The Many Mules of Summer

By Mike De Smidt and Greg Roe

Legend has it that back in 1941, a bar owner in New York and some friends were enjoying his brand of ginger beer, decided to add a couple of shots of vodka, lemon, ice, and whammo! The Moscow Mule was born. While current events have led some to label the drink a Kyiv Mule, there are a vast array of iterations of this cocktail to suit everyone’s palette. As long as the base is ginger beer and citrus juice, the possibilities are only limited by your imagination. It is very commonplace to serve a mule cocktail in a copper mug.

Fermentation factoids: Ginger beer has a few different forms, some that are fermented and some that aren’t. On the fermented side of ginger beer, we are going to rely on a combination of microbes referred to as “ginger bug.” This is similar to a sourdough starter in that you are creating a source of food for wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria; in this case a slurry of ginger, raw sugar, and water. Once mixed, let this sit until it has begun bubbling and foaming. 

GINGER BUG: Takes about a week to create. Heat up 2 cups of non-chlorinated water (bottled water, RO water, or filtered water as the chlorine will inhibit yeast and bacterial growth and possibly alter the flavor in a bad way) and dissolve between 2 Tsp and 3 Tsp of raw sugar and 1 Tbsp of lemon or lime juice to bring down the pH. Let this mixture cool. Dice or mince up about one ounce of fresh peeled ginger. Mix this into the cool sugar water and let sit overnight with the lid sealed tightly. For the next five days, feed the starter by mixing in 1 Tsp of raw sugar and ½ oz of diced peeled ginger. After several days, you should begin to see bubbling, which means the starter is active and healthy. You simply pour off what you need through a strainer and replenish as needed to keep the starter going.

FERMENTED GINGER BEER: In a sanitized 1 quart mason jar, mix together 3 ½ cups of water, 4-5 Tbsp raw sugar (avoid white sugar), 4 Tbsp peeled and grated ginger, ¼ cup of ginger bug, and 1 Tbsp lemon or lime juice. Stir or shake until all the sugar is dissolved. Put a cloth over the top of the mason jar and secure with a rubber band. At this stage, the ginger bug’s microbes need oxygen to carry out the fermentation. If you are using an active and healthy ginger bug, fermentation should kick off pretty quickly, with the final ginger beer ready to drink in about 3-5 days. It can be used then and there, or if you want it to be carbonated, transfer to a sanitized bottle that can withstand 10-30 PSI of pressure, seal, and let it ferment for another several days.

Here are a few cocktail ideas, including the original vodka (local option), with other common spirits such as gin (local option), tequila, rum, and bourbon. All these are served on ice in a copper mug or 12 oz vessel of your choosing.

Kyiv/Moscow Mule
2 oz Hideout Vodka (available at Verutti’s in Felton and Ben Lomond)
1/2 oz Lemon or Lime Juice
6 oz carbonated Ginger Beer (or 2 oz non-carbonated homemade ginger beer and 4 oz soda water)

Gin Gin Mule
2 oz Venus Spirits Gin
1/2 oz Lime Juice
6 oz carbonated Ginger Beer (or 2 oz non-carbonated homemade ginger beer and 4 oz soda water)

Mexican Mule
2 oz tequila or mezcal
1/2 oz Lime Juice
6 oz carbonated Ginger Beer (or 2 oz non-carbonated homemade ginger beer and 4 oz soda water)

Dark ’N’ Stormy
2 oz Dark Rum
1/2 oz Lime Juice
6 oz carbonated Ginger Beer (or 2 oz non-carbonated homemade ginger beer and 4 oz soda water)

Kentucky Mule
2 oz bourbon whiskey
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
6 oz carbonated Ginger Beer (or 2 oz non-carbonated homemade ginger beer and 4 oz soda water)

Ben Lomond local, Mike De Smidt has been home brewing for 14 years and is a BJCP Certified Beer Judge.

Greg Roe is a Felton local who has been a home brewer for 22 years and is a self-proclaimed Fermentation Geek.

Photos by Greg Rose and Mike De Smidt

Featured photo of the Moscow Mule/Kyiv Mule by Kelly Visel