Frozen Peach and Vanilla Mint Juleps.

This flavor is everything I want to have forever.

Next weekend, you can enjoy the most exciting 120 seconds of May with one of these bourbon babies in hand. I cannot wait!

Eddie also obviously can’t wait, but he will pass on the bourbon. Whomp whomp. Too many bad nights in college and he’s like, nope!

Last year, I made fresh watermelon mint juleps BEFORE the derby. But on derby day, I made a version of the fresh exchange’s peach mint juleps, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about them ever since! Their version used the peach preserves from American Spoon which has probably been one of my entire family’s favorite flavors for, oh, I don’t know… twenty years?! So they were a huge hit.

I knew that I wanted to incorporate frozen peach slices into the mix – not in a puree and not in a major flavor way, but as part of the “ice” so the peach flavor gradually melted into the drink and you got just a slight hint of it.

Result: PERFECTION.

Also, I really liked having the peach slices to munch on with the cocktail.

Frozen peaches also won out because we aren’t even CLOSE to good peach season in this area. The ones I find at the grocery store are as hard as a rock and basically never ripen. It will probably be months before I get a good one, so frozen peaches are the answer! I prefer them over canned too. Just to be real.

The vanilla? Well gosh, do I ever NOT want something to be vanilla-flavored? I soaked a few cut vanilla beans in my bourbon for only 60 minutes here, but back in the fall, I made infused bourbons and that is where I took the inspiration from. If I were you, I’d throw some cut vanilla beans into your bourbon TODAY so that in another nine days, the flavor will be extra vanilla-y.

AND. Vanilla simple syrup. Just to be as vanilla as possible. Yesssss.

Oh oh oh and just in case you want some other mint julep inspo, I’ve made:

Blueberry mint juleps!

Pineapple mint juleps.

Mint julep FRUIT SALAD. With homemade marshmallow. Naturally.

Your day is set.

Frozen Peach and Vanilla Mint Juleps

Yield: drink makes 1, is easily multiplied; syrup makes a 1/3 cup

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

2 1/2 ounces bourbon (soaked with vanilla beans, if desired)
1 ounce vanilla simple syrup
1 ounce club soda
frozen peach slices
crushed ice
fresh mint leaves

vanilla simple syrup

1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract



Directions:

Combine bourbon and vanilla syrup together and shake or stir well. Pour over a mix of frozen peach slices and crushed iced, top with club soda and serve with extra mint leaves. Garnish with a few more peach slices. Drink up!

vanilla bean syrup

Combine the sugar, water, scraped vanilla beans and whole bean in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbling. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Let cool completely before stirring in the extract and storing in a jar. I usually don't remove the vanilla pod and just leave it in for flavor!

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Half of this drink is all about the cute cups. Right?

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