George Washington kept a notebook during the Seven Years' War – and what's inside it will stop you cold.
That notebook is sitting in the New York Public Library right now.
And with America's 250th birthday 29 days away, someone finally did what needed to be done.
The Recipe Washington Wrote at 25 Years Old
Washington was a 25-year-old colonel commanding the Virginia militia at Fort Loudon, Virginia, in 1757 when he scribbled it down.
The notebook – mostly in his own handwriting – contains daily military notes, outlines for letters, officers' commissions, and the names of his wagon horses.
And then, right there in the middle of it: a recipe for "small beer."
That's not a typo.
The man who would become the first President of the United States was also keeping his troops hydrated with homemade beer.
Small beer wasn't what you'd crack open at a tailgate today.
It was low-alcohol, quick to brew, and most importantly – safe to drink.
Water in 18th-century military camps was contaminated and could kill you with dysentery.
Washington's small beer could be ready in 24 hours and kept his soldiers alive.
The fermentable sugar was molasses – what they had rationed at camp, what they could move with an army.
Boil bran and hops for three hours, strain into a cooler, pour in the molasses while it's scalding hot, add a quart of yeast when it cools to blood-warm, cover with a blanket if the weather's cold, leave the bung open until it stops fermenting.
Bottle it that same week.
That's what the first Commander-in-Chief was brewing for the men under his command.
New York Brewery Brought It Back – and America Noticed
The New York Public Library reached out to TALEA Beer Co., a woman-owned New York City brewery, to recreate the recipe ahead of America250.
TALEA co-founder and co-CEO LeAnn Darland – a Navy veteran herself – didn't hesitate.
"The initial response to [the library] reaching out was obviously awe," Darland told Fox News Digital.
The challenge wasn't the recipe – it was the ingredients.
Molasses in 2026 is far more processed than what Washington's troops had.
"Trying to get back to the truest form of what they had in the 1700s was the challenge," Darland said.
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TALEA tested multiple sugars that would have been available in the 1750s before landing on a baking molasses base – the closest modern equivalent to what Washington was working with.
The result was exactly what you'd expect: a fuller-bodied brew, heavier on molasses than anything on the market today.
It looked like muddy water.
Washington's soldiers drank it gratefully.
Darland said they assumed the historically accurate version "wouldn't be very enjoyable for today's drinker," so TALEA also crafted a Liberty Lager – an amber ale with more hops to balance the sweetness, clear and refined, built for the modern palate.
The response blindsided them.
"We are kind of blown away at the response and the demand for both beers right now," Darland said.
They're brewing more Liberty Lager as fast as they can.
Washington Understood Something About America That Washington, D.C. Has Forgotten
This isn't just a fun history story.
George Washington – the man who commanded an army, won independence from the greatest military power on earth, and refused a crown when he could have had one – understood that you take care of the people under your command.
That means feeding them.
That means keeping them alive.
That means brewing beer from molasses in a wartime notebook so your soldiers have something safe to drink.
He was also, for what it's worth, the only Founding Father to operate a commercial distillery – the largest in the United States at the time, producing 11,000 gallons of rye whiskey a year at Mount Vernon.
The man who built this country didn't theorize about it from a committee room.
He brewed the beer, ran the distillery, crossed the Delaware, and when they offered him the crown – he handed it back.
Your leaders in Washington, D.C. right now can't manage a budget or secure a border.
Washington managed an army on molasses and bran hops at age 25.
The NYPL will be offering samples of his small beer at America250 events throughout the summer.
Liberty Lager is available now at TALEA's taprooms.
On July 4, 2026 – 250 years after 56 men signed a piece of parchment and started the greatest political experiment in human history – you can raise a glass brewed from the first Commander-in-Chief's own wartime recipe.
That man earned the celebration.
Make sure you show up for it.
Sources:
- Teresa Mull, "George Washington's 1757 beer recipe brought back to life ahead of America's 250th birthday," Fox News, June 4, 2026.
- "A Chance to Taste History! NYPL Teams Up with TALEA Beer Co. to Bring George Washington's Beer Recipe to Life," New York Public Library, June 1, 2026.
- "Recipe for Small Beer," George Washington's Mount Vernon, mountvernon.org.
- "George Washington's Distillery," George Washington's Mount Vernon, mountvernon.org.
- "George Washington Recorded a Recipe for Beer While Leading a Militia," Smithsonian Magazine, June 2026.
