14 Low-Alcohol Cocktail Recipes With Less Booze & Big Flavor

Day drinking? Want to slow it down? Fully intend to skip the hangover? In any case, these tasty low-ABV cocktails have you covered.

Published February 14, 2023
Woman holding and drinking a mojito with straw

Sometimes, you want a drink with dinner or to enjoy a midday drink. No judgment here - life's for living, but you don't want to go hard on the booze with a martini or something that's going to make you want to take a nap. There are plenty of low-alcohol cocktails with a low ABV, all with just a few modifications or a dedicated recipe. Now that's something to low-alcohol cheers to.

Low-ABV Kir Royale

Kir Royale mocktail

The traditional kir royale is just crème de cassis and prosecco. However, to lighten that up a little bit more, we're going to use some club soda, too.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Chill a Champagne flute.
  2. In chilled glass, add crème de cassis and club soda.
  3. Top off with prosecco.
  4. Garnish with a raspberry.

Light Alcohol Adonis Cocktail

Homemade Manhattan

Compared to hard liquors, sherry and vermouth are both pretty low on the alcohol scale, and together, they make a surprisingly balanced cocktail that'll feel like you're being let in the on the best-kept cocktail secret.

Ingredients

  • 1½ ounces fino sherry
  • 1½ ounces sweet vermouth
  • Ice
  • Lemon or orange peel for garnish

Instructions

  1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
  2. In a mixing glass, add ice, fino sherry, and sweet vermouth.
  3. Stir rapidly to chill.
  4. Strain into the chilled glass.
  5. Garnish with a lemon peel.

Campari Spritz: A Bitter & Low-Alcohol Apéritif Cocktail

Campari Spritz

Don't confuse the Campari spritz with the Americano below. It's more like the Aperol spritz. In fact, it follows the same recipe!

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces Campari
  • 1 ounce club soda
  • 3 ounces prosecco
  • Ice
  • Orange wheel for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a wine glass, add ice, Campari, club soda, and prosecco.
  2. Stir once to mix.
  3. Garnish with an orange wheel.

Americano Cocktail

Refreshing Cold Americano Cocktail

Take a Campari cocktail one step lighter by mixing it with just a splash of sweet vermouth and a heaping pour of club soda. If you're wrinkling your nose at the idea of such a bitter cocktail, you can use Suze and a dry vermouth instead.

Ingredients

  • 1½ ounces Campari
  • 1 ounce sweet vermouth
  • Ice
  • Club soda to top off
  • Orange slice for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a highball glass, add ice, Campari, and sweet vermouth.
  2. Top off with club soda.
  3. Stir once to mix.
  4. Garnish with an orange slice.

Aperol Spritz: The Sweeter Low-Alcohol Apéritif Cocktail

Aperol Spritz on a restaurant table

The classic and beloved low-ABV cocktail, the one, the only: the Aperol spritz.

Ingredients

  • 3 ounces prosecco
  • 2 ounces Aperol
  • 1 ounce club soda
  • Ice
  • Orange slice for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a wine glass, add ice, prosecco, Aperol, and club soda.
  2. Stir gently to mix.
  3. Garnish with an orange slice.

Low-ABV Rebujito Cocktail

Rebujito cocktail

There's no rum, mint, lime juice, simple syrup, or club soda in this -jito cocktail, despite it sounding like a close cousin to the mojito. If you want something a little less sweet, use a half ounce each of lemon and lime juice, topping off with club soda. Of course, a small splash of simple syrup goes a long way, too.

Ingredients

  • 3 ounces fino sherry
  • Ice
  • Lemon-lime soda to top off
  • Mint sprig for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a rocks or highball glass, add ice and fino sherry.
  2. Top off with lemon-lime soda.
  3. Stir to mix.
  4. Garnish with a mint sprig.

Calimocho

Boozy Kalimotxo Red Wine and Cola with a Lemon Garnish

A Spanish-style cocktail, also known as kalimotxo, couldn't be a simpler low-ABV drink. Don't furrow your eyebrows - the wine and cola combination might sound outlandish, but it is popular for a reason. Be a trailblazer among your friends.

Ingredients

  • 3 ounces cola
  • 3 ounces red wine
  • Ice
  • Lemon wedge for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a rocks glass, add ice, cola, and red wine.
  2. Stir to mix.
  3. Garnish with a lemon wedge.

Bamboo Cocktail

Bamboo Cocktail

Another low-alcoholic cocktail that's a crafty combination of vermouth and sherry, but with a bitter punch. Think of it as a great substitute for your Manhattan or Toronto.

Ingredients

  • 1½ ounces dry vermouth
  • 1½ ounces dry sherry
  • 1 dash orange bitters
  • 1 dash aromatic bitters
  • Ice
  • Lemon peel for garnish

Instructions

  1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
  2. In a mixing glass, add ice, dry vermouth, dry sherry, and bitters.
  3. Stir rapidly to chill.
  4. Strain into the chilled glass.
  5. Garnish with a lemon peel.

Sherry Cobbler

Sherry Cobbler

While this doesn't taste exactly like a classic edible cobbler, it's a pretty great low-alcohol cocktail that's sweet and fruity.

Ingredients

  • 3 ounces dry sherry, amontillado
  • ¼ ounce simple syrup
  • Crushed ice
  • Mint sprig and dehydrated lime wheel for garnish

Instructions

  1. Fill a highball or rocks glass with crushed ice.
  2. Add dry sherry and simple syrup.
  3. Garnish with a mint sprig and dehydrated lime wheel.

Light Alcohol Old-Fashioned

Old-Fashioned Cocktail

Is there a way to lighten up the old-fashioned so it isn't so boozy? Aw, yeah. We'll show you how.

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce bourbon
  • 1 ounce simple syrup
  • 2-3 dashes orange bitters
  • 1-2 dashes aromatic bitters
  • 2 ounces club soda
  • Ice
  • Orange peel for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a rocks glass, add ice, bourbon, simple syrup, bitters, and club soda.
  2. Stir briefly to chill.
  3. Garnish with an orange peel.

Low-ABV Mint Julep

mint julep classic cocktail

Cut the boozy whiskey burn in the classic muddled mint julep with some extra mixer.

Ingredients

  • 6-8 fresh mint leaves
  • 1 ounce bourbon
  • ½ ounce simple syrup
  • Crushed ice
  • Club soda to top off
  • Mint sprig for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a rocks glass or Julep cup, muddle the mint leaves with simple syrup.
  2. Add crushed ice and bourbon.
  3. Top off with club soda.
  4. Garnish with a mint sprig.

Garibaldi

Glass of Garibaldi cocktail garnished with orange wedge

So you want a Campari-based low-alcohol cocktail, that'll boost your immune system with vitamin C? Your wish is granted. Now, what are your next two wishes?

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces Campari
  • Ice
  • Orange juice to top off
  • Orange wedge for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a highball glass, add ice and Campari.
  2. Top off with orange juice.
  3. Garnish with an orange wedge.

Coronation Cocktail No. 1

Glass of prosecco

You may think you've found all the combinations of vermouth and sherry that can exist, but this nearly century-old low-alcohol cocktail proves you wrong.

Ingredients

  • 1¾ ounces dry vermouth
  • ¾ ounce dry fino sherry
  • ¼ ounce maraschino liqueur
  • 2-3 dashes orange bitters
  • Ice
  • Lemon peel for garnish, optional

Instructions

  1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
  2. In a mixing glass, add ice, dry vermouth, dry sherry, maraschino liqueur, and bitters.
  3. Stir rapidly to chill.
  4. Strain into the chilled glass.
  5. Garnish with a lemon peel, if desired.

St. Germain Spritz

St Germain French Spritz cocktail

Leave your bitter Campari and Aperol on the shelf this time. The elderflower flavors in this spritz are a nice change from bitter to floral and sunshine.

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces St. Germain elderflower liqueur
  • 1 ounce prosecco
  • Ice
  • Club soda to top off
  • Lemon slice for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a highball or cocktail glass, add ice, elderflower liqueur, and prosecco.
  2. Top off with club soda.
  3. Garnish with a lemon slice.

Lighten Up a Cocktail

The easiest way to lower the alcohol content of any cocktail is to increase the amount of mixer, or substitute a lower-ABV ingredient in its place. Think of using more orange liqueur than tequila for a margarita. Yes, you'll need to play around with the other ingredients so it isn't as sweet, but life, and especially cocktails, are for experimenting and play. Swap Campari for whiskey in a whiskey sour. Don't be afraid to break the rules, either! Just like a mint julep, add a complementary flavor to a whiskey smash. If you love tropical rum drinks, use more mixer than rums. Spritzers, including wine spritzers, are excellent for making something less boozy.

Take a Slow Walk With a Low-Alcohol Cocktail

Don't confuse low-alcohol cocktails with low-flavor cocktails. Plenty still have a bark, it's just their bite that isn't as painful. And isn't that a win-win?

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14 Low-Alcohol Cocktail Recipes With Less Booze & Big Flavor