joie de julep

1 1/2 oz Rye Whiskey (Old Overholt)
1/2 oz Simple Syrup
1/4 oz Green Chartreuse
1/4 oz Lemon Juice
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Muddle 4 mint leaves in the lemon juice in a Julep cup. Add the rest of the ingredients and ice, stir to mix and chill, and garnish elaborately with mint sprigs.

In mentally preparing for Tales of the Cocktail this July, I reached for the Stir Your Soul recipe book from Tales of 2010. There, I spotted the Joie de Julep which placed second in the official 2009 cocktail competition for the best Julep. The recipe was created by Boston's own Corey Bunnewith then of Drink, but by the time the book had come out, he was already the bar manager at Coppa. First place that year though was Maksym Pazuniak of the Cure and Rambla with the Creole Julep. Regardless, it was time to delve into the mint patch and bring back some fresh specimens.
The Joie de Julep presented a grand mint bouquet to the nose especially with the short straw in use. Lemon and malt on the sip shared a decent mouthfeel, and this led into rye whiskey, mint, and herbal notes from the Chartreuse on the swallow.