For a long time the mocktail menu was where bartenders sent the people they did not respect. Sweet, syrupy, garnished as an afterthought.
That has changed — and the people drinking less are no longer apologising for it.
A good mocktail is built like a good cocktail: balance of sweet, sour, bitter and aromatic; texture from carbonation or fat; a finish that lasts longer than the swallow.
Five drinks I would put on any bar list right now: a chilli-mango margarita, a lychee-rose bellini, a clarified milk punch, a salted citrus highball, and a deep-spiced negroni-style mocktail.
The shift is real. The drinks just have to keep up.
