Audio By Carbonatix
At a party recently, I was given a taste of one of the most refreshing vodka cocktails I’ve had in a great while.
Josh — who wears a Canadian tuxedo with more style than anyone else I know, but that’s not really important right now — handed me his cup and said, “It’s made with awesome. Trust me, just try it.” Or something to that effect. It was hard to remember anything that happened before my first sip of his Moscow Mule.
I felt like an ass (ha!) for having never tried it before…much less for not just accidentally having made it in the past, since it’s made with three of my favorite things.
At first taste I experienced a fizzy concoction of vodka, ginger beer and lime. Though simply prepared, it’s far from simple when you feel that tickle in your nose and your thirst is sated instantaneously. That’s nothing but quality flavor and serious efficiency, my friends.
So, I applauded Josh for his drink and mentioned that he should put some
copper mugs on his Amazon wish list for the next time someone trashes
his house at a party and needs to make it up to him.
[Sidenote: That wasn’t just some insane suggestion, seeing as how the
trashing of Josh’s house is oft-Tweeted and the Moscow Mule has been
traditionally served in a chilled copper mug ever since the first issue
of promotional Smirnoff copper mugs when the drink
was born in 1941. It was created by John Martin (no relation) of Smirnoff/GF
Hublein Bros. spirits distributor and ginger beer brewer Jack Morgan of
LA’s Cock ‘n’ Bull Tavern who were, respectively, trying to sell their
vodka and ginger beer.]
The party died down and I went home thinking of all the wonderful
aspects of the Moscow Mule: preemptive stomach soothing thanks to the
ginger, lack of pore reekage the next day thanks to the vodka and
vitamin C from the lime. It’s almost a health drink if you’re skilled at rationalizing .
Anyway, a couple of weeks later, fellow girl drinker Jessica and I head
to the Old Monk
for some catch-up conversations, bites and drinks.
After studying the food menu and absent-mindedly ordering a Black
Velvet, I noticed something at the bottom of the menu that I’d seen often before but never registered. It made me jump up and rush to find
my server and cancel my BV: the Moscow Mule. And served in chilled
copper! (There’s just something about chilled metal glasses that makes
everything so much colder. Therefore, they are ideal on a Texas summer
night on the patio.)
While copperized, the Old Monk’s version is a slight variation of the
classic recipe: Russian Standard vodka instead of Smirnoff, lime and
ginger ale instead of ginger beer. It’s less fizzy to be sure, but still
has that fabulous ginger flavor kick that pairs so well with fresh
lime.
It also inspired me to make some at home for a recent gathering. I
wasn’t able to locate ginger beer given the time of day — or night,
rather — but ginger ale filled in nicely for the time being.
Now, I realize that I previously claimed the Domino
Fizz to be my summer drink of choice, but the Moscow Mule is ready
to buck its way to the forefront. Seriously, the drink is a welcome kick in the pants…specifically, the
summer short pants.
