use the plead of temporary insanity in a murder case. He was accused of shooting a man that he caught having an affair with his wife. That man was the son of Francis Scott Key who was coincidentally born in Frederick. The beer that follows that one is called Minor Dementia, also named for Sickles. Both are Russian Imperial Stouts.

Not all of the brews deal with the Civil War period. There's another called Washington's Cherry Wheat since George Washington's boyhood home was in Fredericksburg. The difference between these beers and the ones included as part of the series in Frederick is that all of these are available at some point each year if not year-round. The Frederick brews seem to be a one-time-only kind of thing.

I haven't visited Fredericksburg in years. Most likely before this place started brewing. Hopefully I get the chance to get my hands on some of these beers.

George Washington and Beer

Photo via Wikipedia

Of the three historical figures I've taken a look at over the last few weeks, George Washington most likely enjoyed beer the most. Porter to be exact. So, it's convenient that Yards Brewing chose to base a beer off of his personal recipe for porter. One with plenty of molasses.

It works out perfectly. Our nation has a profound enjoyment for beer as did our very first president. It's also been said that Washington made sure that soldiers in the Continental Army had beer as part of their food rations.

His personal recipe for what he called "small beer" is currently on display at the New York Public Library. Keep in mind that small beer was known as a weaker beer in older times and was constantly mocked and wasn't given much value at all.

If what Yards used in the brewing of the porter I reviewed yesterday has anything to do with the recipe that's on display in new York, then that recipe was nothing to reckon with. It's almost a perfect beer with some awesome historic value.

Ales of the Revolution: Best Case Ever?

Being a huge fan of both craft beer and history, I never thought that the two could be combined so finely. I learned I was wrong when I was told about the Ales of the Revolution by Yards Brewing out of Philadelphia.

According to the Yards brewing website, as well as on the bottles of each of the beers in the case, the three beers featured are based on recipes by Benjamin Franklin (Poor Richard's Tavern Spruce), Thomas Jefferson (Tavern Ale) and George Washington (Tavern Porter).

This case of beer caused me to have one of the bigger geek-outs in my lifetime and I can get excited about some history. All three beers are among the best I've ever had. The Tavern Spruce is sweet and syrupy, the Tavern Ale has strong hints of honey in the aftertaste and the Tavern Porter is brewed with molasses and it is truly evident.

If you could choose the personal beer recipes of any three men in American history, would you venture any farther than Yards did? I certainly would've chose both Benjamin Franklin for his multiple innovations and Thomas Jefferson since he's the greatest president we've had, in my opinion.

This case is among the greatest variety cases I've ever come across. I' not entirely sure about putting it past the Troegs Anthology No. 1, but as of right now it's pretty close.