A matcha mint julep is easy to make with just 5 ingredients - matcha, mint, brown sugar & water (brown sugar simple syrup!), and bourbon.

Top view of a matcha cocktail filled with crushed ice and garnished with a sprig of mint.

This refreshing iced tea cocktail is perfect for anything from a happy hour pick-me-up to a derby party and satisfies bourbon and green tea lovers, alike. Serve over crushed ice with a sprig of mint.

What alcohol and flavors go well with green tea?

ALCOHOL: You can mix green tea with rum, vodka, gin, whiskey, or in this case, bourbon. Green tea has a delicate flavor, so it tastes great when you keep the cocktail simple, with simple ingredients.

FLAVORS: Some of my favorite green tea flavor pairings include lavender, rose, strawberry, mint, orange, and chocolate.

Note: This green tea cocktail has caffeine. It is about half the amount of caffeine as espresso and about the same amount as a cup of coffee. The caffeine in matcha is long-lasting and less likely to give you jitters than coffee.

How to Make a Matcha Mint Julep

The Equipment & Ingredients

To make this recipe, you will need bourbon, water, fresh mint, culinary grade matcha powder, bourbon, and crushed ice.

Ingredients for a matcha cocktail including water and ice, mint, matcha, bourbon, and brown sugar.

The following are affiliate links to purchase the equipment and matcha I use in this recipe. These are external links and will open in a new tab:

Matcha whisk (optional) - you can also use a regular whisk.
Culinary grade matcha
1 ½ cup measuring cup you can put on the stove (optional) - the link is to the set I own and love, but you can also use a small saucepan.
Muddler

Start With a Brown Sugar Simple Syrup

For the simple syrup, add ¼ cup of brown sugar and ¼ cup of water to a saucepan. Turn the heat to medium and stir until dissolved. Let cool, then keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator. The simple syrup will last for up to one month, so feel free to scale up the recipe 1:1.

The Cocktail

Mix the bourbon and culinary grade matcha powder in a small bowl (photo 1). Whisk them together to remove all the clumps, preferably with a matcha whisk (photo 2).

Tip: You can also sift in the matcha powder to help reduce clumping. If you don't have a matcha whisk, you can use a regular whisk or fork.

In an old fashioned glass, rocks glass, or julep cup add the mint leaves and simple syrup (photo 3). Muddle until the leaves just start to break down (photo 4).

Mixing matcha and bourbon in a bowl, then mixing simple syrup and mint in a glass.

Fill the glass ¾ full with crushed ice and then add the bourbon/matcha mixture (photo 5). Stir the ice until the glass starts to frost (photo 6). You can also do this in a cocktail shaker, but it isn't necessary.

Pouring matcha into a cocktail next to a glass of green tea cocktail garnished with mint and a stirrer.

Then add more crushed ice to fill the glass as full as you can, and garnish with a sprig of mint. Serve immediately.

A green tea cocktail fulled with crushed ice and garnished with mint.

If you're looking for other easy & refreshing cocktails, check out these favorites:

More Matcha, Please!

The following are some of my other matcha drink favorites. Or peruse some of my favorite matcha recipes here.

And of course, the crowd-pleasing matcha green tea ice cream.

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Print Recipe

5 from 12 votes

Matcha Mint Julep - A Green Tea Cocktail

A matcha mint julep is easy to make with just 5 ingredients - matcha, mint, brown sugar & water (brown sugar simple syrup!), and bourbon.

Prep Time5

Cook Time3

Total Time8

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American, Japanese

Servings:

Calories: 206kcal

Author: Candice

Ingredients

Brown Sugar Simple Syrup

▢ ¼ cup brown sugar or other sugar
▢ ¼ cup water

Matcha Mint Julep

▢ 1 teaspoon matcha powder culinary grade
▢ 10 mint leaves
▢ 1 tablespoon brown sugar simple syrup or other simple syrup
▢ 2 ounces bourbon ¼ cup
▢ 1 sprig of mint for garnish

Instructions

For the simple syrup, add ¼ cup of brown sugar* and ¼ cup of water to a saucepan. Turn the heat to medium and stir until dissolved. Let cool, then keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Mix the bourbon and matcha powder in a small bowl. Whisk together to remove all the clumps, preferably with a matcha whisk. You can also sift in the matcha powder to help reduce clumping.
In an old fashioned or rocks glass, add the mint leaves and 1 tablespoon of simple syrup. Muddle until the leaves just start to break down.
Fill the glass ¾ full with crushed ice and add the bourbon/matcha mixture.
Stir until the glass starts to frost, then add more crushed ice to fill and garnish with a sprig of mint. Serve immediately.

Notes

*You can use any sugar that dissolves in warm water for the simple syrup, but the flavor from the brown sugar is lovely and recommended.

Let the simple syrup cool, then keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator. It will last for up to one month, so feel free to scale up the recipe 1:1.

If you don't have a matcha whisk (chawan) you can use a regular whisk or a fork. Just make sure to get rid of all the clumps.

Nutrition

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