Meet the Moscow Mule. It’s like a lot of Americans; supposedly there are roots way back from the other side of the pond, but nobody has really traced it. It’s from New York. But he’s always a little bit sweet and a little bit spicy!

Ahhh, I haven’t posted a new recipe in nearly a month. Eek! So sorry, I’ve been galavanting. There will be, however, adventure-inspired recipes coming soon so keep an eye out.

Onto the mule. Nothing has come back into craft cocktails quite as fiercely as the Moscow Mule. Contrary to its name, the Mule isn’t from Moscow or Russia at all, it’s from the birthplace of many great cocktails: New York. You can read the backstory on Wikipedia.

I love the mule because it has everything a great American story has. It’s “Russian” only because they use vodka. It was repopularized out of the need to clean the cellar of things that didn’t sell well.  Namely, Smirnoff vodka and ginger beer. (Very thrifty, no?)

Oh, and the copper mug?

That’s a marketing ploy that stuck. A clever trick by a Smirnoff salesman that went bar to bar slinging the drink in copper mugs.

It doesn’t get much more American than that.

I think my favorite part about the mule is the endless possible variations. Below is the standard recipe, but play around with it. It goes really well with muddled anything, from fruit to herbs, and you can switch it up with nearly any type of liquor.

Mule variations:

Kentucky Mule: Made with bourbon

London Mule: Made with gin

Mexi-Mule: Made with tequila

Irish Mule: Made with Irish Whiskey