The Mint Julep. The Kentucky Derby. Was there ever a more symbiotic relationship between event and cocktail? Some 100,000 of these Bourbon-based drinks are served as the Churchill Downs racetrack during horseracing's biggest week, and countless more are concocted and consumed at Derby parties across the country. Sadly, this refreshing elixir - as much a part of the Southern mystique as Faulkner, Tara or Stonewall Jackson - all too often goes into a year-long hibernation until the horses gather in the paddock once more. But why wait? The Mint Julep, which dates to the late eighteenth century, has no rivals if you want a sophisticated cocktail on a warm summer afternoon.
