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Six classics have an alcohol-free build in the Field Manual.
Each pair sits side by side: the original with its measures and strength, the alcohol-free build, and what changes. Five of the six keep the same glass. The Pornstar Martini goes in a martini glass and its alcohol-free version in a coupe.
Six classic cocktails beside their alcohol-free builds, with measures and what changes
Mojito: 45ml white rum, 20ml fresh lime juice, two teaspoons of caster sugar, six sprigs of mint and 75 to 100ml of soda water over cubed ice in a highball. About 1.8 UK units.
- Alcohol-free build
- Virgin Mojito: ten mint leaves, 25ml fresh lime juice, 20ml simple syrup and 120ml of soda water over crushed ice in a highball. No alcohol.
- What changes
- The rum goes. Syrup replaces the sugar, the lime rises to 25ml and the soda to 120ml, and crushed ice replaces cubes.
Piña Colada: 50ml white rum, 50ml fresh pineapple juice and 30ml cream of coconut, blended with a cup of crushed ice. About 2.0 UK units.
- Alcohol-free build
- Virgin Colada: 120ml fresh pineapple juice, 45ml cream of coconut and 15ml fresh lime juice, blended with a cup of crushed ice. No alcohol.
- What changes
- Pineapple juice rises from 50ml to 120ml, cream of coconut from 30ml to 45ml, and the lime from a few optional drops to 15ml.
Pornstar Martini: 50ml vanilla vodka, 20ml passion fruit liqueur, 50ml passion fruit purée and 10ml vanilla syrup, shaken, with 50ml of Champagne alongside. About 2.2 UK units, 2.8 with the Champagne.
- Alcohol-free build
- Virgin Passion Fruit Martini: two fresh passion fruits, 50ml passion fruit juice, 25ml vanilla syrup and 15ml fresh lime juice, shaken, with a small glass of chilled sparkling apple juice alongside. No alcohol.
- What changes
- Vodka and liqueur go, fresh pulp comes in, vanilla syrup rises from 10ml to 25ml for body, and lime is added. The shake stays at 10 to 12 seconds.
Aperol Spritz: 90ml prosecco, 60ml Aperol and 30ml soda water, with an orange slice, in a wine glass packed with ice. About 1.7 UK units.
- Alcohol-free build
- Alcohol-free Spritz: 50ml alcohol-free aperitif and 100ml soda water or tonic water, with an orange slice, in a wine glass packed with ice. Strength printed on the bottle, up to 0.5% ABV.
- What changes
- No prosecco, so the fizz comes from the soda or tonic. Soda keeps it dry and tonic adds sweetness and bite. The proportions are our own.
Gin and Tonic: 50ml gin and 100ml Indian tonic water, with a lime wedge, in a copa full of ice. About 2.0 UK units.
- Alcohol-free build
- Spirit Alternative and Tonic: 50ml spirit alternative and 100 to 150ml chilled tonic water, with a garnish to suit the bottle, in a copa full of ice. Strength printed on the bottle, 0.0 to 0.5% ABV.
- What changes
- The build is the same and the ratio is not. Begin at 100ml of tonic and taste before adding more, because there is no alcohol to dilute.
Bloody Mary: 45ml vodka, 90ml tomato juice, 15ml fresh lemon juice, two dashes of Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, celery salt and black pepper, in a double rocks glass. About 1.8 UK units.
- Alcohol-free build
- Virgin Mary: 90ml tomato juice, 15ml fresh lemon juice, two dashes of Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, celery salt and black pepper, in a double rocks glass. No alcohol.
- What changes
- The vodka goes and every other measure stays. With nothing in its place, salt and heat stand out more.
| Original | Alcohol-free build | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Mojito: 45ml white rum, 20ml fresh lime juice, two teaspoons of caster sugar, six sprigs of mint and 75 to 100ml of soda water over cubed ice in a highball. About 1.8 UK units. | Virgin Mojito: ten mint leaves, 25ml fresh lime juice, 20ml simple syrup and 120ml of soda water over crushed ice in a highball. No alcohol. | The rum goes. Syrup replaces the sugar, the lime rises to 25ml and the soda to 120ml, and crushed ice replaces cubes. |
| Piña Colada: 50ml white rum, 50ml fresh pineapple juice and 30ml cream of coconut, blended with a cup of crushed ice. About 2.0 UK units. | Virgin Colada: 120ml fresh pineapple juice, 45ml cream of coconut and 15ml fresh lime juice, blended with a cup of crushed ice. No alcohol. | Pineapple juice rises from 50ml to 120ml, cream of coconut from 30ml to 45ml, and the lime from a few optional drops to 15ml. |
| Pornstar Martini: 50ml vanilla vodka, 20ml passion fruit liqueur, 50ml passion fruit purée and 10ml vanilla syrup, shaken, with 50ml of Champagne alongside. About 2.2 UK units, 2.8 with the Champagne. | Virgin Passion Fruit Martini: two fresh passion fruits, 50ml passion fruit juice, 25ml vanilla syrup and 15ml fresh lime juice, shaken, with a small glass of chilled sparkling apple juice alongside. No alcohol. | Vodka and liqueur go, fresh pulp comes in, vanilla syrup rises from 10ml to 25ml for body, and lime is added. The shake stays at 10 to 12 seconds. |
| Aperol Spritz: 90ml prosecco, 60ml Aperol and 30ml soda water, with an orange slice, in a wine glass packed with ice. About 1.7 UK units. | Alcohol-free Spritz: 50ml alcohol-free aperitif and 100ml soda water or tonic water, with an orange slice, in a wine glass packed with ice. Strength printed on the bottle, up to 0.5% ABV. | No prosecco, so the fizz comes from the soda or tonic. Soda keeps it dry and tonic adds sweetness and bite. The proportions are our own. |
| Gin and Tonic: 50ml gin and 100ml Indian tonic water, with a lime wedge, in a copa full of ice. About 2.0 UK units. | Spirit Alternative and Tonic: 50ml spirit alternative and 100 to 150ml chilled tonic water, with a garnish to suit the bottle, in a copa full of ice. Strength printed on the bottle, 0.0 to 0.5% ABV. | The build is the same and the ratio is not. Begin at 100ml of tonic and taste before adding more, because there is no alcohol to dilute. |
| Bloody Mary: 45ml vodka, 90ml tomato juice, 15ml fresh lemon juice, two dashes of Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, celery salt and black pepper, in a double rocks glass. About 1.8 UK units. | Virgin Mary: 90ml tomato juice, 15ml fresh lemon juice, two dashes of Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, celery salt and black pepper, in a double rocks glass. No alcohol. | The vodka goes and every other measure stays. With nothing in its place, salt and heat stand out more. |
Strength falls to nothing in four builds and to a label figure in two.
The Mojito carries about 1.8 UK units, the Piña Colada about 2.0, the Pornstar Martini about 2.2 and the Bloody Mary about 1.8. The Virgin Mojito, Virgin Colada, Virgin Passion Fruit Martini and Virgin Mary are alcohol-free, so there are no units to count.
The two builds that start from a bottle depend on its label. The Alcohol-free Spritz and the Spirit Alternative and Tonic each use 50ml of a bottle whose strength is printed on it, up to 0.5% ABV. At the top of that range 50ml holds 0.25ml of pure alcohol, which is 0.025 UK units by the NHS sum of strength times volume divided by 1,000. The Aperol Spritz holds about 1.7 units and the Gin and Tonic about 2.0.
What changes is the repair, and each pair needs a different one.
The Virgin Mojito keeps the whole build. Losing the rum takes away some warmth and body, and the mint, the lime and the soda carry the rest, so use lively soda water from a bottle opened that day.
The Virgin Colada is more than the Piña Colada minus the rum. More pineapple fills the glass, and lime turns from an optional correction into a measure so the drink does not turn merely sweet. Cream of coconut still sets the character, and the tin needs a shake before it is opened.
The Virgin Passion Fruit Martini depends on fresh fruit, because pulp and seeds bring scent and texture that juice lacks. Its page argues that the vodka in the original supplies strength more than flavour, so losing it costs little. The sparkling apple juice alongside stands in for the Champagne.
The Alcohol-free Spritz keeps the Aperol Spritz’s structure at a different strength: a bittersweet orange aperitif, fizz and an orange slice. Taste the aperitif with soda before building, because sugar and bitterness differ more from bottle to bottle than they do between most spirits.
The Spirit Alternative and Tonic borrows the Gin and Tonic’s build and changes the ratio. Pack the glass, pour the tonic slowly down the side and test the proportion bottle by bottle. Alcohol-free spirits explained sets out the test.
The Virgin Mary is stirred with tomato juice, never shaken, and tasted at the end. Worcestershire sauce brings fish and gluten and the celery salt brings celery, so label the glass for anyone who needs to know.
The Shirley Temple and the Arnold Palmer never held a spirit, so they need no virgin.
The Shirley Temple is ginger ale over ice, 150ml, with 15ml of grenadine poured in last so that it sinks, and a maraschino cherry on top. The Arnold Palmer is cold unsweetened black tea and still, cloudy lemonade at three parts to one, 135ml to 45ml, with a lemon wheel. Neither has a spirit to remove, so a virgin version of either would be a drink that does not exist. The tea carries caffeine.
The Shirley Temple’s page asks for a grenadine made from pomegranate juice and sugar, not glucose syrup and colouring. Whether the cherry carries alcohol is a question trace alcohol in an alcohol-free drink answers for the maraschino cherry.
The Negroni, the Old Fashioned and the Martini do not translate.
Each is all spirit and weight, so the honest answer is a different drink, not a copy. The Negroni is equal parts gin, Campari and sweet vermouth, 30ml of each, about 2.4 UK units. The gin brings juniper and strength, the red bitter brings bitterness and orange, and the vermouth brings body and sugar. Replace all three and the result is another drink.
The Old Fashioned builds on 45ml of bourbon or rye with a sugar cube, two dashes of Angostura bitters and a little water. Without the bourbon it is sweetened water, and the bitters that remain are 44.7% ABV. The Martini is 60ml of gin and 10ml of dry vermouth, stirred, with no juice or sugar to build on, so removing the gin removes the drink.
The Field Manual’s bittersweet alcohol-free build is the Alcohol-free Spritz, long and light where a Negroni is short and strong. Campari and soda is no substitute: Campari is 25% ABV on our ingredient page, and the Campari and Soda carries about 1.1 UK units.
Bitters and vanilla carry a trace of alcohol, and none of the six builds uses bitters.
Angostura bitters are 44.7% ABV, and two dashes add 0.07 UK units. Trace alcohol in an alcohol-free drink does the sum for bitters, vanilla extract, Worcestershire sauce and maraschino cherries. The Virgin Mary’s Worcestershire sauce entry reports no alcohol in the ingredients, and the Virgin Passion Fruit Martini’s page says to check the label on a vanilla syrup. How to make mocktails covers the tools behind every build here.