The Kentucky mule recipe
for your table
Fill a copper mule mug or a tall glass to the rim with ice cubes and let it stand for half a minute, so the metal or glass gets properly cold.
Pour the bourbon and fresh lime juice over the ice.
Top up with ginger beer and stir briefly once from the bottom up with a bar spoon, so the fizz stays in.
Give the sprig of mint a gentle slap between your hands and place it on the ice with the lime wedges.
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The story
The mule is more of a blueprint than a recipe: spirits, lime juice and ginger beer over ice, with the ginger delivering the kick at the end. Replace the vodka with bourbon and you keep that structure, but the flavor shifts. Where the vodka version is mainly sharp and dry, bourbon adds sweet notes of vanilla and caramel alongside the ginger, with oak underneath. Kentucky appears in the name because most of the bourbon comes from there. There are various stories about who first made a mule with bourbon, and none of them can be substantiated.
The right glass
A mule belongs in a copper mug or a cup with a copper coating. Metal quickly takes on the cold from the ice, causing the outside to mist up, so you can feel that the drink is cold from the very first sip. How much longer it actually stays cold depends mainly on the amount of ice in the mug and much less on the material around it. If you want to see the layers clearly, choose a highball glass of at least thirty-five centilitres and take a look at our highball glasses.
Speakeasy Moscow Mule Curved Cup 45 cl
Speakeasy Cola Mug Cocktail Cup 50 cl Copper
Both sets together € 42,90.
The right tools
For a Kentucky mule, in addition to the glass, use a jigger to measure the bourbon and lime juice, a bar spoon for a quick stir and a citrus press for fresh lime juice. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 3 bar tools together € 62,80.
What do you use to make a Kentucky mule?
For a Kentucky mule, you need bourbon. Well-known bottles include Jim Beam and Jim Beam Black. On each drink page, you can read the percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it works well in and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
A few dashes of Angostura make the Kentucky mule darker in flavor and tie the ginger to the oak; this is the version you get in many bars when you ask for a mule with bitters. Swap the bourbon for tequila and the same recipe is called a Mexican mule, switch to dark rum and you have a Dark 'n Stormy, and with vodka you are back to the Moscow mule. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
Put the mug in the freezer half an hour beforehand and use ice straight from the freezer, because half-melted cubes dilute the drink within a minute. Pour in the ginger beer last and stir only once afterward, so the fizz stays in. Slap the mint leaf between your hands before adding it: that way, you smell the mint with every sip without loose leaves in your glass.
Good to know
Why bourbon works differently from vodka
Vodka mainly brings alcohol and little else in terms of flavor, so in a Moscow mule, the ginger hits you right in the face. Bourbon is aged in new, charred oak barrels and picks up notes of vanilla, caramel, and a little coconut from them. That sweet side creates a layer beneath the ginger and lime juice, making the drink taste rounder and warmer and feel less sharp. That is precisely why a Kentucky mule works in winter too, while the vodka version remains mainly a summer drink. The ginger does not disappear; it simply gets some company.
Does that copper mug really keep your drink cold?
Copper conducts heat exceptionally well, and you notice it immediately: the mug becomes cold within seconds, the outside fogs up, and your hand feels the chill. That is also precisely the downside, because a good conductor lets the heat from your hand and the room flow inward just as easily. In practice, how long your drink stays cold is determined mainly by the amount of ice in the mug. So fill it completely. The copper mug is therefore more a matter of feel and tradition than technology, and that is not a bad argument: you also taste a drink with your hands.
Ginger beer is spicier than ginger ale
Ginger beer is made with a generous amount of ginger and is often fermented, making it full-bodied, cloudy, and downright spicy. Ginger ale is a ginger-flavored soft drink: lighter, sweeter, and clear. In a mule, you need the bite of ginger beer, because it has to stand up to 5 cl of bourbon and 2 cl of sour mix. If you use ginger ale, you end up with a sweet whiskey-cola-like drink in which you can barely taste the ginger. If you still want it softer, use a little less ginger beer instead of switching to another bottle.
The mint you slap between your hands first
Mint releases its aroma from the oil in its leaves, and that oil is only released when the leaf gets a tap. Lay the sprig flat on one hand, slap it once with the other hand, and smell the difference immediately. There is no need to crush it finely, and doing so is even counterproductive, because the veins tear and bitter compounds and green flecks end up in your drink. Place the sprig on the side where your mouth will be, so you smell the mint before tasting the bourbon.
How much ice and what kind of ice
Fill the mug to the brim. That may sound like a lot, but more ice actually means less dilution: a full mug melts more slowly than a half-full one because the cubes keep one another cold. Large cubes or a single large chunk melt the slowest; crushed ice cools the fastest but also dilutes the most. For a mule, a mug full of cubes works best, optionally topped with a layer of crushed ice for the look. Use ice from the freezer, not from a bucket that already contains water.
Frequently asked questions
What is in a Kentucky Mule?
A Kentucky Mule consists of 5 cl bourbon, 2 cl fresh lime juice, and 12 cl ginger beer, built over plenty of ice in a copper mug or a highball glass. Finish with a lime wedge and a sprig of mint that you slap first.
What is the difference between a Kentucky Mule and a Moscow Mule?
The build is the same; only the spirit differs: a Moscow Mule uses vodka, while a Kentucky Mule uses bourbon. Thanks to the vanilla and caramel from the barrel, the Kentucky Mule tastes rounder and warmer, while the vodka version remains sharper and drier.
Can I use ginger ale instead of ginger beer?
You can, but it will be a different drink. Ginger ale is sweeter and has a much lighter ginger flavor, so it gets overpowered by 5 cl of bourbon. Ginger beer is spicier and often fermented, which is exactly what a mule needs.
Which glass do you serve a Kentucky Mule in?
In a copper mule mug of around 45 cl, or in a highball glass of at least 35 cl if you want to see the layers. Most importantly, it should hold plenty of ice. View the models in our Moscow Mule glasses.
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