01:00 AM EDT on Wednesday, June 28, 2006

BY GAIL CIAMPA
Journal Food Editor

With four brews, Samuel Adams is paying tribute to our founding fathers who were also brewers, with The Samuel Adams Brewer Patriot Collection.

The collection includes Traditional Ginger Honey Ale, James Madison Dark Wheat Ale, George Washington Porter and 1790 Root Beer Brew. The four pack of 12 ounce bottles sells for $9.99.

Thomas Jefferson and his wife brewed 15 gallons of ginger beer with fresh lemons and honey every two weeks for daily consumption, according to the brewer. The new beer is brewed with authentic ingredients from the colonial era, such as fresh ginger puree, lemon peel and wildflower honey. Pale golden in color, the brew has a subtle maltiness with a floral, sweet honey finish. The sweetness of the Traditional Ginger Honey Ale is the perfect partner for sweet and spicy foods alike. Pairings include glazed honey ham, Chinese spareribs or baklava.

James Madison Dark Wheat Ale pays tribute to Madison, who found brewing so important that he considered a proposal for a national brewery in Washington, D.C. The dark, cloudy brew features malted barley, hand-smoked by Samuel Adams brewers, to replicate the brewing style of Madison on his Virginia estate. To ensure authenticity, the brewers hand-smoked the malt with red and white oak from a forest in Orange County, Virginia, on land once owned by James Madison. This brew pairs with grilled chicken, salmon, swordfish or bread pudding.

George Washington Porter celebrates his favorite type of beer. He adopted and encouraged a policy of buying only American-brewed beer, rather than imported British beer. Brewed with licorice, a proprietary hand-smoked malt and East Kent Goldings hops, the porter has a black walnut color and toasted malt taste, with notes of molasses, toffee, cocoa and dates. Cajun spices of blackened fish are complements to the burnt but sweet notes of this brew.

The 1790 Root Beer Brew honors The Boston Beer Company's namesake, Samuel Adams. It's a hard root beer, the type of brew Samuel Adams would have brewed.

It has ingredients including blackstrap molasses, sassafras root bark, dried wintergreen and licorice. Pair it with fried chicken or clams, pizza or as an ingredient in a creamy root beer float with vanilla ice cream.