Kentucky Mule
Bourbon, lime and ginger beer in a copper mug. The Moscow Mule with the vodka swapped for Kentucky's whiskey — which, it turns out, ginger always wanted.
Built to the standard modern spec; not yet tested in our kitchen. How we test.
The recipe.
Scaling adjusts quantities only. Prepare shaken drinks in individual portions.
Let’s make a good drink.
Fill a copper mug or highball with ice.
Add the bourbon and lime juice.
Top with cold ginger beer and stir gently.
Garnish with a lime wedge and, if you like, a mint sprig.
A thoughtful finish
- A spicy ginger beer — the kind with real ginger heat — is the whole drink. A sweet, mild one makes a bourbon soda.
- A high-rye bourbon stands up to the ginger; a wheated one is softer and sweeter.
- A dash of Angostura bitters is not in the recipe and improves it.
Common mistakes
- Ginger ale. It is a different, sweeter drink.
- Skipping the lime. The acid is what makes it a Mule.
- A warm mug or too little ice.
A few good questions.
What is the difference between a Kentucky Mule and a Moscow Mule?
Bourbon in place of vodka. Everything else — lime, ginger beer, copper mug — is the same.
Rye or bourbon?
Bourbon is the Kentucky Mule by name; rye makes a spicier version sometimes called a Rye Mule. Both are good.
Can I use ginger ale?
Then it is a bourbon and ginger — a fine old Southern highball, but not a Mule. Ginger beer has the heat.
Why the copper mug?
It is the Moscow Mule's 1940s marketing and it keeps the drink cold. It does nothing to the flavour.
Variations
- Moscow Mule — Vodka, lime and ginger beer.
- Mexican Mule — Tequila, lime and ginger beer.
- Dark and Stormy — Dark rum and ginger beer.
- Whiskey Mac — Scotch and ginger wine.
Where it comes from
c. 2000s · United States
Contested. More than one origin is claimed for this drink. We show the competing accounts rather than pick one.
Whiskey and ginger have been together since the Whiskey Mac and the Horse’s Neck, and bourbon with ginger ale is a Southern highball of long standing. The Kentucky Mule is that pairing dressed as a Moscow Mule — ginger beer rather than ale, lime, the copper mug — and it appeared on menus in the 2000s as the Mule revived and every spirit got its own version. There is no inventor and no fixed recipe; the Mule template is the recipe, and bourbon’s vanilla and caramel turn out to suit ginger beer’s heat better than vodka’s neutrality ever did.
Sources
- Robert Simonson, A Proper Drink, 2016 (book)
- Difford's Guide, Kentucky Mule, 2015 (reference)
- Gary Regan, The Joy of Mixology, 2003 (book)
Strength. About 1.5 US standard drinks at an estimated 11.6% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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