The tip for anyone who (temporarily) doesn’t want to drink alcohol

If you (temporarily) don’t drink alcohol, the options can sometimes be pretty limited. Especially if you’re not in the mood for sweet soft drinks or fruit juices. But good news: the tide is turning! And I have a top tip.

No, not yet another new kombucha or bionade. I’m talking about Everleaf. A non-alcoholic aperitif made with (sustainably sourced!) plant-based ingredients. Think saffron, vanilla, gentian, iris and much more. The result? A fresh, bittersweet drink that’s perfect for mixing. With alcohol too, by the way.

Easy does it: Everleaf Spritz

How? As a spritz, for example. Take 50 ml Everleaf, 150 ml soda, mix it all together, add an orange wedge and you’re done. Easy as pie.

Everleaf like a pro

Want to make a slightly more advanced mocktail? I thought the ‘Trellis’—created by cocktail pro Andrei Talapanescu and served during the Everleaf pairings dinner I attended recently—was absolutely fantastic.

So I tracked down that recipe for you too:
40 ml Everleaf
30 ml lemon juice
15 ml grapefruit syrup
100 ml Fever Tree Aromatic Tonic

To make the grapefruit syrup, juice 3 grapefruits, add the juice to a saucepan along with 1 kilo of sugar and 400 ml of white tea, and reduce over low heat while stirring. Cooled down? Mix all the ingredients and tadaaa: there’s your Trellis.

There you go, two super-delicious non-alcoholic cocktails. Your liver will be happy too. Everleaf is available, among other places, at Sterk Amsterdam (€ 22.55).

Also read:

• The ultimate non-alcoholic gin and tonic test
• Easy does it summer mixes
• Recipe: virgin piña colada