Moscow Mule

Born in 1941 from a happy accident at Hollywood’s Cock ‘n’ Bull bar, the Moscow Mule brought together three struggling entrepreneurs: John Martin, who’d just acquired Smirnoff vodka; Jack Morgan, who couldn’t move his ginger beer; and Sophie Berezinski, a Russian immigrant sitting on 2,000 copper mugs from her father’s factory. The combination of vodka, ginger beer, and lime in a copper mug became one of the most successful marketing stories in cocktail history. Magazine ads and celebrity endorsements made it a nationwide sensation, and the copper mug — which keeps the drink bracingly cold and enhances the ginger’s bite — became as iconic as the drink itself.