It’s been a chaotic week with the climax being the one of the other bartender’s departure, who is the bartender I work the weekends with. We met many years ago when she was a sassy line cook with the mouth of an ex-con. I spent half the time trying to decipher a charming accent that is part drawl, part bam, and part her own language mixed in with an occasional loud expletive to really drive the point home. Nonetheless, she has a heart of gold, works like a mule, never says no, and will always go the extra mile – so when I was hiring a new bar assistant and she called me last year – it was an easy yes.
I feel lucky that I’ve been able to teach some truly awesome people how to bartend. Not only has it opened up a floodgate of one dollar bills in their lives, but in some cases it’s been the opportunity to learn who one is, hone one’s people skills, and learn to combat uber-levels of stress with a ridiculous smile on one’s face. And quite honestly, isn’t that the gift that keeps on giving.
Anyhow, I’m back from a mini four-day bender that started with the host’s birthday, moved on to the other bartender’s last night, proceeded with a bitch-ass going away party, and ended with a Monday afternoon champagne lunch and dinner bbq. Fortunately, it is not hard to go back to work when the job is to make a cocktails. I decided to make the juleps and smashes since my neighbors gave me a heap of mint from their garden to work with.
The Jerry Thomas Project is the re-creation of all of Jerry Thomas’ cocktails from Jerry Thomas’ Bar-Tenders Guide: Receipts for Mixing in their purest form. Jerry Thomas is considered America’s father of mixology publishing the first cocktail book in 1862.
So what is the difference between and julep and a smash?
In the julep, the mint is stirred and treated very carefully. In a smash, the mint is smashed (and typically steeped for longer). Otherwise, they are very similar. Thomas also calls for a tiny bit of water in the smash, but otherwise all the smashes and juleps consist of a base spirit, mint, and sugar.
A newspaper article from 1901 perhaps says it best, “Steep your mint leaves in whiskey over night; don’t crush them with a spoon. If you do you are making a mint smash, not a julep.”
The Real Georgia Mint Julep
1.5 ounces of Cognac
1.5 ounces of peach brandy
1 teaspoon of fine white sugar
3-4 mint sprigs
In a tumbler add the sugar to the water until it is dissolved, then add the mint, and then the brandy. Then stir the drink with a spoon (at this point I would let it steep for five – ten minutes) and then add shaved ice.
This drink is delicious and take time this week and make yourself one, especially since Thomas worried about the future of this drink, “The mint julep still lives, but it is by no means fashionable. Poor juleps have ruined the reputation of the South’s most famous drink.”
O.K. this isn’t peach, but this is a nice spin on The Real Georgia Mint Julep and I would be proud to name it The Real Oregon Mint Julep
The Real Oregon Mint Julep
1.5 ounces of brandy
1.5 ounces of pear brandy*
1 teaspoon of fine white sugar
*(Might I recommend Clear Creek Distillery’s Williams Pear Brandy. It takes 30 pounds of pears to make one bottle and they also make a bottle with an actual pear in it – the pear has to grow inside the bottle meaning that they have an orchard with bottles hanging off of the trees).
Mint Julep
3 ounces of brandy
2.5 teaspoons of water
1 tablespoon of sugar
2-3 sprigs of fresh mint
Mix the sugar and water together, carefully press the mint into the mixture (at this point I would let it steep for five – ten minutes). Remove the mint, add the brandy and fill with shaved ice. Take the mint and use it as a garnish, allowing the leaves to make a bouquet. Add berries, a slice of orange, and a dash of dark rum and serve with a straw.
What a hit! I can honestly say this is the first time I’ve never made a mint julep correctly. Usually I muddle the mint (for time’s sake), make it with whiskey and I’ve never added berries, oranges, or a dash of rum. This is absolutely delicious!
Gin Julep
3 ounces of gin (I totally recommend the Ransom’s Old Tom Pre-Prohibition style gin)
2.5 teaspoons of water
1 tablespoon of sugar
2-3 sprigs of fresh mint
Mix the sugar and water together, carefully press the mint into the mixture (at this point I would let it steep for five – ten minutes). Remove the mint, add the brandy and fill with shaved ice. Take the mint and use it as a garnish, allowing the leaves to make a bouquet.
Whiskey Julep
3 ounces of whiskey
2.5 teaspoons of water
1 tablespoon of sugar
2-3 sprigs of fresh mint
Mix the sugar and water together; carefully press the mint into the mixture (at this point I would let it steep for five – ten minutes). Remove the mint, add the brandy and fill with shaved ice. Take the mint and use it as a garnish, allowing the leaves to make a bouquet.
Pineapple Julep
(Not quite sure why this is called a julep as it doesn’t call for any mint.)
Recipe for one drink
1 ounces of raspberry syrup
1 ounces of Maraschino Liqueur
1 ounces of Old Tom Gin
2 ounces of sparkling wine
2 pieces of pineapple
Stir and add ice
Recipe for a punch bowl
4 ounces of raspberry syrup
4 ounces of Maraschino Liqueur
4 ounces of Old Tom Gin
1 quart of sparkling wine
1 ripe pineapple
Mix everything together in a punch bowl and add ice. Garnish with seasonal berries.
Raspberry syrup recipe
1/2 cup puréed raspberries
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
Bring the sugar and water to heat until it begins to bubble. Pull it off the burner, let it cool and add ½ cup raspberry purée.
Now for the smashes, which tend to be a lot mintier.
How long should I let the mint steep for?
I would say no less than 15 minutes, I’ve done ten minute steeps before and that is really the minimum to get any sort of mintiness out of the leaf. I would recommend overnight if possible and if you are making these drinks for a bar – I would steep by the fifth or half-gallon so people don’t have to wait 15 minutes for a cocktail. I’ve also had good luck using mint tea bags if you don’t have any good mint (two mint teabags to one fifth whiskey has worked well).
Brandy Smash
2 ounces of brandy
3 to 4 sprigs of mint
2 tablespoons of water
1 teaspoon of white sugar
Thomas tells his readers to press the mint in the sugar water, but I think you are going to get a much better smash allowing the mint to steep in the spirit first and then adding the other ingredients.
Add the water and sugar and garnish with a slice of orange and a fresh sprig of mint.
Gin Smash
2 ounces of gin
3 to 4 sprigs of mint
2 tablespoons of water
1 teaspoon of white sugar
Thomas tells his readers to press the mint in the sugar water, but I think you are going to get a much better smash allowing the mint to steep in the spirit first and then adding the other ingredients.
Add the water and sugar and garnish with a slice of orange and a fresh sprig of mint.
Whiskey Smash
(delicious!)
2 ounces of whiskey
3 to 4 sprigs of mint
2 tablespoons of water
1 teaspoon of white sugar
Thomas tells his readers to press the mint in the sugar water, but I think you are going to get a much better smash allowing the mint to steep in the spirit first and then adding the other ingredients.
Add the water and sugar and garnish with a slice of orange and a fresh sprig of mint.
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