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Monday, May 02, 2005

May is here... 

By Charlottesvillain at 5/02/2005 12:46:00 PM
...and that means the Kentucky Derby. I'll leave it to others to handicap this year's event, and move right into issues of critical importance no matter which steed crosses the finish line first. Of course I refer to that delectable concoction, the mint julep (one of only two instances, IMO, in which good bourbon should be mixed with anything other than water, the other being a manhattan).

There are many variations of the mint julep, usually dependent upon whether or not mint is incorporated into the making of syrup or crushed directly into the drink. Here's a basic recipe.


INGREDIENTS:
2 cups water
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup roughly chopped
fresh mint leaves
32 fluid ounces Kentucky bourbon
8 sprigs fresh mint
leaves for garnish

DIRECTIONS:
Combine water, sugar and chopped mint leaves in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat until the sugar is completely dissolved. Allow syrup to cool, approximately 1 hour. Pour syrup through a strainer to remove mint leaves.

Fill eight cups or frozen goblets with crushed ice and pour 4 ounces of bourbon and 1/4 cup mint syrup in each. (Proportions can be adjusted depending on each person's sweet tooth). Top each cup with a mint sprig and a straw. Trim straws to just barely protrude from the top of the cups. Serve juleps on a silver platter.

Try it. You'll like it.

One school of julep thought insists that fresh mint sprigs be cut so as one's nose is buried in them with every sip, a practice that I recommend as long as the mint is young and fresh.

Of course an authentic Kentucky variation, found in the now classic Book of Bourbon (recently updated), describes the painstaking process of carefully procuring the fresh mint, precisely measuring out the sugar and branch water, and then throwing it all away and enjoying your whisky neat. I can also recommend this recipe, particularly if your whisky is this or this.

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4 Comments:

By Blogger Unknown, at Mon May 02, 05:45:00 PM:

I recently acquired a bottle of 16 year old A. H. Hirsh Reserve which I am subjecting to substantial, uh, testing. How would you say your two picks compare?  

By Blogger Gordon Smith, at Mon May 02, 06:03:00 PM:

Hawk,

Once again the left and right find ground upon which we can both stand: The Julep and the Manhattan.  

By Blogger Dr. Demarche, at Tue May 03, 04:43:00 PM:

A Wooford Julep is one of the finer things about being an American- I just wich I could get some mint here!  

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