Mint Julep
Old Fashioneds & Duos · Whiskey
- Strength
- 27.9%
- Std. drinks
- 1.52
- Calories
- 159
- Sugar
- 2.5 g
- 2 ozBourbon60 ml
- 4 sprigsMint
- 1 tspPowdered sugar
- 2 tspWater
The ratio · 6 : ½ : 1
Highlighted: not in the Whiskey Smash.
Head to head
Mint Julep and Whiskey Smash side by side: what changes in the recipe, the balance, the strength and the calories.
The difference
Whiskey, mint, sugar and water in both. Jerry Thomas called the Smash “simply a julep on a small plan”: fewer mint sprigs, served in a small glass rather than a frosted julep cup.
By the numbers
They use the same ingredients, in different amounts and built differently. In parts, a Mint Julep is 6 whiskey, ½ sugar and 1 water; a Whiskey Smash is 1 sugar, 1½ water and 6 whiskey. By volume, the Mint Julep is 81% spirit, 14% mixer and juice and 5% syrup and sugar; the Whiskey Smash is 71% spirit, 18% mixer and juice and 11% syrup and sugar. That makes them close cousins on the ratio map.
The Mint Julep is the stronger drink in the glass (27.9% ABV against 25.4%), but being smaller it holds about the same alcohol (1.52 standard drinks each). The Whiskey Smash has more calories (about 172 against 159) and more sugar (6.0 g against 2.5 g). Both are built; the Mint Julep is served in a julep cup, the Whiskey Smash in a rocks glass.
Old Fashioneds & Duos · Whiskey
The ratio · 6 : ½ : 1
Highlighted: not in the Whiskey Smash.
Old Fashioneds & Duos · Whiskey
The ratio · 1 : 1½ : 6
Highlighted: not in the Mint Julep.
Each drink sits nearer the corners it has more of: spirit, vermouth and bitter, citrus, mixer, syrup or liqueur. The gray dots are the other classics. Explore the full ratio map.
Mint Julep vs.
Whiskey Smash vs.