The Marvelous Mint Julep: Q

Derby Day’s Drink of Choice

Kazi Haranyi reaches for colorful bottles and shiny shot glasses, before stopping to polish the outside of a copper mug. Then, the bar manager at Dorothy’s Cocktail and Oyster Bar is ready to begin.

“With all of our cocktails, it comes down to two things. The first is balance and the second is freshness,” he says, pulling out sprigs of fresh mint leaves.

“We make everything here from scratch, and we only use the freshest ingredients. That’s true in our cocktails and in our food.”

Today’s objective — creating Dorothy’s version of the beloved Mint Julep. The cocktail is often

The bourbon-based libation has been a part of the springtime soiree, held in Louisville, Ky., since 1875 (fun fact — it’s the oldest sporting event in the country). The julep itself has an even longer history, dating back to at least the early 1800s. That’s when many in “horse country” would reach for a glass as a medicinal remedy for their bodily aches and pains.

Legend has it that the blend of mint, sugar, and liquor would perk farm hands right up, allowing them to power through the day.

Today’s juleps certainly aren’t heralded for any medicinal value but what they do offer is sweet, chilly goodness that pairs

“Historically, mint juleps are pretty much sugar and bourbon,” Dorothy’s owner Daniel Auffenberg says with a laugh. “We do ours differently with more flavor, but without changing the cocktail itself.”

Haranyi nods, holding a glass bottle filled with a golden brown liquid.

“This is a (rendered) duck fat rye. You mix 2 ounces of duck fat with 12 ounces of Rittenhouse Rye Whiskey and shake it together,” Haranyi says.

“That would be enough for about six cocktails,” Auffenberg says of the rye mixture.

After leaving the mix to sit for a couple of days, the whole thing goes into the freezer. Once the concoction has frozen solid, the fat is removed.

“Then, you strain it, so now it’s just rye but with a lot more flavor,” he says, measuring out the whiskey.

Next, Haranyi adds his handmade grapefruit oleo saccharum (citrus oil sugar).

“I took 40 grams of coriander that I put in a pan and toasted. That opens up the oils in the coriander. Then, I used 300 grams of grapefruit peel and six sprigs of fresh tarragon along with 700 grams of sugar,” he says.

“I throw it all in a bag and I vacuum seal it. You leave it in there for two to three days, about 50 hours.”

“It’s called lacto-fermentation,” Auffenberg says. “Then, it’s put into a bowl. You pour 700g of hot, not boiling, water over the mix and strain through a fine mesh strainer. The oleo can be kept in the refrigerator for up to six weeks.”

Once he has all of these handcrafted, special touches, he’s ready to create his julep.

Haranyi grabs his finely polished glass of hammered copper and places it in the bar’s well of crushed ice.

“I like to make it in the well with the crushed ice sticking to the sides. It looks cool, but it gets a little melty,” he says with a laugh.

Once he adds all of the ingredients and gives it a stir, he tops the julep with bitters and plenty of fresh mint.

“Right on the top, so it hits you in the face,” he says with a grin.

While the julep will certainly be gracing Dorothy’s tables on Derby Day, there are plenty of other cocktails that are just as expertly designed. In fact, anything that makes it to Dorothy’s drink menu is rigorously planned and thoroughly tested.

“I could come up with a drink but it won’t make it onto the menu for months because we are tasting and testing to make sure we have it just right. We try them out on our friends and customers and listen to what they say before we add it,” Haranyi says.

The 148th Run for the Roses will be held at 5 p.m. at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on May 6. To make your own Mint Julep, try this recipe from Dorothy’s:

Ingredients

2 oz duck fat washed rye (or your favorite regular rye or bourbon)

½ oz grapefruit oleo (you can sub ½ oz simple syrup and ¼ oz Dry Curaçao if you wish in place of the oleo, but it will have a different flavor)

6 mint leaves

8 dashes angostura bitters

1 large mint bouquet for garnish

Directions

Place the mint leaves in a mint julep cup, and fill with crushed ice. Pour the rye and oleo over ice. Top the ice with angostura bitters and garnish with the mint bouquet.