The Revolutionary Spirits

George Washington raises a glass at Christmas dinner in Mount Vernon.

America’s Founding Fathers were fueled by a belief in liberty, democracy, and self-determination—and, as a new book points out, extraordinary amounts of rum

By Brooke Barbier

In their six-part documentary series from last year, The American Revolution, filmmakers Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein, and David Schmidt told the story of the birth of the United States. While the episodes were stirring in the usual Ken Burns way, there was a glaring omission during the 12 hours of film.

Where was all the booze?

Eighteenth-century Americans drank an astounding amount of alcohol compared with us today. They imbibed beer, cider, wine, brandy, rum, and whiskey. Alcohol permeated colonists’ lives regardless of their place in the social order. Women and men tippled, as did both Black and white colonists. They crafted multi-step cocktails and employed barware and ingredients that would rival any swanky cocktail lounge today. READ ON