Don't drink or trying to drink less? A rich tea syrup is a great way to add flavor and body to a non-alcoholic drink, like in this citrusy Earl Grey Tea and Tonic mocktail.

Photography Credit: Elana Lepkowski

No-ABV (alcohol by volume) cocktails – or “mocktails,” as we often call them – are basically cocktails minus the booze. The challenge of making a memorable one is finding ingredients that can substitute for the complexity of flavor that alcohol provides.

While coffee has recently gained popularity as a mocktail element (see the ubiquitous Coffee and Tonic), tea is also an excellent way to create aromatic, caffeine-boosted libations! Earl Grey shares similar flavors with tonic water to make for a nice citrusy pairing, so it’s a useful addition to your home bar when you’re not drinking alcohol.

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WHY TEA IS GREAT FOR MOCKTAILS

When one is abstaining from alcohol-based bitters and liqueurs, tea can add that necessary touch of bitterness and astringency to a non-alcoholic drink. It is also another way to add layers of flavor: steeping tea bags directly in syrup eliminates the need to add more liquid into your mocktail, which can dilute your drink further.

THE TRICK TO A GOOD MOCKTAIL

Something else to keep in mind when making a mocktail is viscosity. Alcohol has a certain weight in a drink and on your tongue. When you drink, say, a fruit juice, you know you are drinking a juice. But if you made a juice/spirit mix, while the flavor would obviously tell you it’s alcoholic, there is also a tangible difference in the way it feels in your mouth.

To replicate that experience to some degree in this mocktail, I created a rich tea syrup for a heavier mouthfeel. Giving body to the drink elevates it and makes it feel more like a cocktail and not just a simple sweetened beverage.

DO NOT UNDER-STEEP YOUR TEA SYRUP!

We are all used to the recommended brew times for tea, usually clocking in at four to five minutes. However, here you’re looking for concentrated flavors. A short steep time will result in a weaker flavored syrup.

Don’t worry – the longer steep time won’t make the drink too bitter. If you have loose tea, use two to three tablespoons of tea, depending on how strongly flavored your tea is. If you’ve picked up a new-to-you tea, start with two bags, and if you’d like more flavor, steep a third bag.

THE BEST TONIC WATER TO USE FOR A TEA AND TONIC

There are so many tonic waters on the market right now that choosing one might seem difficult. Any basic tonic would work and still strike the right sweet and bitter notes due to the quinine.

For this drink in particular, though, I find that Fever-Tree’s Indian Tonic, with its bitter orange flavor, really complements the bergamot. Avoid the more powerfully flavored tonic waters, which can compete with the assertive citrus and floral notes of bergamot.

SUBSTITUTIONS

If Earl Grey is not a flavor you enjoy (or like my husband, it brings on a migraine), many other floral or herbal teas could work. Hibiscus, lemon verbena, or a rooibos tea would bring a complementary flavor and work with the tonic. You could also switch out the lemon here for lime or grapefruit.

STORING YOUR EARL GREY SYRUP

Keep this syrup in an airtight container in the fridge and it will last you at least a month.

If you have leftover syrup, you can use it to glaze tea cakes or donut holes, or to sweeten a rice pudding.