A drink that’s still in mint condition
MINT is so much more than a breath freshener.
The refreshing herb is the cornerstone of one of the world’s oldest and most popular cocktails: the mojito.
Owner of Flinders St cocktail bar Hooch and Fellow Josh Agostino said the mojito dated back to the 1500s, when Sir Francis Drake mixed up a primitive version of the cocktail, packed with mint, for his sailors in the Caribbean.
The mojito became hugely sought- after in the 1990s and has continued to remain a favourite among swillers and sippers.
“It’s a real fall back if you’re looking at a cocktail list ( and can’t decide),” Mr Agostino said.
The mint julep is another hugely popular cocktail, which came to fame in southern US in the 1800s.
Mr Agostino said more than 120,000 mint juleps were poured during two days each year at the Kentucky Derby.
“Mint’s a big staple in the bar and I think it always will be,” he said.
While his bar in Townsville’s CBD has a reputation for people experimenting with their drinks, Mr Agostino remembered working in a British bar where they used 10kg of mint a week, making a huge number of mojitos.
“Mint doesn’t weigh a lot,” he said.
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