While it is certainly a classic cocktail component, mint has been a difficult ingredient for me until recently. For the longest time, I only had two options to get that mint flavor:

(1) Purchase expensive fresh mint leaves that would spoil quickly.

(2) Substitute creme de menthe, which has an unmistakable toothpaste-like quality to it.

Facing this no-win situation, there was an entire category of drinks missing from my repertoire for quite a while. Mojitos, juleps, stingers— I couldn’t make any of them. Then, one day at Publix, everything changed.

I was standing in the produce section with a bag of mint leaves in my hand. “Ugh,” thought the thrifty side of my brain, “$4 for a bag of leaves that I’ll have to power through in a week? Better get some more bourbon and plan a julep night.” I begrudgingly put the bag of leaves in my cart, but as I continued through the produce section, I noticed a stand of full herb plants, and featured prominently in the center of the display was peppermint. Gazing down at my $4 bag of mint leaves and looking up at the $3 full mint plants, I made a very easy decision.

Mint plants are fairly low maintenance; in fact, one site described them as foolproof. They require regular watering and partial sunlight, and they can thrive inside or outside. I’ve positioned mine on my back porch, where the afternoon sun catches it, but it is otherwise sheltered. This placement near my kitchen also makes it convenient when I’m mixing drinks.

In cocktails, it’s important to draw the distinction between mint sprigs and mint leaves. Mint leaves plucked from the sides of the stems make an excellent flavor component, while the sprigs from the top of the plant make an outstanding garnish. Ideally, you can cut off about the top 4-5 inches of a stem of mint, strip the lower leaves away to go directly into the drink, and set the upper sprig aside as a garnish. The whole upper part of the plant is useful in drinks, and the rest will grow and produce more leaves and sprigs in a matter of days.

Most drinks featuring mint require muddling, so make sure to do this gently. You don’t want to pulverize the mint leaves. You just want to bruise them enough to release that fresh flavor into the drink. Shake gently as well, and make sure to double-strain the cocktail so that your friends aren’t finding bits of mint in their teeth all night. As for the sprigs, you may want to set them aside in a little water until they’re ready to use, but if you’re going to store them overnight, keep them dry in a plastic bag. Ideally, I keep the leaves and sprigs directly on my plant until I’m making drinks, but since mint requires regular harvesting and pruning, that means occasionally setting aside a small batch of leaves or sprigs for later use.

I recently got the opportunity to put all this to the test when some friends returned from a trip to Cuba with a bottle of rum. Admittedly, I don’t have the most discerning palate for rum, but this was certainly the good stuff. Given that it was Cuban rum, we decided to make one of the essential Cuban drinks that’s experienced a boom in popularity lately:

The Mojito
– 1.5-2 oz of rum
– 3/4 oz lime juice
– 3/4 oz simple syrup (I use turbinado)
– 2-4 mint leaves
– mint sprig for garnish
– lime wheel (optional)
– top with soda

Gently muddle lime juice, simple syrup, and mint leaves in the glass half of your boston shaker. Remember: just bruise the mint, don’t shred it. Add ice and rum and shake gently. Double strain into chilled collins glass over ice. Top with soda and garnish this drink with a lime wheel (optional) and a mint sprig (not optional).

The resulting cocktail is fresh and sweet to the point that my friends commented, “Wow, these things could be dangerous.” While the mojito is one of the more popular drinks I make regularly, it has the longest prep time due to the many steps involved. If you’re planning a party where mojitos are a central drink, you may want to make a full batch of these ahead of time and have a glass with several mint sprigs on hand for guests to garnish their own drinks.

Mint is a crucial addition to a home bar, but it doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg. Be on the lookout for fresh mint plants; they’ll do wonders for your cocktails.