page_title: Mint julep
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Mint julep / History
caption_attribution_description: English: A Mint Julep made by Jim Hewes at the Round Robin Bar in Washington, DC.
context_page_description: Mint julep is a mixed alcoholic drink, or cocktail, consisting primarily of bourbon, sugar, water, crushed or shaved ice, and fresh mint. As a bourbon-based cocktail, it is associated with the American South and the cuisine of the Southern United States in general, and the Kentucky Derby in particular.
context_section_description: The term "julep" is generally defined as a sweet drink, particularly one used as a vehicle for medicine. The word itself is derived from the Spanish "julepe", from Spanish Arabic, and this from the Persian word گلاب (Golâb), meaning rosewater. English juleps, as opposed to later American mint julep, were primarily medicinal, lightly alcoholic, and often contained camphor. 
  The mint julep originated in the southern United States, probably during the eighteenth century. The earliest known mentions come from 1770 and include a satirical play by Robert Munford, The Candidate, (where a drunkard character “Mr. Julip” appears), and "A Short Poem on Hunting" (which describes julep as a concoction "Which doctors storm at, and which some adore") published in the Williamsburg Virginia Gazette. Further evidence of mint julep as a prescription drink can be found in 1784 Medical communications: "sickness at the stomach, with frequent retching, and, at times, a difficulty of swallowing. I then prescribed her an emetic, some opening powders, and a mint julep." 
  In 1793 Rev. Harry Toulmin described mint julep as “a tumbler of rum and water, well sweetened, with a slip of mint in it.”. An appearance of a mint julep in print came in a book by John Davis published in London in 1803, where it was described as "a dram of spirituous liquor that has mint steeped in it, taken by Virginians of a morning." Davis' interviewee mentions his love for whiskey came from his daily preparation of the drink.
  Virginia taverns such as J. Pryor’s Haymarket Inn in Richmond began including ice-houses (possibly for the iced cocktails too) in their infrastructure in the 1780s, and the first mention of "Iced Julep" appears on May 4, 1807, in an advertisement for the Wig-Wam Gardens in Norfolk. 
  U.S. Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky introduced the drink to Washington, D.C., at the Round Robin Bar in the famous Willard Hotel during his residence in the city. 
  Americans enjoyed not only bourbon-based juleps during the nineteenth century, but also gin-based juleps made with genever, an aged gin.
  By 1820, the julep was a legacy in Virginia and had been adopted as an item of local identity. The first acknowledged master of mint juleps was Jasper Crouch from Richmond, who identified himself as a Free Person of Color.
  In the 1830s in New York was known a version known as "hailstone" julep or "hailstorm" julep, which included small "hailstones" or pounded small lumps of ice.
  British captain Frederick Marryat's 1840 book Second Series of A Diary in America describes on page 41 the "real mint julep" thus:
  There are many varieties [of Mint Julep], such as those composed of Claret, Madeira, &c.; but the ingredients of the real mint-julep are as follows. I learnt how to make them, and succeeded pretty well. Put into a tumbler about a dozen sprigs of the tender shoots of mint, upon them put a spoonful of white sugar, and equal proportions of peach and common brandy, so as to fill it up one-third, or perhaps a little less. Then take rasped or pounded ice, and fill up the tumbler. Epicures rub the lips of the tumbler with a piece of fresh pine-apple, and the tumbler itself is very often incrusted outside with stalactites of ice. As the ice melts, you drink.
  The 1862 edition of Bar-Tenders Guide: How to Mix Drinks or The Bon-Vivant's Companion by Jerry Thomas includes five recipes for the mint julep (as well as an illustration of how it is to be served) allowing for either Cognac, brandy, gin, whiskey or sparkling Moselle. Thomas states of the mint julep, "... a peculiarly American beverage ... It was introduced [later] into England by Captain Maryatt."
  In 1916, the traditional Virginia recipe as served at the "Old White" is described
  ... the famous old barroom, which was approached by a spiral staircase. Here in this dark, cool room, scented with great masses of fragrant mint that lay upon mountains of crushed ice, in the olden days were created the White Sulphur mint julep and the Virginia toddy, for which this place was famous the world over. The mint juleps were not the composite
caption: A mint julep made with Henry Clay's original recipe at the Round Robin Bar. According to bartender and historian Jim Hewes, the cocktail was originally served in a crystal glass because it represented a more upper class beverage.
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