10 Best Whiskeys For A Mint Julep

Refreshing, sweet, and very fun to drink, the mint julep is a classic bourbon cocktail traditionally associated with the glamour of the Kentucky Derby. On each Derby weekend, more than 120,000 juleps are served to thirsty guests at the Churchill Downs Racetrack.

The classic recipe calls for bourbon, sugar, fresh mint, and water. But as big of a Southern icon as it is, the origins of this classic concoction can be traced back to the Middle East. The first mentions of a julep (the word translates as rosewater) can be found in records of European medicine. This healing combination of sugar, herbs, spices, and sometimes a spirit eventually found its way to the United States. In the 19th century, horse track workers made the most of its medicinal properties and drank mint juleps in the morning, which helped them deal with their physical pain.

In our search for the perfect julep, we enlisted Rodrigo Urraca, co-founder of Mexico City's Handshake Speakeasy, which was just named the #2 Bar in North America at the 50 Best Bars in North America. Alongside Gustavo Almaraz, Handshake's whiskey expert, Rodrigo helped us pick the best 10 whiskeys for a mint julep.

"A timeless classic that stands out as one of the best and most popular bourbons," says Rodrigo, Maker's is made in Loretto, Kentucky. Following the same process as they did back in 1953 when founder Bill Samuels Sr. set to create the brand began, the team at Maker's uses red winter wheat, which provides the whiskey with a delicate flavor. The second key ingredient is water from the distillery's surrounding areas, filtered through limestone; the third is an heirloom yeast strain that ferments in centuries-old tanks.

The bourbon rests in charred new American white oak barrels, which have been previously seasoned outdoors for nine months, removing tannins that affect the bourbon's flavor. Each barrel is rotated by hand, a tradition that dates back to Bill's days, and holds the liquid for six or seven years until it's ready.

Maker's unmistakable bottle, with its classic label and wax topper, was the work of co-founder Margie Samuels, who wanted to create a design that stood out on shelves. She used to hand-dip the bottles in wax in her kitchen, and today, each bottle is still hand-dipped at the distillery. Inside waits a bourbon with notes of sweet oat, vanilla, fruit, and wheat and a creamy finish with touches of spice. This will result in a classic Julep, sweet and smooth.

The incomparable care and attention to detail that the Japanese are known are loved for is essential to Toki, a blended whisky from the House of Suntory (yes, as in "it's Suntory time"). For the past century, Suntory has been producing premium Japanese whisky ever since the opening of its first distillery near Kyoto. Here, at the Yamazaki Distillery — the first of five — founder Shinjiro Torii took inspiration from Scottish whisky, yet chose a place that is quite different to Scotland, aiming to create a liquid that was quintessentially Japanese.

"Toki," which means "time," blends the house's heritage and tradition with more innovative energy. You can find notes of basil, green apple, and honey on the nose, as well as green grapes, peppermint, thyme, and grapefruit on the palate. The subtle finish has hints of ginger, white pepper, and vanilla oak.

"This Japanese blended whisky is very versatile for cocktails," says Rodrigo, which means it will be a great ally as you prepare your julep. In fact, the brand has its own recipe, the Toki Julep, a fresh, herbal drink with a slice of grapefruit.

Baptist preacher Elijah Craig, a Georgetown, Kentucky visionary, not only brought the first paper and wool mills to town. He also had great talents as a distiller and was the first one to age whiskey in new charred oak barrels in 1789. While there are two versions to this story, one says an accidental fire burned the barrels, while another one says Craig used former sugar barrels to store the liquid and discovered the benefits of charring — the fact is that Craig was a pioneer with undeniable influence on the bourbon-making process.

To create Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel, it all begins with a mash bill of 78% corn, 10% aged rye, and 12% malted barley. Fresh Kentucky water, filtered by limestone, adds to the liquid's pureness. The small-batch bourbon is aged in charred oak barrels and finished in a second toasted barrel, resulting in a deeply interesting whiskey. At first, you'll feel the deep aromas of toasted oak and caramel, followed by notes of spice, pepper, and milk chocolate on the palate, followed by a touch of smoke. Notes of chocolate and spices linger during the complex, warm finish, meaning an Elijah Craig mint julep will be rich and deep-flavored.

The story of this Kentucky bourbon takes us back to 1984, when Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee, a Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Famer, was about to retire. But before that happened, he was assigned an important task: to create an incredible bourbon. For inspiration, he looked back to his early distilling days when he worked alongside distillery president Colonel Albert B. Blanton, who liked to choose honey barrels from the brand's iconic Warehouse H for special occasions and bottle the liquid one barrel at a time. "They were the first to produce single-barrel bourbon, which was very revolutionary in its time," says Rodrigo.

Blanton's Original Single Barrel boasts notes of vanilla, caramel, and baking spices on the nose, as well as oak and citrus on the palate. One of the reasons that Blanton's has such a rich flavor is the fact that the walls of Warehouse H are made of metal, so they allow for the temperature inside to be quite similar to the one outside. This means that the bourbon will be more sensitive to weather-related temperature changes as it is absorbed and released from the barrels over and over. The 93-proof bourbon will bring intensity to your julep. To make it more festive, you will notice that each bottle has a horse on the bottle stopper, a tribute to Kentucky's horsing traditions.

Referring to a fine bourbon on a first-name basis is no joke, but that's the level of love that Pappy van Winkle can inspire. It all started a century ago with the legendary Julian Pappy van Winkle, who started his influential career as a whiskey salesman at W.L. Weller & Sons. There, he later became president of the distillery. History tells us that he never planned to enter the whiskey business, but his commitment to making exquisite bourbon gave him a solid reputation in the industry. His son, Julian Jr., followed in his footsteps, founding J.P. Van Winkle and Son and creating the Old Rip Van Winkle label. Later came Julian III and his son Preston, who helped double the size of the sales team at the distillery.

Today, Pappy van Winkle Family Reserve 23 year is one of the distillery's most treasured liquids. Rodrigo calls it a "fine, elegant bourbon, with great attention to detail shown along every step of its production." After careful distillation, this liquid rests in specially selected barrels for three additional years. This bourbon offers flavors of caramel, cherries, apples, oak, tobacco, and chocolate, followed by a long finish with notes of wood and caramel. You'd be hard-pressed to find a more elegant julep than one made with this "jewel of a bourbon," as Rodrigo describes it.