How Not To Make a Mint Julep

how about how to make a proper Mint Julep? The Kentucky Derby is tomorrow and I would like to have a good one. I found this website http://www.io.com/gibbonsb/juleps.html that helps but would like to get some more inputs.

Mint Julep aficionados are more serious about their Juleps than any TCer is about his Mai Tai. They all but wage war over the specifics of mixing. One very old quote I've read is to the effect of "Anyone who would (insert any step in mixing that can be done in multiple ways) would put rattlesnakes in a baby's cradle"

I, for one, am annoyed by many things done in the cocktail world.
Martinis: Any cocktail in a martini glass is NOT a martini. Vodka or gin, vermouth. There are a few ways to tweak it. But chocolate 'tinis and apple-tinis are NOT martinis. Period.
Margaritas: No mango, or coconut, or other fruity flavors please. And no frozen slush. Some tiki drinks are great with cracked or crushed ice. Margaritas are not good this way, generally. And lay off the canned sour mix.
And as much as I do like sweet liqueurs like St. Germain, Benedictine, Limoncello, Ouzo etc., the drinks with 10-15 super-sweet things (99-anything, Pucker, schnapps, etc. etc. plus Sprite and/or sour mix) fall into the category so cheerily described by the three female tenders in that one vid, known as panty-droppers. AKA, to paraphrase another poster here, "You're gonna get date-raped later".

I DO like some of the bartending inventiveness. And even sour mix has a place. But there are horrors, too. Best use of sour mix I've found: a drink at a Seattle bar that serves lots of Long Islands and the like, the name of which I can never remember (something "...del fuego") uses sour with St. Germain and habanero/poblano-infused tequila and cucumber. Amazing stuff. Not tiki, but very good.

What IS Rose's lime juice good for? Anything...? I'll take a freshly-squeezed lime over that any day - preferably with the lime husk in the drink to add to the aroma. That lime smell coming off a good rum cocktail adds to the effect. I'm honestly curious as to whether it has a proper place in a certain drink(s).

Oh, and... If I ever start talking like the guy in that Mojito vid who seems to want to take the "little baseball bat" home for "his own kitchen", somebody bash me over the head with the largest tiki they can lift. Please. I don't care what anyone says, that level of "flaming" is about ten miles beyond being cute. Not that I'm flaming at all - ANY level of that annoys ME.

[ Edited by: TorchGuy 2010-04-30 19:48 ]

On 2010-04-30 19:45, TorchGuy wrote:
...
What IS Rose's lime juice good for? Anything...? I'll take a freshly-squeezed lime over that any day - preferably with the lime husk in the drink to add to the aroma. That lime smell coming off a good rum cocktail adds to the effect. I'm honestly curious as to whether it has a proper place in a certain drink(s).
...

I've always thought the Gimlet was the only cocktail where Rose's lime juice was acceptable.

According to Gary Regan, author of The Bartender's Bible (don't know if it's a reliable tome, I didn't read it), "... since the Rose's product has such a long and impressive history (which predates the gimlet), I am inclined to think that Rose's was the ingredient that invented the drink".

But who knows... Plus I'm willing to bet that the Rose's lime juice of today tastes nothing like it originally did. Better to just stick with fresh lime juice and simple syrup.

I just had to see what Ted Haigh had to say as I do consider him a very reliable source.
Sure enough, Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails indicates the Gimlet as traditionally using the dreaded Rose's Lime Juice Cordial. Of course Ted improves on the recipe by adding some fresh lime juice as he states the traditional version was too sweet.

I've always thought the Gimlet was the only cocktail where Rose's lime juice was acceptable.

Back in the realm of tiki, the Suffering Bastard (and assorted variants) use Rose's.

Think of Rose's as lime syrup instead of lime juice and you'll realize that one is not a substitute for the other. Although the idea of adding a bit of fresh lime along with the Rose's when you don't want so much sweet is not a bad one.

A more interesting question would be does anyone (Monin for instance) make a lime syrup and how does it compare to Rose's? A lime syrup with cane sugar might be a good alternative.

Checking they do:

http://www.amazon.com/Monin-Flavored-Syrup-33-8-Ounce-Units/dp/B000YT7TRE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1272687686&sr=1-2

I wonder how it compares to Rose's? I use so little of the stuff I'm not willing to buy a 750 to find out.