A perfect herbal mocktail (or cocktail) that takes advantage of the pear’s peak harvest season. Rosemary is a perfect, warming complement and creates a perfect herbal profile. Add a bit of sparkling water and you’ve got a fancy pear fall mocktail that’s easy and delicious.
Jump to RecipeThe information in this post is intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. It is always best to work with a qualified healthcare professional before incorporating herbs into your diet.
Rosemary Pear Fall Mocktail
Fall is peak pear season. And enjoying pears during their natural season is the best way to not only get the best flavor but also the best nutritional value, too. For this fall mocktail recipe, you can use any pear variety you like. Anjou pears are usually the most common variety found in grocery stores and reach their peak season from October to July. Bosc and Bartlett are also fairly common and reach their peak from September to April and August and February, respectively.
If you can find Bosc pears, they’re particularly good in this recipe because of their honey-like sweetness. But, again, any pear will be delicious. Just look for unblemished pears that give to slight pressure applied at the neck. That’s when you know they’re ripe and ready to enjoy.
Rosemary and pear and a delicious combination. The woodsy, citrusy, aromatic, slightly-spicy flavor of rosemary complements the mild sweetness of pear beautifully.
I love using honey in mocktail syrups because it brings its own unique flavor to the party. And besides, rosemary honey is also a nice winter herbal remedy to have on hand to help soothe a sore throat. And, of course, it’s delicious.
The acidity in lemon juice brightens and balances the other flavors. And a touch of sparkling water or tonic water makes the drink feel elevated and special. I love a good sparkly drink.
If you want to turn this mocktail into a cocktail, you could add a shot of vodka or gin. Or swap the sparkling water for sparkling white wine for a low-alcohol cocktail option.
How To Make The Rosemary Pear Mocktail
This herbal mocktail recipe starts with making the rosemary-infused honey syrup. You want to make a super strong infusion so that the rosemary flavor comes through in the final drink. Combine ½ cup of water and 3 tablespoons of dried rosemary in a small saucepan. Cover and bring to a low boil before reducing the heat to a simmer. Let the infusion simmer for 10 minutes, then remove from the heat and let it steep for another 30-60 minutes.
Strain the infusion into a glass measuring cup so you know how much infusion you have. Rinse the saucepan and pour the infusion back into pan. Add an equal amount of honey to the infusion. Then heat the mixture over low heat until it’s just warm enough to dissolve the honey. You don’t want to heat it too much. Stir the mixture constantly until the honey dissolves, which should only take a few minutes. Then remove from the heat and let it cool to room temperature before storing the honey syrup in the fridge until ready to go.
To make the actual cocktail, you have a few options depending on the type of glass you want to use and how much effort you want to put in.
Option 1: Classic Mocktail
This option uses either a lowball or highball glass (your choice) and has you build the drink right in the glass. You’ll combine the diced pear, lemon juice, and rosemary honey syrup in a blender and blend until smooth. Then pour it into the ice-filled glass and top with sparkling water or tonic water. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary and you’re good to go.
Option 2: “Fancy” Mocktail
If you want to use a coup glass (which feels extra fancy and fun to me), you’ll blend up just the pear and lemon juice in a blender until smooth. Then, add the pear mixture and rosemary honey syrup to a cocktail shaker. Fill the shaker with ice, cover, and shake for 10 seconds. Strain the mixture into a coupe glass and top with a bit of sparkling water or tonic water. So fancy.
Option 3: Punch-style Mocktail
If you want to make a larger batch of this drink and go the self-serve route, you’ll increase the ingredient amounts to match the number of servings you want to make. For example, if you want to make 8 servings, you’ll combine 4 pears, the juice from 4 lemons, and ½ – 1 cup of rosemary honey syrup in a blender. Blend until smooth, then pour into a punchbowl or pitcher. Just before serving, add 4 cups of ice and 4 cups of sparkling water or tonic water and let people serve themselves.
No matter what option you choose, this easy fall herbal mocktail recipe will be a hit.
This is the kind of easy fall mocktail that pairs perfectly with other comfort food dishes. And rosemary honey syrup is a delicious herbal preparation to have on hand to stir into herbal tea or take by the spoonful to soothe a sore throat.
Serve it by the glass as your next low-key get-together or whip up a big batch and serve it punch-style at Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving.
Here’s another great mocktail recipe that highlights rosemary syrup: Rosemary-Infused Blackberry Smash Mocktail
Rosemary Pear Sparkling Fall Mocktail
Ingredients
For The Rosemary Simple Syrup
- 1 cup water
- 4 tablespoons dried rosemary
- ¾ cup honey give or take
For The Cocktail
- ½ pear peeled, cored, and diced
- Juice from half a lemon
- 1-2 tablespoons Rosemary Honey Syrup
- Sparkling water or tonic water
Instructions
To Make The Rosemary Honey Syrup
- In a small saucepan, combine the water and dried rosemary. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer. Let simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and let steep for another 30-60 minutes.
- Strain the rosemary infusion over a glass measuring cup so you know how much infusion you have. Pour the infusion back into the rinsed saucepan and add an equal amount of honey.
- Turn the heat on to low and heat just enough to incorporate the honey. Stir constantly until the honey is fully dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature. Transfer to a lidded container and chill in the fridge until ready to use.
To Make The Rosemary Pear Cocktail
- Option 1: Combine the pear, lemon juice, and rosemary honey syrup in a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into an ice-filled glass and top with sparkling water or tonic water and a fresh rosemary sprig.
- Option 2: Combine the pear and lemon juice in a blender. Blend until smooth. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add the pear mixture and rosemary honey syrup. Cover and shake for about 10 seconds. Strain into a coup glass and top with sparkling water or tonic water.
- Option 3: To serve this mocktail punch-style, blend 4 pears (peeled, sliced, and diced) and the juice from 4 lemons in a blender until smooth. Pour the pear mixture into a punch bowl and add ½ – 1 cup rosemary honey syrup. Stir to combine. When ready to serve, add 4 cups of ice and 4 cups of sparkling water or tonic water.
- The rosemary honey syrup can be store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
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3 COMMENTS
Justine
1 year agoOh my word, this looks incredible. Definitely trying this.
Rebecca
1 year ago AUTHORI hope you love it! It’s become one of my fave mocktails.