The spirit’s most prominent use is in the Jack Rose-a cocktail made from applejack, lemon or lime juice and grenadine-but it also enjoyed renown in drinks such as the Manhattan-like Marconi Wireless, the almond-scented Supreme (see recipe, right) and the maple-accented Applejack Rabbit. In 1780 the Lairds established the country’s first commercial brandy distillery, and in the years that followed taverns and inns did a brisk business in applejack, serving it straight or in warmers such as scotchem-a mixture of applejack and boiling water, flavored with a dollop of mustard.įuture generations of bartenders found more palatable uses for applejack. George Washington is recorded as having requested an applejack recipe from the Laird family in 1760, and during the Revolutionary War, troops under Washington’s command drank it while campaigning in New Jersey.
“Jersey Lightning”-as it was also called-was immensely popular in the mid-Atlantic region. Small farm stillhouses soon sprang up, and by the 1830s nearly 400 distilleries were producing New Jersey’s homegrown spirit. In 1698, a Scottish distiller named William Laird settled in New Jersey and began to produce a more refined applejack, a pure apple brandy aged in oak, with the flavor of a rich, fruity whiskey. This rough liquor was also high in impurities-some referred to it as “essence of lockjaw”-and promised a skull-splitting headache for the foolhardy drinker. This residue was highly alcoholic, and about as nuanced in effect as a collision with a stone wall (perhaps not coincidentally, a popular drink was the Stone Fence, made of hard cider spiked with a harder spirit).
Innovative drinkers learned that cider’s strength could be boosted by leaving it outside on a frosty night, then separating the remaining liquid from the ice the next morning. Most apples were used to make hard cider, but many drinkers wanted something with a little more oomph the result was a spirit called applejack. Slaking that thirst could be challenging: Early vineyards failed, as did the first plantings of hops and barley, and wines and brandies from Europe were prohibitively expensive for the average colonist.Īpple cultivation started in America as early as 1630, and a well-tended orchard was a necessity for a successful homestead. Your applejack will be closer to 80 proof-40% alcohol-when this happens.Colonial America was a very thirsty place. After two or three times through the distillation process, you’ll notice that the contents don’t freeze at all. If you truly want to separate the water out as much as possible, then pour the contents of the jars back into the jugs once you’ve dumped out the melted water and freeze them again.The process can take an hour and a half or two hours, so be patient.You will visibly see the frozen portion losing its caramel color as the alcohol drains and leaves behind the ice.X Research source You will fill several jars as the content continues to melt and release more alcohol. Since water freezes at a much lower temperature than alcohol, the liquid that drips into the jars will be concentrated applejack as it separates from the still frozen water above.
After you have frozen the containers solid, open them, tip them upside down and let them drip into mason jars.
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