Mango Mule Recipe: Vodka, Mango and Ginger Beer

Ingredients

1½ oz vodkae.g. Absolut · Smirnoff · Grey Goose · Ketel One · Belvedere
1 oz mango purée
½ oz lime juice freshly squeezed
¼ oz honey syrup honey and warm water 1:1
3 slice cucumber for a cool, green note (optional)
3 oz ginger beer a spicy, not too sweet one

Garnish: Lime wheel and cucumber ribbon · Ice: Ice cubes

Method

Muddle the cucumber slices with the honey syrup in a shaker.
Add vodka, mango purée and lime juice, fill with ice and shake for about 10 seconds.
Strain into a copper mug filled with fresh ice cubes.
Top with ginger beer and stir gently once from the bottom up.
Garnish with a lime wheel and a thin cucumber ribbon.

Watch it made

Mango Mule

Taste

Ripe mango and honey on the palate, followed by lime and a warm, peppery ginger finish. Light to medium strength and very refreshing.

History and origin

The Mango Mule is a modern fruit variation of the Moscow Mule. The original is usually traced to Los Angeles in the early 1940s, where the Cock 'n' Bull restaurant, which made its own ginger beer, and Smirnoff's American distributor promoted vodka, lime and ginger beer as a new highball. The copper mug became part of its identity and helped sell it across the United States.

Since then, the mule has become a template: spirit, lime and ginger beer, with endless fruit and herb additions. Mango versions spread with the wider availability of good frozen purées. No creator is known for this one, and it also works well without alcohol.

Bartender tips

Choose a dry, spicy ginger beer: mango already brings plenty of sweetness, and a sugary soda makes the drink cloying.
Do not shake the ginger beer; add it at the end to keep the bubbles.
For an alcohol-free Mango Mule, leave out the vodka and use 120 ml ginger beer; the cucumber and lime keep it balanced.

Variations

Moscow Mule: The original: 45 ml vodka, 15 ml lime juice and ginger beer, built in a copper mug.
Alcohol-Free Mango Mule: Skip the vodka, keep the mango, lime, honey and cucumber, and top with more ginger beer.