First of all, a guilty confession; for several months I couldn’t make this drink. No, we’re not to the guilty part yet…wait for it. I couldn’t make this drink because I couldn’t find Ginger Beer…nope, still not there; that’s not out-of-the-ordinary, not being able to find an ingredient in Oklahoma. In fact, I was ranting and raging against the blasted unfairness of Oklahoma’s limited and paltry ability to provide my senses the required tantilizing ingredients for perfection (see: maraschino liqueur, rhum agricole, pisco, falernum, cold beer, decent local wines, et al), ‘I reeeeeaaaalllly want to try this drink, but NOOOOOoooooo, Oklahoma doesn’t CARRY ginger beer in its liquor stores! Stupid Oklahoma!’ I whined, the kids staring forlornly at their mishap of a father. Mind you, Joana sat there quietly minding my tilting at windmills when she finally realizes what I’m on about and sweetly says, ‘Hon, ginger beer is like root beer, they carry it in grocery stores, not liquor stores…’ Jeezy creezy, what’s a boy to do with his god-given right to moral outrage in the face of logic like that, eh?

Alright…fine.

A trip to the grocery store later I’m stocked with Ginger Beer (though it wasn’t until one of my Denver cavortations that I found Reed’s Ginger Beer) and ready to tackle this classic drink.
The Moscow Mule is famous for two things; creating a demand for and increasing the popularity of vodka, and copper mugs. Seriously, copper mugs. Along with the Mint Julep the Moscow Mule is one of the few drinks to have a piece of barware so closely associated with it. And, as you would suspect, it was all marketing. In the mid-to-late 40s, John G. Martin, a VP at Heublein, an East Coast food and liquor distributor, saw his pet product, Smirnoff vodka, not doing too well and decided to take a guerilla marketing approach to revitalize the brand. Upon stopping in at Jack Morgan’s famous ‘Cock ‘n’ Bull’ restaurant on the Sunset Strip (where Morgan was similarly having trouble moving his own brand of Ginger Beer off the shelves) Martin, Morgan, and a friend of Morgan’s who was heavily invested in copper mugs concocted a supreme marketing ploy whereby, lo and behold, vodka, ginger beer, and (egads!) a copper mug could be combined to create a sublime drink, the Moscow Mule (this is fancifully called ’synergizing product lines’ now, y’all). Well, you know the rest; vodka supplanted gin through the 50s as the white lightning of choice and has never looked back. But, is it just a good bit of marketing or is this drink worthy?

Moscow Mule

• 2 oz vodka
• 1 oz fresh lime juice
• 4-6 oz Ginger Beer

Squeeze 1oz lime juice into highball glass (or copper mug if you have it), add 2 oz vodka, fill with ice and top with Ginger Beer. Garnish with spent half of lime.

Well, the ‘kick’ portion of the mule certainly comes from the Ginger Beer itself. This being my first drink using Ginger Beer I was surprised at its sharpness expecting something more along the lines of Ginger Ale. Apparently Ale drinkers are wussies and the ‘Beer’ family of soft drinks is out to prove it. So, between the lime and the Ginger beer you get a lot of tart and spiciness. Of course, the vodka does nothing except provide the slightest hint of astringency and, obviously, provide the hidden ‘kick’. This is a pretty darn good drink all things considered and it’s simple to make, which when one is hosting guests and would rather be outside sipping a drink instead of muddling away at mint or, heaven forbid, making horse’s neck garnish, is a good thing. Some recipes call for a peel of cucumber or adding a few dash of bitters, which is all well and good, and I love both of those ingredients but, in my opinion, this drink should remain simple and unassuming. While better than I expected and refreshing, it’s not quite worthy of the revolution; red or otherwise.

Moscow Mule Rating:

Additional Information on the Moscow Mule
UROTSUJIDOJI’s Guide to: The Moscow Mule
Doug Winship’s MxMo Entry
Gumbo Pages Entry on the Moscow Mule