It’s a colonial recipe, traditionally enjoyed at Christmas. They say George Washington used to make it. I know people who’ve had bottles of it going back years.
In May 2024, I piled pitted cherries into a mason jar, poured bourbon over them to cover by a few inches, added sugar, a cinnamon stick, a few cloves, and a sliver of nutmeg. Then I covered it tightly, wrote the date on top, and put it in a cabinet. Every week or two I’d take it out and rotate it to make sure everything mixed.
By Christmas we had cherry bounce to share with our friends at a holiday gathering. A splash over ice cream is delicious, and it’s also good poured into a two-ounce glass with one of the cherries dropped into it. Perfect with chocolate panettone. The stuff packs a punch, though. Even just eating a cherry or two (they are wonderful dipped in chocolate) can make you drunk.
I made four jars of it last year. We drank and gave away all but one. The remaining jar from 2024 still has plenty of bounce in it, and the flavor has smoothed into something amazing.
This year I made some more jars, and they are currently lined up in that dark cabinet, waiting to be opened at Christmas — or possibly next July.
Pam Troy 