The Thomas Hardy Mule: A Dorset Twist on a Classic

The Moscow Mule is one of the great long drinks — ginger, lime and ice doing exactly what they should. Our version swaps the vodka for something with rather more character: our own Ginger Liqueur, a splash of rum, and a name borrowed from Dorchester’s most famous son. Thomas Hardy knew the old brewery well — it turns up in his writing — so it felt only right that our first cocktail should carry his name.

What You’ll Need

50ml EP & Co. Ginger Liqueur
25ml rum
125ml ginger beer
12.5ml fresh lime juice
6 mint leaves
3 lime wedges
A highball glass, packed with ice

Nothing exotic, and nothing you can’t find on a Tuesday evening. The one rule: the lime juice must be fresh. The bottled stuff will flatten the whole drink.

How to Build It

Fill a highball glass right to the top with ice — the same rule as a good G&T; more ice means a colder, slower-melting drink, not a weaker one.

Pour in 50ml of Ginger Liqueur and 25ml of rum. Add 12.5ml of fresh lime juice, then drop in the mint leaves and lime wedges for a proper burst of freshness.

Top with ginger beer, give it one gentle stir — just enough to introduce everything — and you’re done. Bold, zesty and dangerously easy to drink.

A Word on the Ginger Beer

As with tonic in a G&T, the mixer is most of the glass, so make it a good one. You want a ginger beer with some real fire to it — it should back up the liqueur, not water it down. And cold, always cold.

Why the Ginger Liqueur Works

A classic Mule relies entirely on the ginger beer for its ginger. Ours doubles up: the liqueur brings a deep, warming ginger sweetness from the bottom of the glass while the ginger beer brings the fire and the fizz from the top. The rum sits in between, adding body. It’s a fuller, rounder drink than the original — and at this time of year, a very good argument for staying in.

Ready to try one? Our Ginger Liqueur is available in 70cl and 35cl bottles.