Lemonade
The British sort: sparkling, sweet and sharp, bringing citrus, sugar and fizz in a single pour. It is not the still American cup of lemon juice and sugar, and recipes very rarely say which they mean.
Quick Facts
Flavour Profile
Primary Flavours
Tasting Notes
Sweet and tart with bright lemon and lively carbonation; the British fizzy style rather than still cloudy lemonade.
Storage & Handling
Refrigerate and use within a day or two of opening.
Shelf Life
Unopened: 6–12 months. Opened: use within a day or two before it goes flat.
Usage
Poured over plenty of ice to lengthen spirits and liqueurs in tall serves. Because it carries its own sweetness, ease back on any other sweetener in the drink rather than adding syrup on top of it.
Two Drinks, One Word
This is the British sort of lemonade: sparkling, sweet and sharp, bringing citrus, sugar and fizz in a single pour. The still American style of lemon juice, sugar and water is a different drink entirely.
Recipes rarely say which they mean, which is a genuine source of confusion rather than a pedantic distinction. A drink built with sparkling lemonade where still was intended arrives fizzy and sweeter; the reverse arrives flat and short.
It Sweetens as It Lengthens
Because it carries its own sugar, it lengthens spirits and liqueurs without needing any syrup added alongside. That is what turns Pimm’s into a Pimm’s Cup, softens a shandy and lifts a simple gin serve on a hot afternoon.
The corollary matters: a drink already using lemonade rarely wants more sweetener. Adding syrup on top is how these serves end up cloying, and the fix is almost always to take sugar out rather than to add acid.
Cloudy or Clear
Cloudy drinks rounder and more homemade; clear is crisper and cleaner. They are interchangeable in a cocktail and the choice is a matter of taste rather than of technique.
Cloudy versions often carry a little real lemon juice, which is what gives them that rounder character. Clear ones tend to be sharper and more uniform, which suits a drink where the lemonade is providing length rather than flavour.
Serving It
Pour it over plenty of ice and let the fruit garnish do the rest. As with any carbonated mixer it goes in last and gets one stir at most.
An opened bottle is on a short clock, so refrigerate it and use it within a day or two. Flat lemonade tastes markedly sweeter than lively lemonade, since the carbonation was carrying part of the sharpness.
It is also worth knowing that traditional cloudy lemonade and the modern clear kind arrived from different directions. The cloudy style descends from the homemade drink of lemon, sugar and water with the fizz added; the clear one is a soft-drink formulation that borrowed the name.
Pro Tip
If a recipe says lemonade and the drink turns out flat, check it didn't mean the still, cloudy kind: in Britain, lemonade fizzes.
Top Tips
- This is sparkling lemonade, not still lemon juice and sugar; check which a recipe means.
- It brings both sweetness and citrus, so ease back on other sweeteners in the drink.
- Cloudy lemonade gives a rounder, more homemade character than clear.
Possible Substitutions
- Cloudy and clear are interchangeable
- Soda water with lemon and sugar (drier, homemade)
Production Method
Carbonated water is combined with lemon juice or lemon flavouring, sugar and citric acid to balance sweetness against sharpness. Clear lemonade is filtered for a crisp, transparent finish; cloudy lemonade keeps the pulp and juice for a rounder, more homemade character. It is bottled under pressure to hold the fizz.
History & Context
In Britain, 'lemonade' has meant a clear or cloudy sparkling drink since the Victorian era, distinct from the still lemon-and-sugar version common in America. It is the backbone of the summer Pimm's.
Common Questions
Is this still or sparkling lemonade?
Sparkling. In Britain the word means the fizzy drink, while the still American style of lemon juice and sugar is a different thing entirely. Recipes rarely specify, so it is worth checking which one a spec assumes.
Cloudy or clear lemonade?
Interchangeable in cocktails. Cloudy tastes rounder and more homemade, often because it carries a little real lemon juice; clear is crisper and more uniform. Use whichever suits the drink you are making.
What cocktails use lemonade?
The Pimm’s Cup above all, plus shandies, spritzes and long gin or vodka serves where sweetness and fizz are wanted together. Anywhere a drink needs lengthening and sweetening in a single pour, this does both.
Do I still add syrup?
Usually not. Lemonade already brings sugar and citrus, so ease back on other sweeteners or the drink turns cloying. Where one of these serves is too sweet, the fix is almost always less syrup rather than more lemon.
Styles of lemonade
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Guide by Jerry Can Spirits