There’s nothing like nursing a Moscow mule on a really hot day. You don’t need a copper mug – it just makes it extra tasty if you do happen to have a set of these glasses on hand. I’ve seen them for sale everywhere – at cooking stores and kitchen gadget places in the mail. The idea is, a copper cup keeps the drink extra cool.

When my youngest son, now a college professor, mixes one for me (it’s Jon Morgan’s favorite drink), the ice is chipped finely – but this drink tastes good over a quartet of fat ice cubes too. You can add a twist of any citrus fruit to make it better – from key limes to naval oranges. I got something extra special, considering it’s only July…BLOOD ORANGES!

While they’re not supposed to be in season yet, I keep seeing sacks of ‘em at the grocery store and that’s what I used this cocktail hour. Sooooo good!

So where does the Moscow Mule come from? If you’re thinking Russia, you’d be wrong. In 1941, bartenders at the Chatham Hotel in New York City concocted the drink. Jack Morgan (no relation), had a ginger beer product he decided to bring in by train from Los Angeles.  It was called Jack Morgan’s Cock ‘n’ Bull ginger beer. He also owned the Cock n’ Bull Restaurant in Hollywood.

Anywho…Jack and his friends met up at the Chatham bar one day, with the President of Smirnoff Vodka and dreamed up the Moscow Mule. As Jack Morgan tells it:

“We were quaffing a slug, nibbling an hors d’oeuvre and shoving toward inventive genius.”

A week or so after their experiment of mixing a two-ounce shot of Vodka with Morgan’s ginger beer, and squeeze of a lemon, the drink was christened the Moscow mule. Bottom’s up, my friends!

Blood Orange Mule

2 ounces Vodka

½ ounce blood orange juice, freshly squeezed

– 4 ounces ginger beer

– Mint and blood orange wheel for garnish

Mixing instructions:

Pour vodka and blood ornate juice into a copper mug. Add ice cubes and ginger beer. Stir to combine. Drop a lime wedge and mint leaf into the mug for a garnish.