Bourbon Mule
Build ∙ 2 min ∙ 13.7% ABV ∙
The Bourbon Mule is a bourbon highball built with fresh lime, sugar syrup, and ginger beer over ice — a whiskey twist on the Moscow Mule. Spicy ginger heat leads, bourbon's caramel warmth rounds the middle, and fresh lime keeps the finish crisp and clean.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Pour the first 3 ingredients: Bourbon 50 mlLime juice 20 mlSugar syrup 10 ml into a mug or glass and briefly stir
- Fill the glass 2/3 full with cubed ice
- Top with Ginger beer
- Fill the mug or glass with a crown of crushed ice
- Garnish with a lime wheel and a mint sprig
Tips
- Build the bourbon, lime and syrup in the glass first and stir — on this card the ice goes in after the liquids, not before.
- Fill two-thirds with cubed ice, top with ginger beer, then finish with the crown of crushed ice the build calls for.
- Pour chilled ginger beer gently down a bar spoon so it layers on top instead of going flat from a hard splash.
- Slap the mint sprig between the palms once before dropping it in to release aromatics, then add the lime wheel as a floating garnish.
History
The Bourbon Mule is a whiskey-based twist on the Moscow Mule, the vodka, ginger beer, and lime highball credited to a 1941 meeting at the Cock 'n' Bull pub on Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. The most-repeated account names three people behind the drink: John G. Martin, head of the Heublein company and importer of Smirnoff vodka, who was struggling to sell vodka to Americans; Jack Morgan, the pub's owner, who had unsold stock of his own Cock 'n' Bull ginger beer; and a woman supplying copper mugs, said in one version to be Morgan's girlfriend and in a rival version to be Russian immigrant Sophie Berezinski, whose father ran a copper works. A competing 2007 account instead credits Morgan's bartender, Wes Price, with mixing the first one simply to clear out cellar stock. Some sources date the drink's creation to 1940 rather than 1941. The Kentucky, or Bourbon, Mule later emerged as a straightforward variation that swaps in bourbon for the original vodka, giving the same ginger beer and lime highball a sweeter, oak-driven character.
FAQ
What is a mule made with bourbon called?
It is called a Bourbon Mule, a variation on the vodka-based Moscow Mule that swaps in bourbon for a warmer, richer profile. It keeps the same fresh lime and ginger beer backbone, built over ice in a Collins glass.
Can I make a mule with bourbon?
Yes, bourbon is a classic substitute for vodka in a Moscow Mule, and the result is what's known as a Bourbon Mule. This build uses bourbon alongside fresh lime juice, sugar syrup, and ginger beer, built over ice.
How do I make a Bourbon Mule?
Build it directly in a Collins glass: bourbon, fresh lime juice and sugar syrup first with a brief stir, then fill two-thirds with cubed ice, top with ginger beer and crown it with crushed ice. Garnish with a lime wheel and a mint sprig; no shaking or straining is involved.
What is the best bourbon for a mule?
A standard bottled-in-bond or 90-proof bourbon works well, since its body holds up against the ginger beer and lime without getting lost. Higher-proof bourbons add more warmth and spice to the finished drink; delicate, older bourbons tend to get overpowered.
What is a cowboy mule?
A cowboy mule is another name sometimes used for a bourbon-based Moscow Mule variation, following the pattern of naming mule variants after their base spirit. It is built the same way, with fresh lime juice, sugar syrup, and ginger beer over ice.
What glass is a Bourbon Mule served in?
A Collins glass, built over ice and garnished with a lime wheel and a mint sprig.
