A Moscow mule is not an animal – it is an alcoholic beverage! It is enjoyed in a copper mug and made by combining ginger beer, vodka, lime, and ice. For over 70 years people have been drinking Moscow Mules in copper mugs, but recently Iowa’s Alcoholic Beverages Division put out an advisory bulletin because it may be poisonous.
The advisory was posted on July 28, 2017, and it says that Iowa and other states now prohibit copper from coming into contact with foods that have a pH less than 6.0. The Moscow Mule is one of those foods.
Image Credit: Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division
The issue is that the copper may leach into the food at low pH levels and cause diarrhea, liver failure, vomiting, and maybe death. The story of the Moscow mule dates back to the 1940s and New York City’s Chatham Hotel. Three friends John A. Morgan, John G. Martin, and Rudolph Kunett decided to mix vodka, ginger beer, and a squeeze of lemon – voila!
The Moscow Mule was born!
