Old Sour's Skirmish in Haddonfield

We had fun at the annual Haddonfield Skirmish last Saturday where we offered visitors free samples of that popular Colonial beverage known as a shrub. Ours was made with elderberries and Old Sourpuss's Red Wine Vinegar. Most people had never even heard of a shrub - not even the re-enactors from the British army!

The re-enactors are the best part of the Skirmish. It was a very hot day, and these folks are wearing woolen coats and trousers and linen vests and dresses. They looked so authentic and fit in perfectly with all of the Colonial buildings on King's Highway. The Skirmish itself takes place in front of the Indian King Tavern and involves the firing of muskets and a small cannon that are VERY LOUD even from a couple blocks away. The kids love it and...so do the adults.

I got into the spirit of the day by wearing a Colonial woman's costume of plain brown dress, with an apron, a ruffled shawl, and a mob hat - the white cotton hair cap that covers the head and is finished with ruffles all round. The perfect item for a bad hair day!

We gave out dozens of shrub samples with generally were met with a look of surprise and lots of questions. (See the next post for more on how a shrub gets made.) Best of all we sold enough vinegar to pay for my costume!