There are plenty of reasons you might want to , including better health, a happier bank account, or simply becauseyou’re looking fora . Whether you’re going cold turkey or just giving up a few drinks a week, restrictioncan be tough, so consider swapping in an alternative to your postride beer or eveningcocktail. Truly satisfying nonalcoholic beverages all come down tohigh-quality ingredients, like homemade simple syrups and fresh-squeezed juices, says Denver-based Jen Kates, aformer bartender and theowner and head coach at. Here,Kates and three other bartending athletes share their favorite mocktail recipes.
Chamomule
Kates teamed up with Laura Danley, a mountain-biking bartender at in Golden, Colorado, to put together drinks that scratch that postworkout, pool-party itch without the hangover.“This is our version of a modern-day muleminus the booze,” Kates says. “You can adjust the sweetness to your preference by tweaking the ratio of simple syrupto the other ingredients.”
Ingredients
- 4-6 mint leaves
- 1/4 ouncechamomile simple syrup (recipe)
- 1/4 ounceginger simple syrup (recipe)
- 2 ounces cranberry juice
- Gosling’s ginger beer
Directions
Muddle the mint:it with a muddler or something round and flat. Add the simple syrupsand and cranberry juice, and mix with crushed ice. Top with Gosling’s ginger beer and serve in a copper mug. Garnish with a mint leaf.
Bloody Barry
“This drink is our refreshing take on a Bloody Mary,” says Kates. With beet juice as its base—which is rich in nitrates and can improve performance—it’s even more athlete friendly. Drink it alongside a postworkout brunch.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 ouncesbeet juice
- 3/4 ouncelemon juice
- 1/2 ouncehoney
- 1/4 ounce olive juice
- 3 dashes of your favorite hot sauce
- Topper of soda water or Topo Chico sparkling mineral water
Directions
Shake ingredients with ice. Strain and serve in a martini glass with lemon juice, salt, and chili powder on the rim. Garnish with an olive.
Ginger-Blueberry Mojito Mocktail
Arch Bernard, a cyclist based in Brooklyn, New York, and the general manager at , prefers mocktails that don’t require weird ingredients or mixologist-level expertise to make. Chances are you already have everything you need to whipup thisfruity, tangy twist on a classic mojito.
Ingredients
- 4mint leaves
- 6 blueberries (or 3 blackberries)
- 1 ounce lemon juice
- 3/4ounce simple syrup
- Ginger kombucha (or spicy ginger beer)
- Seltzer
Directions
Muddle the mint and blueberries. Add these to the lemon juice and simple syrup, then shake with ice. Pour straight into a 12-ouncecup. Top with equal partsginger kombucha or ginger beer and seltzer.
Hot and Cold Paloma Mocktail
Grapefruit juice, lime, and rosemary offset thespicein this refreshing drink. Can’t handle the heat? Consider swapping inor Calabrian chilies, which still offer a little kick but take the temperature down a few notches,says Bernard.
Ingredients
- 1/2 peeled grapefruit (or 3 ouncesfresh, natural grapefruit juice with pulp)
- 1 hot chili
- 1ounce lime juice
- 1ounce simple syrup
- Seltzer
- Sprig of rosemary
Directions
Muddle the grapefruit and chili (or just chili if using the juice). Shake grapefruit, chili, lime juice, and simple syrup with ice. Strain over fresh ice in a ten-ounceglass. Top with seltzer. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
Pear and Rosemary Mocktail
Sweet meets savory in this fruity cocktail. If it’s a little too saccharine,yoga instructor and former bartender Claire Woodhouse suggests swapping the ginger beer for seltzer and serving in a tumbler versus a martini glass.
Ingredients
- Splash of lemon juice
- 1 ounce pear juice
- 2 ounces ginger beer (nonalcoholic)
- Rosemary sprig
Directions
Shake lemon juice, pear juice, and simple syrup vigorously with ice. Strain into a martini glass, top with ginger beer, and serve with rosemary sprig.