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This cranberry Moscow mule is a tart spin on the classic, ideal for fall and winter entertaining! It’s refreshing and easy to make.
When it comes to parties, the Moscow Mule is pretty ideal. It’s tangy and refreshing, easy to make right into the mug, and everyone always loves it! Here’s one of our favorite fruity spins on the classic: the cranberry Moscow mule.
This drink has loads of sweet tart flavor, balancing crisp cranberry with tangy lime and spicy ginger. Sip it out of an ice cold copper mug, and it’s the ideal fall cocktail or winter drink!
Ingredients in a cranberry Moscow mule
The classic Moscow Mule is one of the greatest cocktails of all time, a combination of vodka, lime juice, and ginger beer. Invented in the 1940’s, it’s just as popular today! This fall and winter spin on it adds cranberry juice for a tart berry flavor. It’s hard to get the balance just right when adding juice to a mule, but Alex and I tinkered with this recipe until it was perfect. The ingredients you’ll need for a cranberry Moscow mule are:
- Vodka
- Lime juice
- Ginger beer
- 100% all natural cranberry juice (no sugar added)
Why to use 100% cranberry juice
For all our cranberry cocktail recipes, we prefer using 100% all natural cranberry juice. What’s the difference and why does it matter?
- 100% all natural cranberry juice is unsweetened, unlike bottles labeled “cranberry juice” or “cranberry juice cocktail.” This gives it a pure, tart flavor and a dark red color. It’s preferable because you can add sweetness to the drink to taste while amping up the berry flavor.
- Cranberry juice is typically sweetened, especially if it’s labeled as cranberry juice cocktail. It’s lighter in color. You can use it if it’s all you can find, the drink will be sweeter.
How to make a cranberry mule (basic steps)
The mule a favorite easy drink to serve when entertaining because it’s just so simple! You don’t need to dirty a cocktail shaker for this cranberry Moscow mule: just pour it all into the glass. Here’s what to do:
- Pour ¼ cup vodka, ¼ cup cranberry juice, and 1 tablespoon lime juice into a copper mug or serving glass of your choice.
- Top with ⅓ cup ginger beer.
- Add ice and garnish with lime. If you’d like, add some fresh or frozen cranberries to complete the look!
Using copper mugs
No cranberry mule recipe is complete without a copper mug! Of course, you can serve a mule in whatever you like. But since its invention in the 1940’s, the mule has been served in a copper mug: both for tradition sake, and the sensory effect of drinking from an ice-cold mug. It’s so satisfying!
You can use copper mugs for any type of drink, and they make great gifts. Here’s a link to some solid copper mugs on Amazon.
Making a Cranberry Moscow mule for a crowd
Having a party? Instead of measuring out each individual drink, here’s what we would do:
- Mix up 8 servings without ginger beer. That would be 2 cups vodka, 2 cups cranberry juice, and ½ cup lime juice.
- In each copper mug, pour about ½ cup mixer and ⅓ cup ginger beer. The exact measurements are 4 ½ ounces (9 tablespoons) mixer plus 3 ounces (6 tablespoons) ginger beer, but you don’t have to be that exact! Let us know if you try this variation.
Cranberry Moscow Mule
This Cranberry Moscow Mule is a tart spin on the classic, ideal for fall and winter entertaining! It’s refreshing and easy to make.
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 1 drink 1x
- Category: Drink
- Method: Poured
- Cuisine: Cocktails
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 2 ounces* vodka
- 2 ounces 100% all natural cranberry juice
- ½ ounce fresh lime juice
- 3 ounces ginger beer
Instructions
- In a copper mug or glass, pour in the vodka, cranberry juice, and lime juice. Add the ginger beer.
- Add ice and garnish with a lime wedge and fresh or frozen cranberries, if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
*To convert to ounces, 1 ounce = 2 tablespoons
More cranberry drinks
Cranberry juice has spawned some of the most iconic cocktails in history! Here are a few popular cranberry drinks to try:
- Opt for the classic Vodka Cranberry or Sea Breeze Cocktail
- Try the ever popular Cosmopolitan Cocktail
- Go for a Cranberry Margarita, Cranberry Martini or Cranberry Mimosa
Let us know if you have any questions!