Moscow Mule Recipe

Name: Moscow Mule
Prep time: 3 min
Total time: 3 min
Yield: 1 cocktail
Ingredients: 2 oz (60 ml) vodka; 0.5 oz (15 ml) fresh lime juice, about half a lime; 4 oz (120 ml) ginger beer, chilled; Ice cubes, enough to fill the mug; 1 lime wedge, to garnish

The Moscow Mule is the original of the family: vodka, fresh lime, and ginger beer in a frosted copper mug. It became famous in 1940s America as a way to sell both vodka and ginger beer, and the copper mug was part of the pitch. It is crisp, spicy, and about as easy as a real cocktail gets.

Moscow Mule

Prep3 min

Total time3 min

Servings1 cocktail

DifficultyEasy

Ingredients

2 oz (60 ml) vodka
0.5 oz (15 ml) fresh lime juice, about half a lime
4 oz (120 ml) ginger beer, chilled
Ice cubes, enough to fill the mug
1 lime wedge, to garnish

Instructions

Chill a copper mug or highball glass by filling it with ice for a minute while you gather everything.
Fill the mug to the top with fresh ice cubes.
Pour the vodka over the ice.
Squeeze the lime juice in directly, then drop the spent shell into the mug.
Top with chilled ginger beer.
Stir once gently to combine without knocking out the carbonation.
Garnish with a lime wedge and serve immediately.

Contains 2 oz of 40% spirit, roughly 1.3 US standard drinks. Ginger beer brands vary a lot in sweetness and heat, so treat the lime as your adjustment dial.

Tips

Check that your copper mug is lined with stainless steel or nickel on the inside. Bare copper reacts with acidic drinks, and health authorities advise against unlined copper in contact with anything below about pH 6, which a lime cocktail certainly is.
Squeeze the lime yourself. Bottled lime juice is cooked and flat, and in a three-ingredient drink there is nowhere for it to hide.
Chill the ginger beer thoroughly. Warm ginger beer foams over the ice and loses half its fizz before you have finished pouring.
If you like it drier, pull the ginger beer back to 3 oz and add a quarter ounce more lime.

FAQ

What usually goes wrong?

Building it in a warm mug with too little ice. The drink dilutes fast, goes lukewarm, and the ginger heat turns harsh instead of bright.

How do I store it?

Drink fresh. This is a build-and-serve cocktail with no batching-friendly version, and it is noticeably worse after ten minutes.

Why do my times differ?

Ovens differ. Use the times as a guide and judge by how it looks and feels.