15 Autumn Mocktail Recipes For Your Fall Break From Alcohol
Before long, yellow school buses will be making their rounds, temperatures will begin to decline, and the sun will set earlier and earlier. Autumn is just around the corner, and with it comes cozy evenings, pumpkin patch outings, and warm colors transforming the views around you.
Perhaps this fall you’re thinking of taking a break from drinking. It’s always nice to have a reset for your gut health and a rest for your liver. Or perhaps you are newly pregnant, or sober-curious, or don’t drink at all. Fortunately, you don’t have to sacrifice flavor or fun this autumn while stepping away from alcohol. Here are 15 autumnal mocktails to enjoy this fall.
These recipes are derived primarily from a leading recipe book on cocktails and mocktails called The Art of Mixology, and I’ve adjusted some classic recipes to make them non-alcoholic while adding a few recipes of my own. Enjoy!
1. Apple Cider Sunset
Who doesn’t love apples in autumn? Perfect to wrap up a day at the orchard.
½ cup fresh apple cider, warmed
cinnamon stick
pinch of nutmeg
few drops of angostura bitters
(optional) few drops of PeaceLoveHormones bitters
orange peel
Pour warm cider into a mug (try a glass mug for extra aesthetic appeal). Add bitters and nutmeg, stir with cinnamon stick. Rub orange peel around rim of mug and add to cider.
2. Cranberry Sour
A classic take on a whiskey sour, but with cranberry for extra flavor. Paired with hors d’oeuvres before Thanksgiving dinner, you can’t go wrong.
¾ oz lime juice
¾ oz cranberry juice
½ oz simple syrup
maraschino cherry, to garnish
ice
Put cracked ice cubes into a cocktail shaker and pour whiskey alternative over the ice. Add lime juice, cranberry juice, and simple syrup. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with the cherry.
3. Mulled Alcohol-Free Wine
For the later autumn days, this is perfect to sip on with a blanket, a fireplace, and your favorite novel.
1 bottle (750ml) Fre Red Blend
3 fresh oranges
1 inch ginger root
cinnamon sticks
whole cloves
star anise
maple syrup (optional)
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and stir. Simmer for 35 minutes, then strain out liquid. Taste and add maple syrup as needed. Serve in mugs. Serves four.
4. Pumpkin Spice Faux Old Fashioned
Much less sugar than a pumpkin spice latte, but just as much respect owed.
1 sugar cube
dash angostura bitters
dash pumpkin spice seasoning
4-6 ice cubes, cracked
orange peel twist, to garnish
Put the sugar cube into a small, chilled cocktail glass. Add the angostura bitters, pumpkin spice seasoning, and half the whiskey alternative. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Pour in the remaining whiskey alternative. Add the cracked ice and garnish with orange peel twist.
5. Ginger Fizz
Ginger has incredible medicinal value, and may help ward off those fall sniffles. Combined with mint, its sharp, fresh flavor is delectable.
ginger beer
fresh mint, plus additional for garnish
cracked ice
orange peel twist, to garnish
Blend 2 oz ginger beer with several fresh mint sprigs until smooth. Pour into glass over cracked ice. Top with remaining ginger beer and garnish with mint sprig and orange peel twist.
6. Autumn *Sangria*
This citrus-packed, alcohol-free sangria will deliver vitamin C and flavor to your day.
1 bottle (750ml) Fre Merlot
2 c orange juice
½ c cranberry juice
2 oz lemon juice
2 oz lime juice
3 oz simple syrup
1 oz PeaceLoveHormones bitters (optional)
ice
lemon, lime, & orange slices
Combine all ingredients except ice and fruit slices in a large bowl. Stir well and let chill for an hour. Add ice and garnish with fruit slices in the sangria and on the rim of the bowl. Serves five.
7. Espresso Cinnamon Mocktini
The cousin of an espresso martini, this mocktail delivers all the class without the hangover.
1 oz espresso, caffeinated or decaffeinated
1½ oz Arkay vodka alternative
1 oz simple syrup
2 oz heavy cream
ice
dash cinnamon
3 coffee beans
Combine espresso, vodka alternative, coffee liqueur alternative, simple syrup, and heavy cream in a cocktail glass. Add ice. Shake thoroughly. Pour into martini glasses, and top with a dash of cinnamon and 3 coffee beans.
8. Apple Pie Cream
The perfect pairing with warm apple pie.
4-5 ice cubes
3 ½ oz apple juice
1 small scoop vanilla ice cream
club soda
cinnamon sugar and apple, to garnish
Put the ice cubes into a blender and add the apple juice, tequila alternative, and ice cream. Blend for 15 seconds until frothy and frosted. Pour into a glass and top off with club soda. Top with cinnamon sugar and garnish with an apple slice.
9. Faux Kir Royale
The original drink was born from French resistance to the Nazis during the Fall of France in 1940; this non-alcoholic version preserves l’esprit de resistance.
1 ¼ oz raspberry syrup
chilled sparkling apple juice
dash angostura bitters
raspberry, to garnish
Pour raspberry syrup and dash of bitters into a chilled wine glass filled with ice. Top with sparkling apple juice and stir. Garnish with raspberry.
10. Pumpkin Spice Coconut Cream
This creamy concoction is the perfect dessert drink; try it with a side of pumpkin pie after your Thanksgiving meal.
2 oz cream of coconut
1 c crushed ice
1 oz simple syrup
pumpkin spice whipped topping
pumpkin spice seasoning, for garnish
Combine cream of coconut, tequila alternative, ice, and simple syrup in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into cocktail glass, and top with whipped topping and a dash of pumpkin spice seasoning.
11. The Gunner
Perfect for a September evening celebrating the beginning of hunting season. The adaptogens are a natural mood relaxer, and the tang of this mixture will have you making a second before long.
4-6 ice cubes
2 oz lime juice
2-3 dashes angostura bitters
Mix all ingredients in a long glass. Taste and add more bitters if you wish.
12. Grand Royal Clover Club
Born from the Bellevue Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia in the late 1800s, the original Clover Club has lasted through many seasons. The booze-free version will surely prove to have just as much longevity.
1 ¾ oz Ritual gin alternative
¾ oz lemon juice
dash angostura bitters
¾ oz grenadine
1 egg white
ice
lemon peel twist, to garnish
Vigorously shake the gin alternative, lemon juice, bitters, grenadine, and egg white over ice. Strain into chilled martini glass. Garnish with a lemon peel twist.
13. Shady Lady
A little mystique, a lot of class. She’s brilliant with color just like the anthocyanins.
¾ oz cranberry juice
dash lime juice
tonic water
ice
blood orange slice, to garnish
Shake the orange napoleon, cranberry juice, lime juice, and ice in a cocktail shaker over ice. Pour into martini glass. Top with splash of tonic water and garnish with blood orange slice.
14. Diamond Fizz
Fall weddings? Absolutely dreamy. Serve this option at the bar for those who aren’t drinking alcohol, and they'll no doubt be impressed.
1 ¾ oz Ritual gin alternative
½ oz lemon juice
½ oz simple syrup
Chilled Fre Sparkling Brut
Shake the gin alternative, lemon juice, and simple syrup over ice in a cocktail shaker until cold. Strain into a chilled flute. Top with Fre Sparkling Brut and serve immediately.
15. Boston Sour
Have you ever been to Boston in the fall?
¾ oz lemon juice
½ oz simple syrup
1 egg white
maraschino cherry, to garnish
lemon slice, to garnish
ice
Put ice into cocktail shaker. Pour the lemon juice, whiskey alternative, and simple syrup over the ice. Add the egg white. Shake until chilled, about 45 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with the lemon slice and maraschino cherry.
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