Moscow Mule

The Moscow Mule is a classic highball made fancier by having its own special glass. So far I have always made them in collins glasses but I finally got some copper moscow mule mugs and made them up properly. The copper mug is able to hold temperatures better than glass, resulting in a colder cocktail for a longer time with less dilution. They are certainly delicious in any glass but these mugs are gonna be a game changer in the summer.
 So before we get into the simple recipe, a mule and a buck are the same thing. They are both highballs involving ginger ale/ beer. The gin buck is what I am most familiar with although I have heard of gin gin mule as well and I dont know why the are different. Perhaps they are not and buck is classic terminology and it got renamed after the popularity of moscow mules? That popularity began in LA in the 50's as a bit of marketing for the new on the scene russian vodkas. You don't really need a recipe for this, you can do it to taste. Keep in mind, you don't want too much soda because there will be some dilution from the ice and the whole point of naming it a mule is that its got some kick to it. Here's how I usually do it, with some citrus adjustment based on brand of ginger beer. (Reeds is way more citrusy and requires less):::::::::::::

Moscow Mule


2oz vodka
3oz ginger beer
1/2oz lime juice

Fill copper mug with ice. Add vodka and lime and stir. Top with ginger beer. Add more lime wedges to taste. Unless I've already squeezed a lot of lime juice, I usually just ream half a lime into the glass then throw in the entire half peel.

Tequila also makes a fine substitute at the same proportions....

Rockledge Mule

One of my favorite simple mixed drinks is a Moscow Mule. Its a ginger beer and vodka and fresh lime. Its tangy, spicy, sweet, sour, and refreshing. (Most liquor pairs nicely with ginger beer in my opinion but more on that later.) The recipe I like to do, when I feel like measuring, is 2oz vodka: 3oz ginger beer: 1/2 lime squeezed and thrown in a highball glass filled with ice. This is Gary Regan's recipe. I generally do measure all my cocktails but this one I occasionally just pour til it tastes right.

Ive made some variations on this simple formula with success. My favorite was using lemon thyme infused vodka. I had the opportunity to try a new variation today and it is exceptional! My parents have a large raspberry patch and when they're ripe there's waaaay too many berries for them to pick or use. So I infused 20oz of vodka with a pint of fresh raspberries, thinking I would make a liqueur eventually. The berries sat for about a month. The booze turned beautifully pink very quickly. This was probably too many berries for this much alcohol but it worked great for this drink. Yesterday I tried making a boozy raspberry limeade by using the raspberry infused vodka to make a caipirinha style drink. It was super gross! The lime and the tartness of the raspberry was too much. I couldn't even drink it. I was bummed. 

I always use Reeds Ginger Beer, extra ginger brew, for any ginger ale/beer recipes. Its pretty sweet, very citrusy and really spicy. It balanced out the wild tartness of my vodka so well. I was pleasantly surprised. I really thought I would need to cut it with plain vodka. Nope. SO GOOD!

Rockledge Mule

2 oz Raspberry infused vodka

3 oz Ginger Beer

small lime wedge

Build in an ice filled highball.