Issue Seven

My interest in the mint julep was sparked after I left Kentucky for Buffalo in mid-1995 to become Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Inquiry. (There I currently investigate paranormal and fringe-science claims and write the “Investigative Files” column for Skeptical Inquirer magazine.) As a parting gift I had received from my fellow Confederation executive board members, “for service to The Historical Confederation of Kentucky,” a gleaming “Kentucky’s Julep Cup” (as is engraved on its underside) handcrafted by Salisbury Pewter.

For a time (I am ashamed to say) the cup languished in a cupboard, then (horrors!) served as a pen and pencil caddy atop my office desk. But as I outfitted a home bar I came to realize that I should know more about the historical concoction for which the cup was intended–especially given that my background in historical research and the fact that I, like Harland Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame, am a Kentucky Colonel, an honor bestowed by a certificate from the governor of the commonwealth.

This little book is a distillation, so to speak, of the fruits of my research–and considerable experimentation–regarding the Kentucky mint julep.  I searched the archives at the University of Kentucky, collected mixed-drink guides old and new, challenged bartenders, and of course, mixed and sipped and mixed again. I sought out whiskey collectibles and even at times maintained potted mint plants, acquiring an intimate acquaintance with Mentha spicata.

I had not originally intended to write a book on the subject of juleps. But a lighthearted remark over a lunch with The University Press of Kentucky’s then-director Kenneth Cherry and managing editor Angelique Galskis (a lunch sans spirits, by the way) soon had the two of them talking, as I sat momentarily ignored. “A small book,” said one. “But a quality edition,” replied the other. “Modestly priced,” said the first, and so on.

Here, then, is the rich tradition that is the Kentucky mint julep–a bit of history and lore as well as a number of recipes, each having its own philosophical twist. Relax, read,
mix and enjoy!

Julep Lore: Dickens and Irving

In 1842 at a hotel in Baltimore, Charles Dickens and Washington Irving discussed the qualities of an especially large mint julep. Dickens later wrote: “It was quite an enchanted julep and carried us among innumerable people and places that we both knew. That julep held out far into the night.” Ever after that night, Dickens claimed that he never saw Irving in his mind’s eye without that julep, “bending over it, with his straw, with an attempted air of gravity.”

Henry Clay’s Mint Julep Recipe (1777-1852)

According to Gerald Carson, “The mint julep belongs to Kentucky and to bourbon. In the Bluegrass State it is as sacred as Derby Day or the memory of Henry Clay.” This recipe is historically authoritative, from the diary of the Great Compromiser himself, Henry Clay. Following is the method for making a julep in Clay’s own words.

The mint leaves, fresh and tender, should be pressed against a coin-silver goblet with the back of a silver spoon. Only bruise the leaves gently and then remove them from the goblet. Half fill with cracked ice. Mellow bourbon, aged in oaken barrels, is poured from the jigger and allowed to slide slowly through the cracked ice.

In another receptacle, granulated sugar is slowly mixed into chilled limestone water to make a silvery mixture as smooth as some rare Egyptian oil, then poured on top of the ice. While beads of moisture gather on the burnished exterior of the silver goblet, garnish the brim of the goblet with the choicest sprigs of mint.

Joe Nickell received his Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky in 1987. He is known for his expertise on antique ink and paper and the forensic analysis of historic documents. He is arguably the country’s most accomplished investigator of the paranormal and is author of more than 16 books including The Real Life X-Files and Detecting Forgery. He lives in Buffalo, New York. You can purchase The Kentucky Mint Julep at www.kentuckypress.com.