Clean water. That has always been the goal of populations throughout history. Where do you find it? How do you keep it flowing. How do you keep it clean? 

Growing groups of humanity had to figure out how to keep clean sources of water away from pollutants. Lots of diseases in that river water. That has always been the problem. Questionable quality in water everywhere in American towns and cities from the Pilgrims up through the start of the 20th Century lead everyone, right down to the youngest children, to live on a steady stream of wine and beer. Everyday life without beer was out of the question, and brew houses were quickly built to quench the thirst of a growing nation.

A decade to the mid 18th century one of America’s most notable founders and icons, Benjamin Franklin, was in the height of his influential career. Remembered for his role in drafting our founding documents amongst countless other achievements, Franklin was also renowned for his enjoyment the finest tavern ales.

Ye Olde Colonial Ales

America’s brewing forefathers were largely influenced by available local ingredients, prices for those commodities, and by the particular palates of those imbibing the various ales.

During Franklin’s era variable amounts of malt and hops were grown domestically, though the yield and quality of harvests were unreliable at best. Agronomy had not yet become the science it is today. Because of this, large quantities of malt and hops were imported from Europe. That made any number of ingredients very expensive. Brewers began to consider options beyond the traditional beer recipes of Europe they had been following. 

Local substitutes were experimented with and then utilized to provide fermentable sugars to supplement the low quality American malt and the expensive imported grains. Molasses, a very popular sweetener in colonial times, and yes, good old fashioned corn were both common sources of sugar in beer brewing. Additional local ingredients pressed into service: pumpkin, spruce and imported spices. The result was more complex, flavorful beers.

But What Did Ben Drink?

Oh yes, back to Ben…

Based on a brief research of the brewing and agricultural directions of the 18th century, a craft brewer from Colorado, Tony Simmons of Pagosa Brewing Co. developed a recipe deemed the most likely to be the choice ale of Franklin. Apparently it won favor by a panel of experts at the Great American Beer Festival.

Franklin, in his notes, enjoyed “strong, harvest-time ale,” but not so heady that he couldn’t carry on a stream of intellectual conversations after a few mugs. Furthermore, popular beer stylings of that time, such as porter and lager, were skipped over because they were fairly rare in the colonies at this point. So, Simmons deduced Franklin’s style of choice to be similar to a medium-strength old ale of today. However, like the late night commercials crow: But wait, There’s More! 

According to experts in brewing history, an old ale is typically balanced towards malty-sweet, but depending on origin, it can offer distinctive hop characteristics. In Franklin’s time, this was likely not the case. “I believe due to high cost of imported hops and the documented hop shortages in Colonial America, the hopping rates would have been appreciably less than that of old ale and more comparable to a strong Scotch ale,” said Simmons.

Big Ben’s Bold Ale Recipe

Tony Simmons’ original colonial recipe called Poor Richard’s Ale, was brewed by 100 breweries across 35 states to celebrate Franklin’s 300th birthday on January 17, 2006. Poor Richard’s Ale was also the 2006 Big Brew recipe, with more than 3,000 homebrewers participating in making a batch of the colonial ale.

The last time Old Ben was celebrated in beer occurred in 2013. The American Homebrewers Association whipped the recipe to serve at their annual shindig in Franklin’s old stomping ground of Philadelphia. 

 They say they all enjoyed it but it had a prominent molasses characteristic with a taste of burnt marshmallow.

So, as Ben Franklin probably did in his time, trust the trusted names, check out the goods in small quantity before committing to major portions. And drink responsibly…Ben surely did. 

The American Bars website will offer a wide range of searches for such esoteric brews. Keep visiting often to learn much more!