Moscow Mule Mocktail

Before you start

A Moscow Mule is ginger beer, lime and vodka, and the vodka contributes almost no flavor. That makes the mule one of the easiest drinks to take alcohol-free: everything you taste comes from the ginger beer and the lime. The quality of the ginger beer therefore matters more than anything else. Look for one with real heat and not too much sugar.

The small additions here make up for the missing spirit's bite. A few slices of muddled fresh ginger add a sharp, peppery top note, and a little extra lime keeps the drink from tasting like soda. Serve it in a copper mug or a highball packed with crushed ice and drink it while the fizz is lively.

Ingredients

• 3 thin slices fresh ginger — about 5 mm thick, unpeeled is fine
• 20 ml (¾ oz) fresh lime juice
• 10 ml (2 tsp) ginger syrup or simple syrup — optional, only if your ginger beer is dry
• 180 ml (6 oz) spicy ginger beer — well chilled
• 1 lime wheel — for garnish
• 1 sprig fresh mint — optional garnish

Method

1. Put the ginger slices in the bottom of the mug and press them firmly with a muddler four or five times, until they crack and smell sharp.
2. Add the lime juice and the syrup, if using, and stir to pick up the ginger juice.
3. Fill the mug to the top with crushed or cracked ice. Crushed ice chills fast and gives the traditional frosty look on copper.
4. Pour the ginger beer slowly down the side of the mug so it keeps its carbonation. Stop about 1 cm from the rim.
5. Stir once, gently, from the bottom up, just enough to bring the lime into the ginger beer.
6. Garnish with a lime wheel and a slapped mint sprig. Serve with a straw so each sip pulls a little ginger from the bottom.

Tips for success

• Taste your ginger beer before you start. If it is very sweet, skip the syrup and add 5 ml more lime.
• Keep the ginger beer cold until the moment you pour. Warm soda loses its bubbles the second it hits ice.
• Leave the muddled ginger in the mug. It keeps releasing heat as you drink.

Substitutions

Ginger beer

Ginger ale makes a softer, sweeter drink with much less bite. Add 2 extra ginger slices to compensate.

Fresh ginger

Skip it entirely if your ginger beer is very fiery. A dash of non-alcoholic aromatic bitters adds depth instead.

Lime juice

Lemon gives a rounder, less sharp drink. Grapefruit juice makes it more bitter and refreshing.

Variations

Cranberry mule

Add 45 ml unsweetened cranberry juice before the ginger beer and garnish with fresh cranberries and rosemary.

Cucumber mule

Muddle 3 cucumber slices with the ginger and garnish with a long cucumber ribbon.

Troubleshooting

The drink tastes like plain soda

There is not enough lime or ginger. Add the full 20 ml lime and muddle the ginger harder to release its juice.

It goes flat quickly

The ginger beer was warm or was stirred too much. Pour it cold, down the side, and stir once only.

It is too spicy

Some ginger beers are very hot. Leave out the fresh ginger and add a splash of soda water to soften it.

Storage

Serve immediately; the carbonation fades within minutes. Store opened ginger beer tightly capped in the refrigerator and use within a day or two for the best fizz.