![]() ![]() Its central ingredients - mint, bourbon, sugar - do not suffer from clumsy commingling, nor demand engraved vessels, nor mind if you root for the New York Giants so long as Eli is taking the snap. It’s a drink, a splendid and simple drink, the ideal analgesic to a tough day at work, and the perfect - yes, perfect - counter to the redlining mercury of a hot Southern day. It’s not a tuxedo, requiring a special occasion. ![]() The mint julep may be sacred in the South, but so is college football, and that doesn’t stop us from enjoying it. Makes you want to reach for a Bud and be done with it. That’s way too much cultural pressure when you’re just trying to cool yourself off on a summer afternoon. I keep pens in it.) Owing to all this pomp and kerfuffle, drinking a mint julep, to some folks, can feel too much like an affectation, akin to rechristening the porch the veranda, or yourself the Colonel. In fact, there’s one on my desk as I type this. (I have a vast collection of those cups, all of them awarded to me for playing the groomsman role in various Southern weddings. And it feels downright silly drinking out of one of those while you’re watching the Braves on TV with your other hand nestled in a bowl of Ruffles. Cobb posited in 1936, an obnoxious Northerner adding nutmeg to a mint julep? Then there are those silver julep cups that tradition dictates using. Mencken’s great term) about the inscrutable origins of the drink and the proper and properly authentic way to mix a julep - do you leave the mint in or remove it? Must the ice be crushed? And was the actual cause of the Civil War, as the author Irvin S. For one, there’s all the back-and-forth scuffling among historians and professional “alcohologists” (to crib H. It’s like the communion wafer of cocktails. Here’s my theory: The mint julep has become too iconic to merely drink. Smith one more time, before we call him a cab: “He who has not tasted one has lived in vain” - is owing to something else. ![]() No, our weird resistance to drinking mint juleps - let’s cue Mr. They’re easier, in fact, since they don’t require a giant sack of limes. They’re no more difficult than all the mojitos that have been creeping their way north from Miami for the past half decade or so. Nor will I brook the claim that juleps are hard to make. It does not require, as a garnish, a televised horse race and a bunch of Yankees doing Foghorn Leghorn imitations. Smith went on - shouldn’t be relegated to sipping just one day a year, like a fruitcake waiting for Christmas. A drink this sublime -“the zenith of man’s pleasure,” Mr. Soule Smith wrote, accurately, in the 1890s - so damn much, then why don’t we drink them?Īllow me to cut you off before you tell me about your last Derby Day party: Sorry, that doesn’t count. So here’s the saloon riddle for the day: If we know and adore mint juleps - “the very dream of drinks,” as a Kentucky newspaperman named J. And that, mind you, is if you can even locate the rare bartender willing to fix you one. There’s not a citizen alive who hasn’t heard of it, which is more than you can say for the Manhattan, the Cosmopolitan, the Sidecar, and the Negroni, all of which outsell mint juleps by a staggeringly wide margin. No matter how you choose to use up your stash, know that your recipes are about to get a lively punch, thanks to fresh mint.Aside from the martini, the mint julep may be the most iconic cocktail in America. So if you're wondering, "What can I do with lots of fresh mint?" The short answer is, almost anything! Fold into a springy omelet with peas, toss onto veggie-packed grilled pizzas or muddle with cucumber to make an epic cocktail for your next summer party. We've gathered our go-tos to make the most of mint, from dinner recipes with mint (chicken with minty rice, anyone?) to luxe spring salads that use the herb as another form of green. These mint recipes prove it! Whether you have an abundance of mint in the summer (when the crop grows rampant and you're wondering what to do with mint leaves) or you're looking to add a bit of brightness to any dish, like a quick and easy breakfast or family dinner, and even dessert and drinks, this spunky fresh leaf has your back. If something needs a hit of freshness or a little extra zest, a sprinkle of mint, parsley, basil or cilantro will do the trick. ![]()
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