Irish Whiskey Ginger Mule

Hiya! Happy Holiday Season! Personally I find it CRAZY that it’s already almost DECEMBER. How did this happen?! Wasn’t it just May and we were still shaking off the spring chill? Oy vey, what they say about time flying faster as you get older is unfortunately so true. Life has been a lot different lately in my little corner, as I cut back at my full-time job to focus more on my little business, Serendipity Lettering, and at the same time we got a puppy! She is a very good puppy, super duper mellow and mostly well behaved, but it’s still been a big adjustment. And because my work schedule has changed so dramatically (I now work from home almost exclusively), she has been mostly in my care and it’s a lot to take on! Good thing she’s so adorable.

But in addition to training a puppy and working less (which, by the way, has actually translated into a busier schedule somehow?!) I’ve still been creating and imbibing fun cocktails and baked goods, and cooking a decent amount of savory things.

I also recently got a couple of copper mugs, something I have coveted basically forever but never let myself invest in. The pair I got are from Moscow Muled, a small business owned by Jess and her boyfriend. As a lover of small businesses and anything served in copper mugs, I was psyched to give these beauties a try!

I have always loved a good, spicy Moscow Mule, but as a gin drinker, I often swap in gin for vodka. A long time ago, I learned that this drink is called a gin buck, but as I started to dig around for other fun ‘mule’ recipes, I learned that what I call a gin buck is also called a London Mule, or a Ginger Rogers (named after the actress). And it turns out, there are a lot of different names, often regionally inspired, for a variety of mule/buck drinks that feature citrus juice and ginger beer. For example, the Kentucky Mule is the same as an Irish or Dublin Mule, a Tennessee Mule, and a Whiskey Ginger Mule. These are all essentially the same drink, a mule made with Whiskey, but depending on where the spirit is made, the name changes.

I have been thinking about Ireland constantly lately. We went there last year and completely, totally fell in love with it. The one year anniversary of our trip just passed, and I have been thinking pretty much multiple times every single day about how badly I want to go back, so this drink is inspired by that trip, and the kinship I feel with such a beautiful part of the earth. When we were there, we visited a couple whiskey distilleries, and have had some of the whiskey we bought there sitting around the house ever since we got back, untouched because we don’t ever want it to be gone. But I’m fairly sure the point of buying amazing alcohol is to drink it, so we decided it was finally time!

The first step in making this cocktail is procuring some copper mugs. The ones I’ve used here are lined with nickel, which I recently learned is much safer for drinking than copper! Copper reacts with many different ingredients used as cocktail mixers, so it’s much safer to use a mug that has an interior lined with a neutral metal. These mugs are really pretty, and each has variations from the next due to the handmade nature, which I love. They make for a pretty impressive presentation, which while maybe not as important as the contents, is still pretty important to me!

To make this cocktail, I finally opened up a bottle of this Irish Whiskey, added in some ginger syrup AND ginger beer, and plenty of lime. It was so deliciously drinkable that I blew through this drink in no time, and am in urgent need of more whiskey to make it again!

You can really use any whiskey you want here, I’m just partial to the Teeling’s Irish Whiskey for sentimental reasons. Same goes for the ginger syrup — this part isn’t mandatory, but if you love ginger flavor like me, this kicks it up a notch. Any ginger simple syrup will do (or you could go wild and add ginger liqueur!), but I am very partial to Sumptuous Syrups Yellow Ginger Syrup. If you’re in the New England area, I also highly suggest you seek out Venetian Ginger Ale, which is sweet and spicy and utterly delicious.

Irish Whiskey Ginger Mule

Ingredients for 1 Cocktail

• 2 ounces Irish whiskey (I love Teeling’s, but really any whiskey will do)
• 1/2 ounce ginger syrup (optional)
• juice of half a lime (about 1 ounce) *
• 6 ounces ginger beer (or to taste)
• lime slices, for garnish

*I like more, so start here and see if you need to adjust

Directions:

Fill a copper mug with ice. Add the whiskey, ginger syrup, and lime juice, then give it a stir to mix the ingredients. Add ginger beer to taste (and more lime if you like!), and give it another quick stir. Garnish with a slice of lime, and start sipping!

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