Julep Strainer by Modern Mixologist
Water is an essential cocktail component, imparted by dilution of the ice with which we stir or shake it. When it’s time to separate a cocktail from its ice—or muddled-in fruit or other large, solid ingredients—strainers do the trick. But some strainers work better than others for different mixing vessels.
Designed to fit perfectly into the Modern Mixologist Mixing Glass (alone or as part of the Boston Shaker set and not to be confused with the Mixing Glass), the line’s Julep Strainer sports a divot to guide your index finger to brace the strainer against the ice in the glass. (Were you to insert the strainer upside down, creator Tony Abou-Ganim points out, the divot becomes a bump.)
Although the julep strainer’s hole pattern is aesthetically attractive, there, too, is function. A one-inch band without any holes prevents the drink from spilling over the ice onto your hand, and instead forces the liquid to the bottom for a controlled, attractive pour.
The julep strainer was originally designed as a drinking implement, allegedly to keep the ice in a your julep cup away from your teeth in the days pre-straw. Abou-Ganim does not recall seeing julep strainers used in service prior to 1998, the year he opened Bellagio Las Vegas as the resort’s first property mixologist. But for the definitive answer, Abou-Ganim says, you’ll have to consult beverage historian David Wondrich.
Other products in the Modern Mixologist Brand can be found here.
Materials: Stainless steel
Dimensions: L 6”, W 3”, H ¾”