New Year Mocktails: Sparkling Punch for a Toast

New Year mocktails should be easy to finish shortly before the toast. Prepare the juice base ahead and open sparkling bottles only when serving.

A practical recipe

For eight glasses, chill a mixture of 400 ml white grape juice, 200 ml orange juice and 80 ml lemon juice. At serving time, add 600 ml non-alcoholic sparkling wine and 320 ml soda. This makes 1.6 litres before ice and garnish.

Plan the preparation

Set out glasses and garnishes beforehand. When everyone wants to toast together, a simple twist is easier than elaborate individual fruit decoration. Label pitchers when offering several drinks so guests do not need to guess the ingredients.

Flavour and variations

Replace the sparkling wine with soda if preferred. The mixture becomes less wine-like; test a serving and adjust grape juice. Replace some orange juice with pomegranate juice for a red colour.

Preparation and serving

Chill the ingredients before mixing. Keep the juice base and sparkling ingredients separate until serving. Put ice in individual glasses where possible so a large pitcher does not dilute throughout the event. Stir any fruit-purée base before dividing it between glasses.

Make a small trial serving first. Juices, nectars and sodas vary in sweetness; once the ratio works, scale it up. Record the final quantities so the next pitcher tastes consistent.

Common question

Can I put ice in the punch bowl? Yes, but it dilutes the whole batch. Ice in individual glasses is easier to control when the bowl will stand for a while.

For other batch sizes, see the non-alcoholic punch guide .

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