Cocktails/ Recipes

M is for: Mexican Mule

I love me a good Moscow Mule.

But, I have a confession to make: I’m sort of a copper cup snob.

Before ordering a mule at a bar or restaurant, I may or may not first ask if they serve theirs in copper mugs. (I know, how very high maintenance of me).

But seriously, they are SOOO much better in a copper cup. I don’t know why, they just are. They stay so cold and delicious and you just feel really cool drinking them.

In fact, I love the copper mugs so much, I ordered a set to enjoy at home.

Recently though, I’ve started to stray away from vodka in general. Gin is sort of my go-to at the moment (see, French 75). And I’m also loving tequila. Enter… the Mexican Mule.

Aside from the copper mugs, the staple for any mule is the ginger beer. This is not actual beer. It’s like ginger ale, except way better. Way more ginger-y (is that a word?) with a nice little bite. My main gripe though, is that most ginger beer uses high fructose corn syrup. Maybe I sound preachy, but that stuff is so bad for you. That’s why I was pumped to discover this Fever Tree ginger beer, which uses cane sugar instead. I can find it at Whole Foods, and of course my favorite package store, The Wise Old Dog.

Here, I must give a shout out to my friend, Matt Abrams, who has become a master mixologist in his spare time. He made these at my house recently and had dropped a cut up jalapeno pepper into a bottle of tequila to infuse some spice into it. I wasn’t ready to commit to an entire bottle of jalapeno tequila, so instead, I just muddled some in the bottom of a shaker with some lime juice. The jalapeno isn’t necessarily required for the making of a Mexican Mule, but it does add a hint of spice which I loved.

From there, you can add ice and tequila and shake vigorously for about 20 seconds.

*Edit: After making these a few times now, I can say that not all jalapenos are created equal. Some are verrrrry spicy, so muddle with caution. I’d start with 1 slice in your first batch and see how it goes. You can always add more but you cannot take away burning lips. 🙂

Speaking of tequila, this Espolon Blanco was another nice little Wise Old Dog purchase, recommended by the owner, Jacob… who is always spot-on with fulfilling my random requests at his store. This went perfectly with this cocktail. Additionally, it won silver at the International Wine & Spirit Competition in 2012, and won gold in 2011 from the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, among other accolades. Also, I love the label. (And you know how I feel about packaging).

Strain the shaker contents into your ice-filled copper mugs and top off with ginger beer. If you want, you can throw another slice or two of jalapeno into your glass and garnish with a lime, jalapeno and piece of crystalized ginger if you’re feeling all fancy. (Which, you should, because you’re drinking out of a copper cup). Cheers!

Mexican Mule

by Jaymee Sire
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Keywords: beverage cocktail tequila lime ginger beer jalapeno Cinco de Mayo

document.write(”);

Ingredients (1 cocktail)
  • 1 jalapeno pepper
  • 3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1/2 of a lime)
  • 1.5 ounces tequila blanco
  • 4-6 ounces of ginger beer
  • ice
  • optional garnishes: lime, jalapeno, crystalized ginger
Instructions
  1. Place 1-2 slices of jalapeno in the bottom of a cocktail shaker, along with the lime juice. Muddle and then add tequila and ice. Shake vigorously for about 20 seconds.
  2. Strain into a copper cup filled with ice and top off with ginger beer. Garnish with a lime wedge, jalapeno and piece of crystalized ginger.
Powered by Recipage

You Might Also Like

  • Bruce Kish
    April 5, 2015 at 2:41 am

    Great recipe! I've been looking a tequila drink that's a change from the usual Margaritas to serve my friends. This fits the bill. Thanks for sharing!

    • jaymeesire
      April 5, 2015 at 4:08 pm

      You're welcome! Let me know what you think! Also, planning to make a note in recipe that some jalapeños are spicier than others so maybe start with 1-2 slices.

  • bcuello14
    April 5, 2015 at 10:04 pm

    Made these this weekend for my family and they were delicious! They were a big hit, at least for those that could stand the heat 🙂 The jalapeno I used in the second batch was way spicier than the first one so probably 1 slice would have been sufficient that time. I used a straw with the second one to lessen the burn on the lips. Lol (Go Cougs!)

    • jaymeesire
      February 27, 2018 at 5:41 am

      Spice level can be so unpredictable! Glad you enjoyed (and apologies for the super late response, haha)

  • Denise Hiatt
    February 27, 2018 at 5:34 am

    This might be good with a sprig of cilantro?!

    • jaymeesire
      February 27, 2018 at 5:40 am

      Definitely! Good idea… could maybe muddle some too!