"...about six I went down to the bar and had a Jack Rose with George the barman."
The Sun Also Rises - Ernest Hemingway
So few cocktails call for an apple brandy and this is one not to be missed! The history of the cocktail and how it got it's name is much debated. The three strongest contenders range from simple to notorious...1) The drink is made with Applejack and it rose colored...simplicity at it's finest. 2) The Jack Rose is a double entendre on the name Jacque Rose (General Jacqueminot or General Jack or Jack Rose is the name of a hybrid perpetual rose) which according to Albert Stevens Crockett professes in the 1931 The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, "so called because of its pink color, the exact shade of a Jacqueminot rose, when properly concocted." 3) The drink is named after a bald, lying, hitman, Jack Rose. The gangster found himself embroiled in "trial of the century" which sent one man to the chair, one to the Governor's office and one to the executive editorship of the New York World. Whatever tale you choose to believe one thing is certain, if it's worthy enough for Hemingway to mention it, then it is definitely worth drinking.
Every classic cocktail book that mentions this cocktail calls for one apple brandy, Applejack*. Laird's Applejack has a long and distinguished past. Records show that George Washington wrote to the Laird family (1760) requesting their recipe for producing Applejack. Then in 1780, the first known commercial record of Applejack establishes the Laird legacy. For eighteen generations the recipe has been carefully crafted in New Jersey.
I discovered this cocktail many years ago and was first introduced to it with lemon and not lime juice. I loved the cocktail and wanted to know more about it. While sifting through my classic cocktail books I noticed that earlier versions say lime. While I had been using lemon I switched and reformulated to the original ingredients. Calvados is a totally acceptable apple brandy, but again, as a purist, I am gonna stick to the classic formula. When mixed right, this cocktail is delicious, slightly tart and deceptively smooth. Cheers and Happy New Year!
Barragan's Jack Rose Cocktail
2 oz Laird's Applejack Brandy
1/2 oz Homemade Grenadine Syrup
1/2 oz Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
Shake all ingredients well and strain into a cocktail glass. Zest a lime for garnish (the earliest texts don't mention a garnish)
Every classic cocktail book that mentions this cocktail calls for one apple brandy, Applejack*. Laird's Applejack has a long and distinguished past. Records show that George Washington wrote to the Laird family (1760) requesting their recipe for producing Applejack. Then in 1780, the first known commercial record of Applejack establishes the Laird legacy. For eighteen generations the recipe has been carefully crafted in New Jersey.
That's a legacy!
*Barflies and Cocktail does mention Calvados as a substitute
I discovered this cocktail many years ago and was first introduced to it with lemon and not lime juice. I loved the cocktail and wanted to know more about it. While sifting through my classic cocktail books I noticed that earlier versions say lime. While I had been using lemon I switched and reformulated to the original ingredients. Calvados is a totally acceptable apple brandy, but again, as a purist, I am gonna stick to the classic formula. When mixed right, this cocktail is delicious, slightly tart and deceptively smooth. Cheers and Happy New Year!
Barragan's Jack Rose Cocktail
2 oz Laird's Applejack Brandy
1/2 oz Homemade Grenadine Syrup
1/2 oz Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
Shake all ingredients well and strain into a cocktail glass. Zest a lime for garnish (the earliest texts don't mention a garnish)
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