Non-alcoholic recipe
Blackberry Orchard Nocturne
Apple juice and blackberry purée bring orchard depth, with rosemary and lemon sharpened by a modest soda lift.
Ingredients
- 75 ml chilled apple juice
- 30 ml seedless strained blackberry puree
- 20 ml fresh lemon juice
- 15 ml rosemary syrup (1:1 sugar:water by weight)
- 45 ml chilled soda water
Preparation
For syrup, dissolve 100 g sugar in 100 g water, add 3 g washed culinary rosemary off heat, cover 7 minutes, strain and chill. Press washed blackberries through a fine sieve and measure 30 ml smooth puree. Shake 75 ml chilled apple juice, 30 ml seedless strained blackberry purée, 20 ml fresh lemon juice and 15 ml rosemary syrup with ice for 10 seconds. Fine-strain into a Collins glass over fresh ice. Add 45 ml chilled soda water, lift once with a spoon and garnish with a small rosemary sprig and two blackberries.
Glassware
Collins glass over fresh cubed ice
Garnish
1 small rosemary sprig and 2 fresh blackberries
History
Published non-alcoholic drinks combine apple, lemon and rosemary, and other spritzes combine blackberry, lemon and rosemary. This measured apple–blackberry–rosemary formula is a Mixology house-style proposal; the flavor combinations are not claimed as original inventions.
Mixology View
The challenge is density: blackberry purée and apple juice can feel heavy together. Fine-strain carefully, use the specified lemon, and add soda last; the expected balance is estimated without tasting.
Ingredient note
Apple juice may be unpasteurized; people at increased risk of foodborne illness should consider pasteurized juice. Wash berries and rosemary and refrigerate fresh purée.