Mr. Jeffares

We absolutely love hearing about new Irish products and this is a product we can’t wait to try. Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrants Irish Blackcurrant Cordial is a brand new, first to market, unique Irish blackcurrant cordial with no added sugar – a delicious and useful cold-pressed, 100% natural pure juice made entirely from Irish blackcurrants grown on the family farm in Wexford.

Blackcurrant juice runs through Des Jeffares’ veins. When it comes to this small, antioxidant-rich purple fruit, Des is the third generation to grow blackcurrants at his family home, Ballykelly Farm in Wexford.

Like his father and grandfather for 50 years before him, Des Jeffares has been growing blackcurrants on the farm, but like many other family farms that are beholden to one large customer, Ballykelly Farm’s future looked bleak after the challenge presented by the overnight end of a 50-year relationship with its main customer Ribena. Des was forced to create new and innovative ways to use the impressive crop produced annually from the fertile Wexford slob land soils in Ballykelly.

Rising to the challenge, one of Des Jeffares’ most enterprising and innovative uses of his blackcurrant harvest to date has been the creation of a delectably clean, pure, cold-pressed cordial that has a multitude of uses for imaginative chefs, creative drinks-makers and anyone who loves the rich, sweet but tart, flavour of fine Irish blackcurrants – Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrants Irish Blackcurrant Cordial.

The natural sweetness of the non-calorific stevia plant replaces any sugar in the new Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrants Irish Blackcurrant Cordial, which therefore contains no artificial sweeteners, colours or preservatives, is never made from concentrate and never compromises on taste.

Benefits of blackcurrants

Pound for pound blackcurrants contain three times more vitamin C than oranges while also being a source of anthocyanins, antioxidants, and vitamins A and B. In time-honoured tradition the cold pressed blackcurrant juice of Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrants Irish Blackcurrant Cordial is packed in 500ml glass bottles – nature’s best package for juices. The deep purple colour is a sure sign of the goodness and high level of anthocyanins (disease-fighting antioxidants) of these amazing little superfruits. The vitamin C in blackcurrants contributes to a healthy immune system, reduction of tiredness and fatigue and cell protection from free radical damage.

Ballykelly Farm

At Ballykelly Farm, the blackcurrant crop is the last to be picked in the western hemisphere, ripened with summer sunshine and plumped by soft Irish rain. Years of expertise informs the decision to harvest, at the exact moment of optimum ripeness. Growing the best quality fruit has been the family speciality since 1955 – that’s an awful lot of accumulated expertise and perfection in the art of growing blackcurrants, and a huge amount of fruit, so they really do know their stuff. That’s why Des Jeffares’ blackcurrants are always bursting with natural goodness and vitality, full of vitamins and highly prized for their rich black colour and flavour.

Ballykelly Farm enjoys the enviable location for the most sunshine in Ireland too – with over 1600 hours per year, four hours twenty minutes per day, Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrants have a distinctive depth of colour and the highest natural sweetness – a ‘fresh from the farm’ taste, not easily forgotten

At Ballykelly Farm, Des Jeffares and his team employ the strictest quality standards, through environmental conscientiousness and responsible husbandry. The farm has been at the forefront of research initiatives, often leading the way with pioneering trials. Nurturing wildlife on the farms adds to biodiversity and assists in providing the very best blackcurrants. Currently the only Irish fruit farm with Origin Green sustainability certification, Ballykelly Farm is also Bord Bia Quality Assured and a proud founding member of Good Food Ireland, the benchmark brand for local produce in Ireland. Founded in 2006, Good Food Ireland operates from the farm and is run by Des’s wife Margaret.

Take the Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrant Cordial challenge!

Chefs and food producers love Mr. Jeffares blackcurrants for their unique flavour and versatility, and those jewelled black fruits are easily incorporated into culinary creations for menus and retail food products. Now the new Mr. Jeffares Blackcurrants Irish Blackcurrant Cordial creates a whole new opportunity for chefs and food-lovers to come up with creative ways to use this flavourful cordial. From salad dressings to thirst-quenching drinks, richly coloured cocktails to sweet and savoury sauces, the options are endless!