By now, most of us know that we don’t need alcohol to have a good time—or a good drink. Whether you call them mocktails, zero-proof, spirit-free or non-alcoholic cocktails, drinks without the booze can be just as interesting, complex and delicious as their more spirited counterparts.
We asked local drink pros to give us their best N/A recipes to mix up at home. For the sober and the sober curious, cheers!
Monet Didn’t Blush
Cocktail Caravan is a Boulder-based company that specializes in fresh-pressed cocktail and mocktail mixers, so you know their drinks are going to be packed with flavor. (They also have an adorable mobile bar named Lolita that you can rent for your next event.) This grapefruit, ginger and mint concoction—shared by the company’s founder, Crystal Sagan—is no exception. And it’s oh-so-tasty when mingled with your favorite sparkling water.
Ingredients
2 oz. grapefruit juice
0.5 oz. lemon juice
2-4 slices fresh ginger
5-10 mint leaves
0.75 oz. simple syrup
2 oz. sparkling water
Directions
1. Freshly squeeze the grapefruit and lemon into separate small bowls and set aside.
2. Add ginger, mint, lemon juice and simple syrup to a cocktail shaker and muddle.
3. Add grapefruit juice to the cocktail shaker and shake hard!
4. Find a fancy glass and add fresh ice and sparkling water. Strain the contents of the shaker into the fancy glass and give it a stir. Garnish with something special and enjoy the fruits of your labor!
N/A Kiwi Margarita
Margaritas can be just as yummy minus the tequila. At Boulder’s popular food truck park and coworking space, Rayback Collective, beverage manager Tim Bruno mixes a mean N/A kiwi marg, and it’s fairly simple to recreate at home. Just grab and puree a kiwi, mix it up with an alcohol-free agave spirit (such as Ritual)—plus some lime juice and simple syrup—and you’ve got an easy-drinking margarita without any of the regrets. 2775 Valmont Road, Boulder
Ingredients
1.5 oz. Ritual N/A agave spirit
1 oz. pureed kiwi
1 oz. lime juice
0.5 oz. rich simple syrup
Lime wedge and salt for garnish
Directions
1. Rim your glass with salt and cut a fresh lime into wedges.
2. Pour all ingredients into a shaker and give it a good shake to mix.
3. Fill your glass with ice and pour the margarita in. Garnish with that lime.
Nao de Chai
The Nao de China was an old trade route between Mexico and China, where the Chinese would swap their porcelain, silk and spices for New World silver and goods. This cocktail—from OAK at Fourteenth’s beverage director Colin Griffith—blends ingredients from both cultures for a complexly bright, cozy sip. 1400 Pearl St., Boulder
Ingredients
1.5 oz. Cut Above non-alcoholic mezcal
1.5 oz. Chai Spice agave (recipe below)
1 oz. lime juice
0.5 oz. orange juice
Star anise (garnish)
Directions
Pour all drink ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Give it a hard shake. Pour it into a rocks glass and garnish with star anise.
For the Chai Agave:
400 grams hot water
1 packet (31g) Chai Spice Mix
750 grams agave syrup
Combine chai spice mix with hot water. Mix well. Add agave and mix again. Store in the fridge until ready to use.
N/A Jungle Bird
Boulder’s resident rum bar, Jungle, knows how to bring a taste of the tropics without the alcohol. Their namesake Jungle Bird is a well-balanced mix of sweet (that pineapple syrup!), tart (fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice makes it even better) and bitter (yes, there’s N/A Campari). Shake, pour and go ahead and pretend you’re on a beach somewhere. 2018 10th St., Boulder
Ingredients
1.5 oz. Seedlip N/A Spirit
0.25 oz. N/A Campari
0.25 oz. pineapple syrup (see recipe below)
0.5 oz. grapefruit juice
0.5 oz. lime juice
1 oz. pineapple juice
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice. Shake it up and pour into a tall glass. Make it extra fun by garnishing with a pineapple wedge!
For the pineapple syrup:
1 cup pineapple juice
1 cup sugar
Pour pineapple juice and sugar into a small pot and bring to a boil. When boiling, remove from heat and allow to cool. Bottle it up and store in the fridge until ready to use.
Cucumber Mint Cooler
The Bitter Bar is one of Boulder’s best watering holes, whether you’re on or off the wagon. It doesn’t get much more refreshing than their Cucumber Mint Cooler, which perfectly balances the sweet and sour ingredients and then kicks it up a notch with muddled cucumber. Even better? You probably have all the ingredients you need for this one on-hand. 835 Walnut St., Boulder
Ingredients
4 slices of cucumber, plus more for garnish
4-6 mint leaves, plus more for garnish (optional)
1 oz. simple syrup
1 oz. lime juice
2 oz. water
Sparkling water
Directions
1. Muddle cucumber and mint leaves in a short cocktail shaker. Add simple syrup, lime juice, and water, then add ice to fill the shaker.
2. Shake your mixture (hard!), then strain drink over fresh ice and top with sparkling water. Garnish with mint sprig, lime wedge, and cucumber slice.
