Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-09-05
REAL JERSEY APPlEJACk.
Interesting Particulars Regarding Jer-
sey Lightning.

L
| Although Apple Brandy is produced
in several states, the real, pure Jersey
| Lightning" comes only from Mon
mouth county, New Jersey, where the
same old stills have been continued
from father to son for generations.
Whether the technical secrets thus dis
covered and handed down or the care
exercised in selecting the apples and
handling the cider through the various
processes is the cause of it, is hard to
prove, but certain it is, that nowhere
| has the fine excellence of this old-time
apple reached such perfection. Urban
beverage epicures would pay ridicu-
lous prices Gf they knew for the nee
tar that is still common in this favored
| county among the well-to-do rural
population. Time was, when the farm
ers had not yet suffered from southern
and western competition, and prior to
the revenue tax, when it was the Gus
| tom in the hot days OF the harvest,
| to send the men in the fields a water
pail filled with applejack, a tin cup
| floating on top; value nowadays about
! SO a pailful. And every farmer who
was anybody would have five to ten
barrels in his cellar maturing, these
being the product of his own apples,
distilled for him at the nearest still
house. Yet many old fellows affirm
that Gin them days" there was little
| or no drunkenness-sure not so much
as now, anyhow.
While it's consumption out of the
state seems to have increased much,
it's quality certainly has not been de-
| based, as anyone can testify who
drinks the old Monmouth liquor in
company with the usually poor substi-
tute served by so many otherwise
| first-class cafes in this city. The
Monmouth man drinks it straight, and
uses it in place of rye in mixtures
such as cocktails, julips, highrballs,
ETC. He particularly delights in the
Sunset, or Jersey Sunset, which is
applejacF on Clipped ice and water,
| in long glass, with swish of lemon
peel and dash of Angostura on top,
| the latter being allowed to float on
| top for it's sunset hue. The apple
jack mint julip is without doubt
delicious concoction. In drinking it
the use of straw is considered profana-
| ton. The spearmint, fresh from the
garden, is stuck in literally so that
ones nose is buried in it by the act
of drinking There it is that as the
nectar gurgles in the throat, giving re-
freshment and content, one hears the
ripping brooklet the singing of the
forest birds, smells the wild flowers
and apple blossoms, and wishes for
nothing but another.
An old "residenter" one who knows
more about applejack than hen
about chickens, says that the old Mon
mouth distillers make only cider tor
applet brandy, which equi-values the
wine made from the first pressin" OF
the grapes. The distilled cider is not
only the best brandy, but the dearest
to make Pomace is the crushed ap-
pies without the juice expressed
| therefrom; cider is the expressed
juice; cheese is the residue of the fruit
after the juice has been expressed.
Now pomace and cheese with water
added are used by some distilers to
make cheaper applejack, just as
winters keep adding water to grape
skins and pressing out more wine"
But the Monmouth applejack is always
cider brandy, to which fact it's high
reputation among connoisseurs is no
doubt due.
If one Of our mixed-drinks sharps
would invent a drink with good Mon-
mouth applejack for it's basis, or in
troduce one CT those here mentioned,
it would stand to increase his reputa-
ton and receipts-Liquor Trades Re
view.