This beautiful floral, earthy, and light lychee mocktail made with lychee and non-alcoholic gin (or other non-alcoholic spirit of your choice) is perfect for anyone who enjoys cocktails, but wants to cut back on the alcohol.
A delicious fruity mocktail that’s easy to make with refreshing flavors! Perfect for summer, but can be enjoyed all year round.
Lychee is such a delicious and delicate fruit that makes fantastic desserts and drinks.
In my previous post, I shared how I made this homemade lychee syrup that can be used in so many different ways. This lychee mocktail recipe is one of my favorite ways to use lychee syrup.
Why this recipe works
- Lychee is a lovely floral, delicate flavor and is super refreshing in drinks.
- This is an easy mocktail recipe to make and can also be adapted as a cocktail!
- Using a non-alcoholic gin spirit adds even more earthy and herby flavors which perfectly complement the lychee.
- Because this lychee mocktail is non-alcoholic, it can be enjoyed any time of the day/week and you don’t have to worry about hangovers, ha!
Why mocktails?
Mocktails get a bad rap, but these days you can easily get amazing non-alcoholic drinks that are as good as the real thing minus the boozy buzz!
I love fun cocktails, but I’m not in my 20s anymore, and my metabolism ain’t what it used to be. Non-alcoholic spirits help me still enjoy delicious cocktails, even during week nights, but without the consequences the following morning!
Of all the non-alcoholic spirits that I’ve tried, my favorite is non-alcoholic gin. The botanicals in NA gin still come through and wonderfully complement the drink. And lychee is one of many fruits that pairs so well with gin – non alcoholic or not.
Ingredients to make this mocktail
- Lychee syrup
- Lime (lime juice or lime wedges)
- Canned, drained lychee pieces or fresh lychee (optional, but recommended)
- Non-alcoholic gin of your choice (you can use a different kind of non-alcoholic spirit that you prefer as well).
- Soda water or tonic
Lychee syrup
You can make this mocktail with any lychee syrup. You can buy lychee syrup online. Amazon or cocktail supplies websites are good places to check. But my favorite store-bought lychee syrup is from a boba tea website (linked in the recipe card below).
However, I prefer to make my own homemade lychee syrup! This homemade version is so easy to make, because you only need 2 ingredients, canned lychee and sugar.
Homemade lychee syrup has a better flavor that is more natural, bringing out the floral, fruity flavors of lychee. Store-bought syrup tends to be too sweet and have an artificial flavor that just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. So the homemade version is perfect to make this lychee mocktail!
How to make lychee mocktail
Making the lychee syrup
The first step is to make the lychee syrup. The lychee syrup can be kept in the fridge for up to 7 days, or up to 4 months in the freezer. So make sure to make it ahead of time and keep it chilled in the fridge. If the syrup is in the freezer, remember to properly thaw it out before using it.
Assembling the mocktail
In a cocktail mixer (shaker or glass), place the lime wedges and muddle it very well to release the juices. Add 2 – 3 pieces of lychee and muddle this along with the lime.
Next, add the lychee syrup, followed by the non-alcoholic gin.
Add ice and stir well to mix, and chill the mocktail. Strain into a lowball glass (rocks glass). Top up the lychee mocktail with chilled soda or tonic. You can add some ice to the cocktail if you like.
Garnish with lime and lychee and serve.
Muddling lime vs lime juice
For this mocktail, you can either use lime juice, or muddle the lime. I prefer to muddle lime wedges instead. Muddling enhances the flavor of the drink because you release the essential oils in the rind of the lime as well as the juices. This adds more complexity to the mocktail.
Recipe tips
- Lychee has a delicate flavor, so it’s important to have a concentrated flavor in the syrup. That’s why the syrup should be gently simmered to reduce it in volume and concentrate the flavor.
- Using canned lychee is easier (and cheaper). Since the lychee syrup also contains the flavor of lychee.
- I don’t recommend using fresh lychee, since it would be a waste to cook down fresh lychee when they taste better fresh!
- To make the flavors interesting, add complementing flavors to your mocktail, but be careful not to overpower the lychee flavor. For example, ginger pairs well with lychee, and lime can enhance the sweetness of lychee (in right amounts).
Lychee mocktail variations
- Substitute the non-alcoholic gin with regular gin for a delicious lychee cocktail!
- Use tonic instead of soda water for a mocktail lychee flavored gin and tonic.
- You can add extra flavor to your lychee syrup to make the mocktail taste even more interesting.
- Add 1 oz of strongly brewed green tea for an elevated cocktail.
- Substitute the non-alcoholic gin with NA tequila for a fizzy lychee margarita mocktail. Or use NA vodka for a twist on a mocktail martini!
Recipe
Lychee Mocktail (with Nonalcoholic Gin)
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
- 60 mL lychee syrup 2 fl oz (see recipe notes)
- ½ lime cut into wedges, or about 1 – 1½ tbsp / 30 – 45 mL lime juice
- 2 – 3 lychees canned and drained, OR fresh lychee (optional)
- 60 mL non-alcoholic gin 2 fl oz, I use HP juniper classic NA gin
- Soda water or tonic to top up
- Ice to mix and serve to serve
- Extra lime wedges or lime slices to garnish
- Few extra lychees to garnish
Instructions:
- In a cocktail mixer, place the lime wedges and muddle to release the juices. Make sure they are muddled very well.½ lime
- Add the lychee (fresh or canned), if using, and muddle the lychee along with the lime.2 – 3 lychees
- Pour in the lychee syrup and the non-alcoholic gin, and stir to mix.60 mL lychee syrup, 60 mL non-alcoholic gin
- Add a generous amount of ice, and either stir or shake the cocktail to mix the ingredients.Ice to mix and serve
- Using a strainer, strain the mixture into a lowball glass. Add ice if you like.Ice to mix and serve
- Top up with soda or tonic (for a twist on gin and tonic). Garnish with lime wedges or slices, and lychee. Serve.Soda water or tonic, Extra lime wedges or lime slices, Few extra lychees
Recipe Notes
Note about lychee syrup
I use my homemade lychee syrup for this recipe. You can also use store-bought lychee syrup. However, you may need to adjust the amount depending on how sweet the syrup is. Homemade lychee syrup isn’t as sweet as commercially available lychee syrup. My favorite lychee syrup I like to purchase when I don’t have homemade syrup is from a company called retea that makes great fruit syrups for homemade boba. Here is the link for that (not an affiliate link, I just love their products).Other substitutions
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- Substitute the non-alcoholic gin with regular gin for a delicious lychee cocktail!
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- Use tonic water instead of soda water for a mocktail lychee flavored gin and tonic.
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- You can add extra flavor to your lychee syrup to make the mocktail taste even more interesting. My favorite is to add ginger to my lychee syrup for a little spicy kick.
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- Add 1 oz of strongly brewed green tea for an elevated mocktail with more complex flavors.
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- Substitute the non-alcoholic gin with NA tequila for a fizzy lychee margarita mocktail. Or use NA vodka for a twist on a mocktail martini!
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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