What Is a Mocktail & How to Make a Fabulous One?

You’ve most certainly heard of cocktails before, but have you ever heard of mocktails? If you frequent bars and clubs, you probably have.

On the other hand, those of you who aren’t into alcoholic beverages are probably itching to know the answer to “What is a mocktail?“

Basically, it’s a copycat or an imitation of a cocktail, with a few vital differences.

Mocktail vs. Cocktail

The biggest and most important (and probably the only) difference between a cocktail and a mocktail is the alcoholic ingredient.

Cocktails are alcoholic drinks with several ingredients to create a more pleasant taste. Mocktails also include various ingredients, except for liquor. They are becoming very trendy since a lot of people are choosing to avoid alcohol for health reasons, safety reasons, or just because they enjoy the taste with no side effects.

Nonetheless, some bartenders and mixologists still prefer to make non-alcoholic versions fun and delicious.

They often use different spices and herbs to imitate the sensation of alcohol consumption and its buzzing feeling. Some of these ingredients may even boost mood, wellness, and energy!

What’s the Point of Mocktails?

All this talk about alcohol-free options brings forth one essential question, what’s the point of mocktails?

Why indulge in a flavorful non-alcoholic drink that’s a copycat of a cocktail?

Why not just knock back an orange juice or soft drink instead?

Well, we answer that with a question too. Why create obstacles for people who don’t like liquor of the opportunity to enjoy specialty drinks?

Whether it’s for religious, personal, or health reasons, people of all ages who don’t (or can’t) drink should be given a chance to emulate the essence of drinking through non-alcoholic beverages.

This provides them the freedom and the possibility to enjoy their time at a bar with friends without having to be intoxicated.

Making mocktails also allows bartenders to practice their mixology methods, experiment with unique ingredients, and cater to everyone.

Can You Make Your Own Mocktails?

Thankfully, you don’t have to be a world-class bartender to enjoy the “virgin versions” of popular cocktails.

There are countless websites out there offering dozens of classic cocktail recipes you can do at home.

Obviously, you should have the necessary ingredients ready at your disposal if you want to have your favorite virgin cocktail.

Luckily for you, we’ve already prepared a list of some of the all-time favorite mocktails in the world.

Best Mocktail Recipes

Now that you know what is a mocktail, you might want to prepare one.

If you want to guarantee that you always have a delicious mocktail in your hand on special nights, make sure you take note of the following recipes:

Piña Colada

“If you like piña coladas and gettin’ caught in the rain..” Ah, yes. The world-famous cocktail that’s so delicious it inspired a song.

This tropical and fun drink combines coconut, pineapple juice, and rum. However, since we’re going with a piña colada mocktail, you’d have to skip the rum.

Don’t worry. The coconut cream and abundance of ice still make this chilled drink an excellent buzz-less beverage for a hot summer day.

You can also include the very famous Ritual Zero Proof Rum in the mix to get closer to the original taste of the cocktail. We reviewed Ritual rum earlier (plus provided an additional rum punch recipe!).

Virgin Mary

The Virgin Mary is the virgin version of the Bloody Mary. It’s easily one of the most popular cocktails that’s almost always present on every bar’s cocktail list.

The Bloody Mary mocktail includes several ingredients you wouldn’t expect to find in a non-alcoholic mixed drink, maybe not even a regular beverage.

It includes tomato juice, horseradish, black pepper, lime juice, celery salt, olives, Worcestershire sauce, and sometimes a few types of hot sauces.

The Bloody Mary is pretty easy to make as a mocktail, just leaving out the vodka. Or you could add a vodka alternative like Strykk Non-Vodka.

Chili-Lime-Pineapple Soda

Pineapple juice, kosher salt, club soda, sugar, chilis, lime, and vodka are all you need to enjoy this fancy mocktail.

It embodies the complexity of craft cocktails, but it’s all worth it because you’d have a tall glass of sweet, heat, and sour for the evening.

Of course, we’re getting rid of the vodka for this beautiful mocktail. Instead, we’ll go with some pineapple-flavored seltzer like Waterloo.

Shirley Temple

Shirley Temple is a popular child actress whose name, ironically, was used to name an alcoholic beverage in the cocktail bar industry.

The alcoholic version contains vodka, but most people recognize the mocktail version now instead of the alcoholic drink.

The Shirley Temple cocktail mixes ginger ale with grenadine syrup and maraschino cherry.

You can use Fever-Tree Ginger Ale, which has no artificial sweeteners or other ingredients.

This one is a favorite with kids. Ginger may also help with upset tummies or travel sickness.

Arnold Palmer

It’s rather common for the cocktail bar industry to name certain drinks after famous people.

For instance, Arnold Palmer, a legendary golfer, is also the name of an all-time favorite cocktail.

That’s mainly because Arnold Palmer, the golfer, regularly requests this mix in various country clubs after a game.

It’s pretty simple to make. All you need is lemonade, unsweetened tea, lots of ice, and bourbon whiskey.

If you want to stay true to the taste of the cocktail as much as possible, consider Ritual’s Zero Proof Whiskey.

If you think it’s quite strong for you, you can use sweetened tea instead.

Mango Mule

This next mock cocktail is excellent for those who love sweet drinks.

The alcoholic cocktail Moscow Mule is a mix of lime juice, vodka, ginger beer, and lots of ice.

Some people choose to add fresh mint to enhance the coolness of the beverage.

Since we’re here for amazing, non-alcoholic drinks, we’d have to get rid of the vodka and the ginger beer.

Instead, we’ll use honey syrup and nectar or mango puree. That’s mainly why it’s called the Mango Mule.

Lemon-Lavender

Lavender is used in just about anything. Teas, lattes, essential oils, soap, and, now, alcohol-free drinks.

We’re not using lavender per se. Instead, what we need is a syrup infused with lavender. A good option is Pink House’s Lavender Syrup.

Mix it with grenadine and lemon juice, and just like that, you’d have one of the best and most aromatic non-alcoholic cocktails in your hand.

What Is a Mocktail: In Conclusion

We understand that sometimes, your body will inevitably crave cocktails and other alcoholic beverages.

However, it’s not always the best decision to give in to these temptations.

Don’t worry. You can still enjoy these beverages through non-alcoholic options. They’re obviously safer, and that’s not just true for the mocktails.

There are also non-alcoholic versions of wines, seltzers, gins, and beers.

Some alcohol-free beers would even have lower calorie content than other options.

You just really have to be dedicated to looking for and making these amazing, non-alcoholic drinks.