Apple Jack of America
Applejack, an American type of apple brandy was widely produced during the colonial period of American history.
It was made by placing hard cider in wooden barrels and exposing them to freezing temperatures during winter.
The water in the hard cider froze in the top of the barrel and was removed, leaving a stronger fermentation concentrate in the barrel, along with other residues.
In the middles colonies and the upper southern colonies, where temperatures were not cold enough to use the freezing method, applejack was made by distilling hard cider.
It competed with peach and other brandies.
Applejack had a reputation for its strong kick, which was illustrated by its many colloquial names, such as “cider oil,” “essence of lockjaw,” and because New Jersey produced large quantities of its, “Jersey Lightening.”
George Washington enjoyed apple brandy, and Abraham Lincoln served it in his tavern in Springfield, Illinois. The consumption of applejack decline during the nineteenth century and almost disappeared during the twentieth century.
The major reason for the decline was that the freezing method retained unpleasant apple residue and oils.
The alcoholic content of applejack has varied greatly through the years, depending on the method used to make it. By the early twenty first century all commercial applejack was made through distillation, which produces a product that is about 70 proof.
It is usually aged for two years before consumption; other apple brandies are aged for a much longer period. For instance, French calvados is frequently aged about twenty years.
The major commercial producer of applejack, Laird and Company of Scobeyville, New Jersey, which began making the brandy in 1780, uses the distillation method.
The company can trace its origin back to 1698 when William Laird moved to Monmouth county, New Jersey from Scotland and began making Scotch by using one of the most abundant resources in the area apples.
He made this brandy for his own family, friends and neighbors. During the Revolutionary War, Robert Laird served under George Washington and during the Battle of Monmouth the Laird family would supply the troops with Applejack.
Washington enjoyed applejack and personally requested the recipe to produce his own. To this day, Washington is the only non-Laird family member to know the secret Laird’s Applejack recipe.
Apple Jack of America