Mocktails (Kidding! Obviously I’ve added alternative recipes with liquor!)

Many people tend to start their year booze-free, but it doesn’t need to be boring. There are some amazing mocktails available, which can be so good you don’t even notice there’s no alcohol in them. Here’s five of my favourite mocktails you can make at home. I have included alternative recipes for those who don’t bother being dry. Go on, don’t let January beat you, enjoy a mocktail or two!

1 Pomegranate Ginger Sangria

Mocktail

1l Pomegranate juice

0.5l Non-alcoholic spicy ginger beer

Grapes, halved

Orange, sliced

Apple sliced

Starfruit (it doesn’t really taste that good, but it looks cute)

Mix all in a jug and leave it in the fridge for up to two hours. If you feel it is too sweet just add a little less juice and replace with soda. Add ice just before serving.

Cocktail

0.75l Red wine

0.35l Pomegranate juice

0.35l Spiced ginger beer

½ Pomegranate

Lemon slices

100ml Brandy

Mix all ingredients in a jug, including pomegranate seeds and lemon slices. Keep in the fridge for up to two hours before serving. Add ice just before serving.

2 Pink Grapefruit and Basil Mojito

Mocktail

Pink grapefruit juice

Dash of sugar syrup

2 Basil leaves

Soda

Crushed ice

Muddle the basil leaves slightly with the sugar syrup. Fill the glass with crushed ice and pour over pink grapefruit juice, leaving enough room for sparkling water. Stir a little and serve.

Cocktail

50ml White rum

3 Slices of pink grapefruit

25ml Fresh lime juice

2 tsp Brown sugar

2 Basil leaves

Soda

Crushed ice

Muddle pink grapefruit with lime juice and sugar. Add rum and basil leaves and stir slightly. Top up with crushed ice and a little bit of soda water. Stir and garnish with a basil leaf.

Note: Also delicious when you replace the pink grapefruit with strawberries.

3 G&T

Mocktail

50ml Juniper syrup *

15ml Fresh lemon juice

Premium tonic water

Ice

Combine juniper syrup and lemon juice in an ice-filled Collins glass. Top up with tonic water and garnish with a lemon slice.

* Make your own juniper syrup:

3 tsp Juniper berries

3 Bay leaves

Short peel of orange

1 cup of water

1 cup of sugar

In a small saucepan, muddle the juniper berries. Add the bay leaves, orange peel and water. Bring to a simmer. Stir in the sugar and simmer for 15 minutes. Let the mixture cool, then cover and store in the fridge overnight. Taste test before straining into a sterilised jar, cover and refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.

You could also use other ingredients depending on the flavours you like. For example, pink peppercorns, lemon peel, cardamom, lavender, pink grapefruit or coriander.

Cocktail

50ml Gin of your choice

(Opihr Gin is great if you like cardamom)

Premium Tonic Water

Fill a Collins glass with ice and your chosen garnish. First pour the gin, then top up with premium tonic water.

4 Bramble

Mocktail

50ml Juniper syrup * (see juniper-bay leaf recipe above)

25ml Lemon juice

Sprig of tarragon

5 Blackberries (extra for garnish)

Soda

Crushed ice

Crush blackberries and tarragon slightly in a rocks glass. Add some crushed ice, then juniper syrup and lemon juice. Stir slightly. Add more crushed ice and top up with soda.

Cocktail

50ml Gin

25ml Lemon juice

15ml Sugar syrup

15ml Crème de mure

5 Blackberries (extra for garnish)

Crushed ice

Build the first three ingredients over crushed ice in a rocks glass, then pour the Crème de mure over the top so that it bleeds down the ice. Garnish with blackberries.

5 Spiced Piña Colada

Mocktail

75ml Pineapple juice

30ml Coconut milk (from the can)

25ml Chai syrup *

Ice

You have two ways to mix this drink. Mix all the ingredients, including ice, in a blender and pour into a rocks glass. Or shake all the ingredients in a Boston shaker and serve in a rocks glass with ice. Garnish with cinnamon or nutmeg.

* Chai syrup

2 tbsp Whole black peppercorns

1 tbsp Fresh chopped ginger

4 Cloves

1 Star anise

4 Small cinnamon sticks

6 Green cardamom pods

1 Cup water

1 Cup sugar

Bring water to boil. Turn it down and add sugar and spices. Let it simmer for 10–15 minutes. Take the mixture off the heat, cover with lid and leave it to rest for an hour. Strain the syrup, cover and store in the fridge for up to 4 weeks.

Cocktail

50ml Golden rum

50ml Pineapple juice

30ml Coconut milk (from the can)

25ml Chai syrup *

Ice

Simply shake all the ingredients in a Boston shaker and pour over ice. Garnish with a pineapple slice.

Notes:

1 You can make pineapple juice at home, or if you use fresh pineapple chunks, blend all the ingredients in a blender instead of using the Boston shaker.

2 Make it float. This works well with both mocktail and cocktail version. Just add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and serve with a spoon. Yum!!

Do you ever drink mocktails when you are on a night out? What kind of virgin cocktails you like? I would like to hear your recipes. It’s always nice to try something new!