Copper mug

Glassware

Cold to the touch and made of metal, the copper mug is the signature vessel for the Moscow Mule and other mules.

Also called: Moscow mule mug · mule mug

FDA Food Code: No bare copper contact with foods below pH 6
Capacity: 12 to 16 oz (350 to 470 ml)
Used for: The Moscow Mule and other ginger beer mules, such as the Kentucky Mule

What copper mug means

Moscow Mules and other ginger beer mules go in a copper mug. A mule is a buck, a drink of spirit, ginger beer and citrus. The mug became the drink's signature in the 1940s, when Smirnoff photographed bartenders holding one and a bottle to promote it.

It sounds right that any copper mug is fine for a Mule. The FDA Food Code bars bare copper from touching foods below pH 6, and a Mule is acidic. A mug lined with stainless steel or nickel avoids that problem, so check the lining before you buy one. Lined and solid copper mugs look alike, so read the label or ask the seller.

How to serve a drink in a copper mug

A Mule is built right in the mug, so have the lime and the ginger beer ready before you pour.

1.Fill the mug with ice before you add anything else, because the metal takes on the cold fast.
2.Build the drink in the mug by adding the spirit and lime juice, then top it with ginger beer.
3.Hand-wash solid copper mugs and polish them regularly to keep their shine.

Copper mug compared

Highball glassA highball glass also holds a Mule, and it has no metal to chill the drink.
BuckThe buck is the drink style itself, and the copper mug is only its usual vessel.

Related terms

Ingredients

Put it to use in your next drink

Garçon explains every step as you make the drink.