Mocktails are the fruits of abstaining adults and parents alike, but what about kids? Virgin cocktails send a great message to younger folks, fostering both creative alcohol-free mixology and self-control. And showing them different mix variations or new flavor profiles can bolden that sentiment even further. So, whether you have children yourself or just want to introduce the adolescents in your life to mocktails, keep these virgin drink recipes for kids in mind.
I have experience with the mocktails I chose for this list. Most of them even have their own separate articles discussing the best way to make them. I’ll be sure to give a link to each. They’re what I think could have made my childhood parties better––replacing plain old soda with something more memorable. All in all, I’d like to say that you’re in good hands.
I cover a variety of mocktails but particularly find drinks with bitters to be interesting reaction-wise. See, bitter flavors can strongly deter kids. But when it comes to “adult” beverages, they tend to give more foreign drinks a chance. You may even find that a young one gravitates towards spritzes, which seems contradictory for adolescents, but it happens!
In case you didn’t know, bitters are an additive in cocktails to, well, add bitterness. They come in a few different flavors and are well renowned for adding depth of flavor. The two main types we use here are orange and angostura bitters. They’re easily attainable at your local grocer. Using them can be a great learning experience and bring a whole new flavor profile to the table.
Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri Is a Great Start for Kids and Kid-Like Adults
I actually want to start with one of the cocktails here that contain bitters. To get the signature slightly bitter and nutty undertone of the virgin Strawberry Daiquiri, we mix angostura bitters with maple or marzipan syrup. It’s a great start, especially considering it uses ingredients that many kids are familiar with while also exposing them to that whole new flavor profile.
Now, kids are ruthless when it comes to their comments—making this for the first time in front of anyone younger than you could elicit some hurtful language. That’s because the Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri is notoriously hard to blend. Almost everyone’s first try ends up with the ice separating from the liquid, creating an unsatisfactory mess. So make sure you practice before making this for or with any children.
Like I mentioned above, you’ll get some light nutty/bitter undertones to start. But the mainstay flavor here is strawberry. That’s why it’s so good to start adding bitters with this one. The bitterness is very mellow, and there are still many sweet, fruity flavors to combat a strong reaction. And for the adults in the room, if bitterness just isn’t your thing, this will fit you too.
Ingredients
Directions
Put each ingredient into a blender and blend from low to high (five minutes) Pour slush mixture into a wine or margarita glass and garnish with a fresh strawberry
Ingredients
Directions
Put each ingredient into a blender and blend from low to high (five minutes)
Pour slush mixture into a wine or margarita glass and garnish with a fresh strawberry
Cinderella Mocktail May Be a Surprise for the Younger Ones
The Cinderella mocktail can wrap things up just a little bit. It’s more of a formula dinner recipe, and you can play around with a lot of combinations here. It’s just three different fruit juices mixed with grenadine syrup, ginger beer and angostura bitters. It could have any flavor––citrusy, bitter or fruity, just like the Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri.
You’ll notice below that you can put in one to even three dashes of angostura bitters, which is quite a bit. Once you pass three dashes in a highball glass drink, you’re moving into spritz territory.
Maybe you showed them the Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri beforehand. Based on that reaction, add however many dashes you think are right. And that could even be zero.
I always like to entertain people with this drink because of the assumptions of expertise. Ask a youngster what their three favorite juices are. Make this drink and simply tell them that it’s called the “Cinderella.” They’ll immediately assume that you just went through an extensive catalog of drinks and came up with one that just happens to include their three favorite juices. It’s always great to see those reactions of awe.
Ingredients
Directions
Add each ingredient into a highball glass with ice Add bitters if preferred, then stir Garnish with a dried orange slice and black cherry
Ingredients
Directions
Add each ingredient into a highball glass with ice
Add bitters if preferred, then stir
Garnish with a dried orange slice and black cherry
Mai Tai Mocktail Caters to the Kids and Adults With Refined Taste
Let’s say you think one kid has a palate as refined as any adult. Well, maybe you might want to see how they like this.
Mai Tai mocktail has a prominent complex/bitter overtone. To get this, we use orange bitters mixed with brown sugar and orange peel oil. And I know “orange peel oil” sounds intimidating, but you just cut off the peel of an orange and squeeze it onto the cocktail. Also, different bitters, though they do have different flavors, aren’t easily distinguishable when used in a drink. So, if you only want to buy one bitter, I’d go with angostura and use that here.
Virgin Mai Tai is pretty similar to Cinderella. The key difference being it uses Sprite instead of ginger beer and has a bit more grenadine syrup. But this makes sense because we’re adding more bitterness to it, so we need some sweetness to offset that. Even so, compared to the other mocktail recipes for kids, this is a lot more spritz-esque. So, if you think the kids want extra bitter, ginger beer isn’t their style, or the adults in the room just want something deeper in flavor, I’d recommend making the Mai Tai mocktail.
Ingredients
Directions
Add ice, dark cane spirit, grenadine syrup, orange juice, pineapple juice into a rocks glass and top off with Sprite Don't stir until presentation Garnish with dried orange, orange slices and black cherry, then serve
Ingredients
Directions
Add ice, dark cane spirit, grenadine syrup, orange juice, pineapple juice into a rocks glass and top off with Sprite
Don't stir until presentation
Garnish with dried orange, orange slices and black cherry, then serve
Virgin Sunset Is the Most Agreeable Among Children and Grown-ups
We talked a lot about bitters and going light on bitter if it isn’t your thing. But what about those who just can’t stand it at all? These next two bitter-free virgin drink recipes could be for the picky kid or yourself. No shame, though. For the longest time, I had no idea what all the hype about spritzes were.
Virgin Sunset is just a classic mixture of grenadine and some juices. I’m talking Shirley Temple levels of simplicity. Honestly, the only reason I prefer that over the Shirley Temple is that it looks classier. You mix cranberry juice, dragon fruit and grading syrup at the bottom. Then, you add orange and pineapple juice to the top to act as the twilight sky.
Most recipes for a Virgin Sunset don’t call for dragon fruit, but I like to add it for a little bit of extra texture. It also just looks a lot more diverse and cool yet contained. That mixture of coolness and professionalism is something that many kids and preteens tend to gravitate towards.
Ingredients
Directions
Muddle the dragon fruit at the bottom of a hurricane glass Add grenadine and cranberry juice, then mix Fill the rest of the hurricane glass with crushed ice Top off with the pineapple and orange juice Garnish with a slice of dragon fruit and serve
Ingredients
Directions
Muddle the dragon fruit at the bottom of a hurricane glass
Add grenadine and cranberry juice, then mix
Fill the rest of the hurricane glass with crushed ice
Top off with the pineapple and orange juice
Garnish with a slice of dragon fruit and serve
On-The-Fly Mocktail Is a Classic for All Ages
On-The-Fly mocktail is an original from one of the first cocktail.com bartender contributors. So it has some history on this website. His name is TJ Natoli, and when I came over to his bar for some photography, I asked him to make a citrus mocktail in whatever fashion he liked. He likes collins builds, so he made it that way. If you don’t know, a collins build is any mocktail made with a fruit juice and club soda base.
There’s no way to describe this drink other than classic. It’s a true mocktail recipe for both kids and adults. I could picture this in all sorts of settings. The flavors aren’t very disagreeable. It’s mellow and only slightly sweet. This one is for the fussy eater––or fussy drinker in this case.
Ingredients
Directions
Add orange juice, lemon juice, strawberry shrub, and ice to a shaker. Shake for 30 seconds, and strain into two tall glasses. Fill 1/3 with ice, then add club soda to the top. Serve with a strip of orange peel.
Ingredients
Directions
Add orange juice, lemon juice, strawberry shrub, and ice to a shaker.
Shake for 30 seconds, and strain into two tall glasses.
Fill 1/3 with ice, then add club soda to the top.
Serve with a strip of orange peel.
I Know Everyone Will Love These Mocktail Recipes for Kids!
I thought a lot about my perspective on drinks when I was younger. I’m sure anyone has had those phases of wanting to be an adult or feeling left out from cocktail hour. And this list is what I honestly think will quench that thirst for kids while also endorsing healthier non-alcoholic choices. So, from the bitterest of bitter to the sweetest of sweet, you now have a few good options to choose from next time you want to fix something up for the younger people in your life.
If you make any of these alcoholic-free drink recipes for kids, make sure to comment below or tag us on social media (@cocktail_web)!
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Mocktail expert, Cocktail.com
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