Judging a Mint Julep competition tonight … you’re welcome to  join! Here are the detailz …

Thursday, April 21
Mint Julep Contest
O’Shea’s Irish Pub
956 Baxter Ave.
Free; 5-7 p.m.

It’s spring, and mint is in the air. We can officially order mint juleps without eye-rolls from bartenders or strange looks from out-of-towners. Besides the manhattan, the mint julep is my favorite drink, which is why I’m honored to be a judge in the annual Four Roses’ Rose Julep Recipe Contest, held Thursday at O’Shea’s in the Highlands. Ten bartenders from the city’s finest restaurants and bars create a variation of the julep, and we have to figure out who’s got the best and most original concoction. “Mixology is huge in the spirits world right now,” says Four Roses master distiller Jim Rutledge. “The level of talent and creativity brought to the contest every year is unbelievable. It’s impressive how these bartenders can continually put such a fresh spin on Kentucky’s signature cocktail.” Ten juleps is not a bad way to spend an evening.