The Best Nonalcoholic Cocktail Recipes

The Cherry Red, from Australian distiller, bartender, and cocktail book author Sebastian Reaburn, is sweet and tart, with a cinnamon spice kick. Inspired by “classic American flavors like Big Red chewing gum and Cherry Coke,” Reaburn uses black cherries and 100% real cranberry juice alongside lemon juice and homemade cinnamon syrup. This is all topped with club soda in an ice-filled highball glass, and garnished with cherries.

This spirit-free riff on the beloved bittersweet favorite combines three nonalcoholic products in equal parts: Ritual Nonalcoholic Gin Alternative, Martini & Rossi Vibrante Aperitif, and Lyre’s Aperitif Rosso. Balanced and bold, this N/A variation will please the most discerning cocktail palate. Garnish with an orange twist for additional citrus aromatics.

This refreshing nonalcoholic cocktail from Colorado-based bartender and restaurateur Bryan Dayton is featured in Julia Bainbridge’s book, Good Drinks. It is sweet and mildly bitter from Seedlip Garden 108 with botanical notes that shine with the addition of refreshingly bitter Fever-Tree Mediterranean Tonic Water and a fragrant, herbal garnish of basil sprig and cucumber ribbon.

Verjus translates to “green juice” and is a nonalcoholic grape juice made by pressing unripe wine grapes that are harvested early in the growing season. It makes for an ideal booze-free cocktail base as it adds the necessary acidic qualities necessary for a properly balanced drink. This creation from bar expert and author John deBary is pleasantly tart and balanced with raspberry syrup, a fresh banana slice, lime juice, and the spicy notes of jalapeño.

This refreshing green tea-based highball is another creation from mixologist Sebastian Reaburn. Herbaceous and earthy, Reaburn uses Japanese sencha tea to complement the bright and sweet flavors of unfiltered apple juice, simple syrup and freshly squeezed lime juice. Any other green tea will work, however. To enhance the vegetal qualities, this drink is garnished with very thin slices of cucumber.

Shrubs, also known as drinking vinegars, are excellent to use in nonalcoholic cocktail creations and can mimic the astringent bite of alcohol. This recipe combines strawberries, black pepper, lemon, and balsamic vinegar. Strawberry and balsamic vinegar are common pairings that complement each other, and the black pepper syrup adds an earthy, aromatic element to the drink. This is topped with a splash of seltzer to lengthen and lighten the rich flavors.

Food & Wine special projects editor Lucy Simon created this refreshing ginger and lemon highball in homage to a soothing tonic her grandmother used to make when she was a child. Made with three ingredients — ginger syrup, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and tonic water — this bright and fizzy drink is well-balanced, complex and refreshing any time of year.