Horsefeather
Rye whiskey, ginger beer, lemon and Angostura over ice. The Kansas highball — a Moscow Mule's cousin from Lawrence, Kansas, spicier and drier than a Whiskey Ginger.
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 collins glass with ice.
Add the whiskey, lemon juice and bitters.
Top with chilled ginger beer.
Stir once from the bottom and garnish with a lemon wedge.
A thoughtful finish
- A spicy ginger beer; the drink is half ginger beer.
- Rye keeps it dry; bourbon makes it rounder.
- Three dashes of Angostura — more than you think; they are the drink's signature.
Common mistakes
- Ginger ale instead of ginger beer.
- Skipping the bitters, which makes it a Whiskey Ginger.
- Lime instead of lemon; lime makes it a Kentucky Mule.
A few good questions.
What does a Horsefeather taste like?
Spicy ginger and rye with lemon and a clove-and-cinnamon edge from the bitters — dry and refreshing.
Where is it from?
Lawrence, Kansas; it spread through the Midwest from the university town.
Horsefeather or Kentucky Mule?
Lemon and Angostura instead of lime; otherwise the same build.
Why the name?
A play on the Horse's Neck and the Marx Brothers' Horse Feathers.
Variations
- Kentucky Mule — Bourbon, lime and ginger beer.
- Horse's Neck — Whiskey, ginger ale and a long lemon peel.
- Whiskey Ginger — Whiskey and ginger ale.
- Moscow Mule — Vodka, lime and ginger beer.
Where it comes from
c. 1990s · Lawrence, Kansas
Contested. More than one origin is claimed for this drink. We show the competing accounts rather than pick one.
The Horsefeather is a Midwestern drink that spread out from Lawrence, Kansas, in the 1990s and 2000s — rye or bourbon with ginger beer, a squeeze of lemon and a few dashes of Angostura over ice — and became the unofficial drink of the University of Kansas before bars in Kansas City and beyond took it up. The name is a nod to the Horse’s Neck (whiskey, ginger ale, long lemon peel) and to the 1932 Marx Brothers film Horse Feathers, which also means nonsense. It is a Kentucky Mule with bitters and lemon instead of lime, and the bitters are what make it: without them it is a Whiskey Ginger; with them it is a drink.
Sources
- Punch, The Horsefeather, 2017 (reference)
- Difford's Guide, Horsefeather, 2018 (reference)
- Lawrence Journal-World, the Horsefeather story, 2015 (news)
Strength. About 1.57 US standard drinks at an estimated 12.4% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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