The Easy Way To Give Your Cocktails A Fresh Twist

There's nothing like a well-made cocktail to elevate a night at home with friends. Even if you're not hitting the town, sometimes you crave that bartender-level quality — a perfectly balanced drink that tastes like a flavor bomb and goes down smooth. Something to impress your friends without too much effort because mixing cocktails is fun, but enjoying them is even better. In an exclusive interview with The Takeout, Jordan Hughes, the author and cocktail expert who runs the website High-Proof Preacher, explained that adding muddled mint can elevate the taste of almost any fruity or citrusy drink (this 2-ingredient citrusy cocktail is a must-know). 

What is muddled mint, you might ask? Muddling is the process of gently crushing herbs to release their natural oils and flavors. This technique is popular in cocktails like mojitos and mint juleps, where the fresh, vibrant flavors of mint are key to the drink's signature taste. Plus, muddled herbs look fancy floating in your glass, especially when paired with slices of lemon or lime.

When crafting fancy cocktails, bartenders often use a muddler — a thick stick with a flat, textured end — to crush herbs and fruits, releasing their flavorful oils. However, if you don't have a muddler, a simple bar spoon works just as well, which Jordan Hughes usually prefers.

Hughes emphasizes the importance of a light touch when muddling. He explains that over-muddling can cause herbs like mint or basil to turn black and bitter, which can compromise the flavor of the drink. Instead of forcefully crushing the mint, he places the leaves at the bottom of a tall glass and gently presses down on them with a bar spoon to release the oils without tearing the leaves. After this careful agitation, Hughes says, "[I will] take the bar spoon and gently drag the mint up the inside of the glass, coating the inside of the glass with the aromatic mint oils." 

He then builds the cocktail directly in the glass and uses the same spoon to "swizzle" the ingredients together. This technique ensures that any flavors and oils left on the spoon from muddling are fully incorporated into the drink.

Jordan Hughes shares that when it comes to muddled cocktails, the mojito, with its mix of mint, lime, and rum, is a classic choice. But why might you choose to muddle over using a simple syrup? Hughes explains that while syrups require "more intention and prep time" — often involving precise measurements, mixing, and sometimes lengthy infusion periods — muddling allows for an immediate release of essential oils. "With muddling, you can just take the herb you want to incorporate into your cocktail and gently muddle it," he says. This method allows a more direct infusion of fresh flavors into your drink.

In addition to the mojito, Hughes highlights the basil smash, a gin-based cocktail that showcases the aromatic flavor of basil, as another example of a popular muddled drink. For those seeking something different, he recommends the caipirinha, a Brazilian cocktail that muddles lime slices with sugar to create a vibrant, zesty base. He encourages experimentation, suggesting that swapping mint for basil in a mojito can offer the drink a fresh, slightly peppery contrast. For an adventurous option, try muddling umeboshi — pickled ume fruits common in Japan — for a cocktail with a savory, salty edge. Get creative with different herbs and fruits to unlock new flavors and impress your friends with your bartending skills.