The Drinking Habits of Our Founding Fathers

As we all know, beer was safer to drink during colonial times than water was.  And it was a major dietary staple from the cradle to the grave.  Infants were fed it, and it was recommended to breast feeding mothers.  In the formative colonial years, beer was brewed at home and most households built a brewroom on the side of their house.  Hops grew wild in the forests around the towns, which was a huge plus for these homebrewers.  As currency was established in the colonies and trade was possible with England, taverns began to pop up.  Taverns were not just a place to get a drink, but to socialize and hold meetings.  The tavern actually became one of the most important meeting places a town could have.  And, many of the constitutional ideas were formed in taverns. (As we know, Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence.  But did you know that he wrote it while drinking Madeira at his usual table in the Indian Queen Tavern in Philadelphia?)

But how do we really know that the founding fathers as a group drank a lot?  Well, believe it or not, there are records of their shenanigans.  In 1787, two days before they signed the Constitution, the 55 delegates to the convention went to a local tavern. According to the bill, they drank 54 bottles of Madeira, 60 bottles of claret, 8 whiskeys, 22 porters, eight hard ciders, 12 bottles of beer and 7 bowls of alcoholic punch.  They did have a reason to celebrate!!  And keep in mind, that may seem like a lot, but the average American at the time drank many more the times as Americans of today do. Getting drunk, but not losing control, was much more acceptable than it is today.

So there you have it!  As we celebrate our nation, don't forget to drink a beer ...  it's a tradition!

(Handbrewed Soaps is NOT endorsing getting drunk, just to celebrate... responsibly!)

References:

http://www.northamericanbrewers.org/brewingcolonial.html
http://www.drunkard.com/issues/56/56-founding-drunkards.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stanton-peele/alcohol-addiction-were-th_b_610598.html

History: Black and Tan

What is a Black and Tan?  I know they serve it at Fenton's...  an amazing ice cream dish...  but what is it really in the beer world?  Traditionally, it a drink made from a blend of pale ale and a dark beer such as a stout.   But the term, Black and Tan, is not commonly used in Ireland, as the term is associated with the Royal Irish Constabulary Reserve Force, nicknamed the Black and Tans. The term "Half and Half" is therefore used for this drink.

To prepare a "Half and Half," a glass is filled halfway with pale ale where the stout is then added.  To honor the tradition of the "Half and Half," I have prepared a soap that combines home-brewed chocolate stout and an ale. The result is a uniquely colored bar of soap that is unscented, yet the esters of the beer remain including malts and chocolate.  It has a deep lather, and is moisturizing.

History: Wheat Beers

My Husband brews the beer...   and I make soap with it.  He brews at his leisure and impulse.  If he's craving an ale, that's what he'll make... if a Hefeweizen sounds refreshing, you get the picture.  My palate has grown as I'm introduced to new flavors, yeasts, hops and grains... And just when I think I "know" my beer families, another term is thrown at me.  For example: Would you like a white beer.... what the hell?

So after some very long winded research.. I would love to thank Beeradvocates for this simple history, for someone who is learning about beer !

During the middles ages, Germanic tribes brewed, using the resources they had including wheat and barley.  These grains where lighter than the traditional beers brewed at that time.  These light beers where termed "white beer" aka weisse.   Today their are four main styles of white beer:   German Weissbier, Berliner Weisse, Beligan Witbier, and American Wheat.