Get out your copper mugs … for International Moscow Mule Day
International Moscow Mule Day is on 3 March. This date is a celebration of the beloved vodka and ginger beer cocktail so let’s take a look at the origins of the drink.
The Moscow Mule was invented in 1941 in New York’s Chatham Hotel by John Martin, the owner of Smirnoff Vodka and Jack Morgan, the owner of the Cock’n’Bull restaurant who had produced a house-made ginger beer. Martin and Morgan were discussing the lack of sales of their respective products, and put their heads together to create a new cocktail. After experimenting they arrived on the combination of ginger beer, vodka, ice and lemon juice and named it the Moscow Mule because the vodka came from Russia and the ginger beer gave the drink a “kick”.
The Moscow Mule is traditionally served in a copper mug that keeps the drink perfectly chilled. There’s some conjecture about how the copper mug came to be the signature vessel for the Moscow Mule but a popular theory is that a Russian immigrant brought copper mugs to the United States and went door-to-door to sell them to bars and clubs. She ended up at Jack Morgan’s restaurant and he thought the copper mug would be perfect for the Moscow Mule.
Over the years, the Moscow Mule recipe evolved and it is now usually made with lime juice rather than lemon juice and still served in a copper mug. Want to make your own Moscow Mule? Click here for the recipe.
