The Moscow Mule is one of the few cocktails you recognise first by its vessel: a copper mug that frosts over as soon as the ice goes in. The Moscow Mule recipe is disarmingly simple, vodka, ginger beer and lime, yet the result is remarkably refreshing, zingy and lightly spiced. It is built directly in the mug, without a shaker: an ideal cocktail for entertaining without spending the evening behind the bar.
Ingredients
- 45 ml vodka
- 10 ml freshly squeezed lime juice
- 120 ml well-chilled ginger beer
- Ice cubes
- A lime wedge and, if you like, a mint leaf
The tools
Method
- Fill the mug to the top with ice: the copper chills at once and frosts over.
- Pour in the vodka and lime juice, measured with the jigger.
- Top up with ginger beer, pouring gently to keep its bubbles.
- Stir briefly with the bar spoon, just one or two turns, to mix without losing the fizz.
- Garnish with a lime wedge, and a mint leaf if you like. Serve with the straw.
Why a copper mug?
The Moscow Mule was born in the United States in the early 1940s, and its story is tied to an effort to promote both a vodka and a ginger beer that were still little known; the copper mug became its signature. Beyond tradition, the metal carries the cold of the ice very quickly: the cocktail stays ice-cold to the last sip. To serve a whole table, the set of 4 hammered Moscow Mule mugs is a practical option. Find all our mugs and glasses in the cocktail glasses section.
Variations
Swap the vodka for bourbon and you have a Kentucky Mule, rounder and with notes of vanilla; for tequila, a Mexican Mule; for amber rum, a cousin of the Dark ’n’ Stormy. For an alcohol-free version, keep the ginger beer and lime and add a few bruised mint leaves: the freshness and the kick are still there. To build your bar and your first classics, our article on the essential tools for a home bar guides you step by step.
The bartender’s tip
Choose a fiery ginger beer rather than a gentler ginger ale: it is what gives the Moscow Mule its character. Keep the bottles in the fridge and add it at the last moment. Finally, wash copper mugs by hand and dry them straight away to keep them shining.
Please drink responsibly. Alcohol abuse is dangerous for your health.
