A bounce is a drink made with a mixture of alcohol and sweetened cherry juice. The earliest reference for such a drink is 1693 where it was referenced in W. Robertson’s Phraseologia Generalis as a “mingled drink” called cherrybouncer.  Sometimes cherry brandy (Kirsch) was also called bounce as the two beverages are very similar. The term bounce may have started to be used as a substitute for brandy to try to hide from tax collectors that there was alcohol in the drink and avoid paying the required duties or taxes levied on spirits.

Bounces are traditionally made with brandy but whiskey and rum were used frequently as well. Early rural tavern keepers were frugal and would have used spirits they made or had on hand. French brandy is mentioned in the ledgers, but whiskey was frequently distilled on site and would have been much more abundant.

George Washington’s diary reveals that in September 1784 he packed liquid provisions in the form of cherry bounce, port, and Madeira wine for a trip west. Martha Washington’s papers include a recipe for cherry bounce written in an unknown hand on paper with George Washington’s personal watermark. This recipe is made with classic brandy and the flavor is enhanced with spices.

To Make Excellent Cherry Bounce

Extract the juice of 20 pounds well ripend morrella cherrys Add to this 10 quarts of old french brandy and sweeten it with white sugar to your taste–To 5 Gallons of this mixture add one ounce of spice such as cinnamon, cloves and Nutmegs of each an Equal quantity slightly bruisd and a pint and half of cherry kirnels that have been gently broken in a mortar–After the liquor has fermented let it stand close-stoped for a month or six weeks then bottle it remembering to put a lump of Loaf Sugar into each bottle.

Martha Washington’s Diaries

Here is a good version you can make at home:

• 750 ml (ie 1 bottle) American Whiskey (alternatively you can make this with Rum for a lighter taste)
• 750 ml of cherry juice (ie take 3 lb of fresh cherries and press them to remove pulp, skins, and such)
• 100 g brown sugar (~ 1/2 cup) (alternatively use white sugar for a lighter color and taste)
• 1 g ground cinnamon (~ 1/3 tsp)
• 5 cloves
• 10 mg (a “pinch” or 1/16 tsp) ground nutmeg

Blend until fully dissolved and place this mixture to bottle. Leave it for at least 6 weeks checking occasionally to ensure the sugar has dissolved. Transfer to bottles and add 2-3 fresh cherries to each bottle for a nice presentation.

Once you have your Cherry Bounce, you can drink it straight as a cordial or mix it into cocktails like the New Amsterdam

• 1 gill cherry bounce
• 1 jack sweet vermouth
• dash orange bitters
• orange peel for garnish

Combine ingredients in mixing glass and stir with ice until chilled. Strain into cocktail glass and garnish with expressed orange peel.

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