Best Beverages to Celebrate the Kentucky Derby

May 6 is Derby Day this year, so if you’re planning on hosting a party to honor this equine tradition, we have all the fixings you need to make great drinks. We’re sure the ladies will be donning their wide-brimmed Southern Belle hats, and the guys will be sporting sharp suits with bow ties.

Ready to celebrate the “most exciting two minutes in sports” in style? We would be remiss if we didn’t talk about the most popular Derby beverage of all: the mint julep. But first, some history:

Mint Julep: How Did it Start?

The mint julep, a traditional cocktail served at the Kentucky Derby, is a long-standing tradition dating back centuries when an Arabic drink called julab was made with rose petals and water. It wasn’t made popular in this country until 1850 when Henry Clay, Kentucky U.S. senator, made a splash in Washington, D.C. by asking for it at the Round Robin Bar.

1983 was the year it finally earned its place as the official drink of the Kentucky Derby. Did you know 120,000 mint juleps are served over the two-day Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby weekend? Let’s break that down: that’s 1,000 pounds of fresh mint, 10,000 bottles of Bourbon, and 60,000 tons of ice.

Classic Mint Julep

There are certainly numerous variations of the mint julep, but here we’ll focus on the classic recipe. There are only three ingredients and it only takes about three minutes to make one.

Gather:

• 3 oz Bourbon
• Crushed ice 2 sugar cubes, or 1/2 ounce of simple syrup
• 4 mint leaves/sprig of mint
• Stainless steel or copper high ball glass, double old-fashioned glass or Collins glass

Put it together:

In a glass of your choosing, place the mint leaves and sugar/simple syrup. Use a cocktail muddler or wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar and release the mint oil. Add in the bourbon, filling the glass with crushed ice. Garnish with a sprig of mint and pop a straw in. That’s it!

Fizzy Mint Julep

If you like a fizzier cocktail, make these tweaks:

• 10 mint leaves/sprig for garnish
• Crushed ice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• Seltzer water
• 2 1/2 ounces bourbon

Lemon Lavender Mocktail

Not everyone wants alcohol in their Derby Day drink, so here’s an alcohol-free version for you to try.

Gather:

• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lavender simple syrup
• 1/4 tsp grenadine
• Three dashes of bitters
• Club soda

Put it together:

1. Combine shaker with ice and shake.
2. Strain into glass, top with club soda.
3. Garnish with fresh lavender

Now that you have a few ideas for fun drinks, we hope you enjoy the Kentucky Derby!

Prepare For Your Kentucky Derby Celebrations at Beverage Universe

We’ve got all the best beverages at the lowest bulk prices, including all the fixings you will need to make a superior Mint Julep or any other mixed drink to celebrate Derby Day.