Cranberry Rosemary Mocktail Mule (Festive, Holiday)

This cranberry rosemary mocktail is bright, lightly tart, and feels festive! The syrup comes together quickly on the stove and keeps well in the fridge, which makes it easy to pour something special on a random afternoon — or dress it up for a holiday table. I serve it with ginger beer, a la moscow mule, but cut it 50/50 with sparkling water so the cranberry rosemary syrup gets to shine.

per mocktail, you’ll need

• 1-2 cranberry rosemary ice cubes (see below, or use regular ice)
• 1.5 oz cranberry rosemary syrup (see below)
• 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
• 2 oz ginger beer
• 2-3 oz sparkling water
• garnish: fresh rosemary sprig

add ice to a glass or coupe, top with syrup, lemon juice, ginger beer, and sparkling water. finish with a rosemary sprig!

for the cranberry rosemary syrup (yields ~7-8 oz)

• 2 cups fresh cranberries
• 1 cup water
• 1 sprig rosemary ~3-4 inches, gently bruised
• 1/4 cup sugar (this is intentionally tart—use up to 1/2 cup if you want it sweeter)

to make the syrup

• add cranberries and water to a small pot
• bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce to a simmer and cook for ~8-10 minutes until the cranberries burst and soften, gently mash them with a spoon
• stir in the sugar and rosemary sprig, then simmer on low for another 5 minutes
• remove from heat and strain
• let cool, then store in the fridge for up to a week

to make cranberry rosemary ice cubes (optional garnish!)

• add 5-7 cranberries and a few small rosemary needles to each ice cube well
• fill with water and freeze
• use 1-2 cubes per drink, depending on glass size