Poor Richard's Ale
Rock Art Brewery

22oz bottle purchased as a single from Middlebury Discount Beverage, Middlebury, VT. Note that I think this is only an "old ale" in that the recipe's old, certainly doesn't seem to be very high abv like most old ales.

Poured into an imperial pint glass, formed a 1/2" beige head over the dark amber brew. Head holds on well, with ample sticky lacing. Aroma is minimal, lightly sweet. Taste is corn sweet, with hops bitterness in the middle, and closes with an earthy dryness. Not bad. Mouthfeel and drinkability are pretty good as far as histocial recipes go. Wouldn't mind seeing this one in my fridge again.

I bought this in Cabot's in Waterbury VT. I wanted to try this brewer and this beer since I heard about it. This pours a dark reddish brown with a small wispy head. The smell is very earthy, mollasses, grain, and a smokey aroma. The aroma is very good. The taste is a crisp fresh carbonated "old school" beer. The mollasses and malt bring the sweetness, it's almost like a Scotch Ale or Brown Ale. I really like the smokey flavor, it's hickory tasting I believe. The m/f is medium and well balanced, a real nice flavored beer. How can you not like a beer inspired by Ben Franklin? Good job Rock Art.

Corn in beer?? At least they have a worthy reason.

Pours a nice brownish color with a big tan headskie. The adjuncts are in the flavor, but are well balanced by a nice hopping. This beer is very smooth despite some harsh grainy undertones. A very recipe meant to bring us back. This brew seems to be closer to an old ale than a scottish ale, but either way it is straight up american. Cheers to Ben Franklin.

Now here's a very interesting brew from Rock Art. In celebration of Benjamin Franklin's 300th Birthday on Jan. 17th, 2006, a couple of brewers with ancestrial links to Franklin have decided to honor him with this fine brew. Rock Art is just one of the many (I hope) breweries that have decided to make this beer. More info about it can be found at www.poorrichardsale.com. Anyway- getting to my review now

Pours a perfect amber color with a moderate head made up of medium to large bubbles.

Smells of corn, molasses, and grains.

Tastes mostly of a grainy cornbread combined with some nutty flavors. In the background lies molasses, and smoked hickory.

This is a quite smooth beer that ends on a bit of a bitter note. This was a very enjoyable beer for me as I love beers that not only make an attempt at a style but at a specific time frame.