Mint Julep

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A Mint Julep in a traditional cup.

The Mint Julep is a mixed alcoholic drink, or cocktail, distinctive to the southern United States.

A mint julep is traditionally made of four ingredients: mint, bourbon, sugar, and water. In the use of sugar and mint, it is similar to the mojito.

The drink was probably invented sometime in the 18th Century. U.S. Senator Henry Clay introduced the drink to Washington D.C. and the northern United States. The word “julep” is derived from the Persian “julab” meaning rose water.

Traditionally, mint juleps were often served in silver or pewter cups, and held only by the bottom and top edges of the cup. This allows frost to form on the outside of the cup, which some would find a sign of gentility. Others merely find it pleasant to look at.

1 Popular culture
2 Reference
3 See also
4 Links

[edit] Popular culture

[edit] The Kentucky Derby

It is well-known as the traditional beverage of the Kentucky Derby, a position it has held since 1938; during the event, more than 80,000 juleps are served at Churchill Downs. For over 18 years, the Early Times Mint Julep Cocktail has been the designated "official mint julep of the Kentucky Derby".

In May 2006, Churchill Downs served 50 custom-made mint juleps at a cost of $1000 each at the Kentucky Derby. The mint juleps were served in gold-plated cups with silver straws, and were made from mint imported from Morocco, ice from the Arctic Circle, and sugar from the South Pacific. The proceeds will be used to support charitable causes dedicated to retired race horses.

[edit] On television

The mint julep was a featured recipe on the "Raising the Bar" episode of Alton Brown's Good Eats.

In the Simpsons episode Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment, Homer is making home-made liquor in his basement, which Moe refers to as a "Bathtub Mint Julep."

Mint Julep is believed to be one of the favorite drinks of Star Trek character, Dr.Leonard McCoy. A man from the "Old South", McCoy is fond of Bourbon whiskey and its derivatives. He prepares a Mint Julep for himself during the episode "This Side of Paradise" aired on March 2, 1967.

[edit] In film

In the movie Goldfinger, James Bond drinks with the titular villain, ordering a julep made with Tennessee sour mash instead of bourbon.

The drink is the center of a drawn out comedic scene from the Francis Ford Coppola film, Finian's Rainbow.

The drink is mentioned in the film Thank You for Smoking (2005) when the Captain explains to Nick Naylor the secret to making the perfect Mint Julep, and later at the Captain's funeral, it is placed on his coffin.

In the movie One, Two, Three, lead character C.R. MacNamara describes Atlanta as "That's Siberia with Mint Juleps".

[edit] In literature

Mint juleps are referenced in the Hunter S. Thompson piece The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved

The drink is mentioned in chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby.

In Robert A. Heinlein's 1948 novel Space Cadet, Tex bribes a waitress at a space station bar to make and serve a pitcher of mint juleps to him and his two roommates during a brief leave from the Academy. Matt and Oscar have one and then pass on the rest, but Tex gets drunk, requiring his roommates cover up for him after he vomits all over his unifom, since the cadets are not allowed to consume alcohol. The incident reveals that Tex is not quite the wild man he has made himself out to be, and he admits that with the exception of his Uncle Bodie, his family are teetotalers.

Thank You For Smoking: A Novel by Christopher Buckley mentions the drink when The Captain explains to Nick Naylor the secret to making the perfect Mint Julep. (Crushing the mint onto the ice.)

[edit] In music

Bobby Goldsboro in his song Summer The First Time mentions a woman who "sipped on a julep."

The Mint Juleps is the name of a New Zealand indie folk duo.

Ray Charles recorded a song titled "One Mint Julep".

Louis Armstrong mentions Mint Juleps (or at least Juleps) in the song "You Go To My Head" with the line "You go to my head like the kicker in a julep or two".

The title song of the musical "Mame" says Mame "give my old mint julep the kick."

[edit] Elsewhere

There are some versions of the drink in a non-alcoholic form, the most noted being made by the Walt Disney Company and served at two of their theme parks (Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland) in a small section themed after New Orleans. They are made with Creme de Menthe and Limeade.

Bob Dylan described in his Theme Time Radio Hour episode #3 how to make, by his preferences, a perfect mint julep:

"First up, you take four mint sprigs, two and a half ounces of bourbon. I'd put three. A table spoon of powder sugar, and a table spoon of water. You put the mint leaves, powder sugar and water in a Collins glass. You fill the glass with shaved, or crushed ice, and then add bourbon. Top that off with more ice. And...I'd like to garnish that with a mint sprig. Serve it wih a straw. Two or three of those, and anything sounds good."