Sweet Basil Cafe Mocktail

The subtle flavor of basil comes to life in this effervescent sweet basil cafe mocktail!

Basil is an iconic summer herb. When the weather turns warm, it seems as though basil is popping up everywhere! We wanted to capture that delicious, fresh basil taste in an unforgettable mocktail.

"iconic summer mocktail"

Refreshing, bubbly drinks are also a summertime classic. Many of us reach for a sparkling juice or seltzer to help cool us down from the summer sun. We are big fans of sparkling grape juice especially in the afternoon when mocktail hour rolls around. Sparkling grape juice just feels fancy! And it tastes pretty great with all that sweet grape flavor.

When thinking about fresh basil and craving a cool glass of sparkling grape juice, we thought “why not combine the two?!”. That is how this sweet basil café was born. It was made to embody the flavors of summer in a drink that is exciting, refreshing and a little bit fancy.

The sweet basil cafe mocktail starts with a basil simple syrup. Fresh basil leaves are infused into a syrup which turns a lovely light green as it cooks. Our recipe makes enough green basil syrup for about 10 drinks. Just keep it in the fridge and you will be able to make a fresh basil mocktail anytime you’d like!

Bright lemon juice and lime juice are mixed with the syrup and then sparkling white grape juice is added on top. The sweet sugared rim make the drink look fancy and the ice in the glass will help keep you cool this summer. This light yet flavorful drink will surely elevate your summer afternoons.

Sweet Basil Cafe Mocktail

5 from 4 votes

Recipe by Mocktail.net

Servings

1

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Ingredients

• ¼ cup fresh basil leaves

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 Tbsp lemon juice

• 1 tsp lime juice

• 4 ounces sparkling grape juice

• 1 lime wedge

• Sugar for glass rim

• Basil leaf for garnish

Directions

• Place the ¼ cup of basil leaves and sugar in a small pot. Add 1 cup of water and stir. Bring the mix to a boil.
• Once the syrup is boiling, remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
• Pour the syrup into a blender and puree until very smooth. You want to make the basil as finely blended as possible. Pour through a strainer and then place the syrup in the fridge to cool. The basil syrup will keep in the fridge for up to two weeks.
• Run a lime wedge around the edge of a glass and then dip the glass rim in sparkling sugar.
• Fill the glass with ice and add 2 tablespoons of the basil syrup to the glass.
• Add the lemon juice and lime juice to the glass and top with the sparkling grape juice.
• Garnish with a basil leaf and serve while cold.

Tips and Tricks

• • Sparkling water or seltzer will work in place of grape juice.
  • Skip the ice and serve the basil café in a champagne flute for a fancier looking drink
• Tools:
  • Small pot
  • Wooden spoon
  • Blender
  • Fine mesh sieve
  • Airtight container
  • Cocktail stirrer

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