(no subject)

Date: 2008-10-05 01:37 am (UTC)
Now, now, you're not going to trap me THAT easily. The "proper formula" for a mint julep is a violently debated subject. Nonetheless, all partisans of one school or another would happily set aside their differences to jointly beat a person who called THAT mess a "mint julep."

There is general agreement on the following points, however:
A mint julep contains:

  • Ice
  • Bourbon
  • Mint
  • Sugar OR simple syrup.


And nothing else. Historically, there have been variations such as the "Georgia julep", which added peach brandy, and the earliest forms of mint juleps often used brandy instead of bourbon, but "the mint julep", as we know it today, is NOT either of those.

There are those who will only serve a mint julep in a silver julep cup. There are others who are happy to serve it in glass.

Some say that the ice should be shaved, some say crushed. The amount of mint used is a source of contention, as is the exact variety of mint. How much the mint is muddled is in question, as is whether you then strain out the pieces or leave them in. Whether you use finely powdered sugar or simple syrup. And the exact way that the drink is built in the glass and served -- these are all items of contention.

But, as an example, I might decide to make a mint julep as follows:

Take three sprigs of peppermint and put them in a glass. Pour a half ounce of simple syrup over them, and muddle them GENTLY until the mint is bruised and releases its odors. Pour one and a half ounces of bourbon over it, and stir gently. Fill the rest of the glass with shaved ice, and put a couple cocktail straws in it to reach the liquid. Garnish with a few more sprigs of mint, slapping them first to release the aromas.

Now, that recipe is one designed by me, a Yankee, and I'm certain that any Kentuckian would laugh and have a better recipe. But mine, at least, might be RECOGNIZABLE as a mint julep.
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