Rosemary Pom Spritzer, AKA the Merry Mocktail

This mocktail of rosemary and pomegranate juice keeps us on the good side. The rosemary-infused simple syrup cuts through the tart, sweet pomegranate and is topped with a bubbly fizz. You can add fresh lime juice if desired (we prefer lime-sudsy water).

You can do so many things to make this more interesting if your goal is to impress them with a mocktail or cocktail hour for Christmas or to treat yourself after a day of wrapping gifts. Let’s face it: getting the corners to match up can be so frustrating that you may give up and cover everything in scotch tape. Anyway.

A Four-Ingredient Treat

You’ll need four things to make it happen.

• Rosemary Simple Syrup (rosemary syrup, sugar and water)
• Pomegranate (or cranberry) juice is also effective.
• Lime-flavored sparkling water or soda water
• Lime squeezes (optional)

There’s really not much else to it. Just mix, sip, toast, enjoy.

Make it Fancy

You can have a lot of fun with these ice molds. They make large ice balls. Is this in a fancy wine glass with a sprig of fresh rosemary as adornment and some sugar-dusted dried cranberries? WE HOPE IT IS. You do you, even if you are using a drink that is probably not the right one, like a stemless glass.

If you prefer, this would also be delicious with a splash of your favorite spirit. It’s not necessary to use vodka if you like gin. To keep it quick, we want to mix with Spindrift or straight lime LaCroix. But soda water and lime works just as well. Ginger beer is also a great option, but it’s a bit sweeter, so you might want to stick with the alcoholic version.

We recommend that you let the simple syrup sit for a few days in the refrigerator to get a nice rosemary flavor. Do yourself a favor and make this special drink. It would be great if, when you read this post, you thought, “Me.” Want. “Now,” and you are already drinking away!

Ingredients

Rosemary Simple syrup

•  4 Water
•  4 Sugar
•  (2) .5 oz packages of Fresh rosemary (basically a big bunch of rosemary).
•  optional: 4-5 Whole cloves

Merry Mocktail

•  2 – 3 Ounces Rosemary simple syrup
•  2 – 3 Ounces pomegranate juice (cranberry is a great sub)
•  2 – 3 Ounces of club soda With a squeeze of Fresh lime (OR sparkling water with lime flavor)

Instructions

1. In a medium-high heat saucepan, combine the water, cloves, rosemary and sugar. Bring everything to a simmer and allow it to simmer for 5-8 minutes until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any cloves or rosemary leaves that may have escaped. Pour into glass jars and keep in the refrigerator for two weeks. I often add a rosemary sprig to the mixture so that it gets more intense.
2. Pour the rosemary syrup, pomegranate water, and bubbly lime water into your desired proportions over a ball of ice. Enjoy! Stir gently. Taste and adjust as needed.