Blackberry Sage Zero Proof Spritz

Most alcohol free drinks fail in the same way: they are sweet, and only sweet. Without a spirit's bitterness or burn there is nothing to push against the sugar, so the drink reads as juice.

Sage is the answer here. Muddled with blackberries and agave it brings a savory, faintly resinous edge that does the structural work alcohol usually does, and the sparkling mineral water keeps the whole thing lean.

The Recipe

Makes 1 · 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 6 fresh blackberries, plus one for garnish
• 3 fresh sage leaves
• 0.5 oz fresh lime juice
• 0.5 oz agave nectar
• Ice cubes
• 4 oz Tehuacan Brillante sparkling mineral water

Method

1. Place the blackberries, sage leaves, and agave nectar into a cocktail shaker.
2. Muddle the ingredients thoroughly to release the berry juice and herb oils.
3. Add the fresh lime juice and a generous handful of ice cubes to the shaker.
4. Close the shaker and shake vigorously for ten seconds to chill the base.
5. Strain the liquid into a tall, plain smooth unmarked glass filled with fresh ice.
6. Top up the glass with Tehuacan Brillante sparkling mineral water and stir gently.
7. Garnish with a single fresh blackberry and serve immediately.

Notes

Muddle the sage with the berries and agave, not by itself. The sugar acts as an abrasive and pulls the oils out of the leaves without shredding them into green flecks.

Shake for a full ten seconds. This drink needs the dilution and the aeration; under-shaken, it tastes like berry syrup.

Strain if you want it elegant, pour it through as-is if you want it rustic. Both are defensible.

Tehuacán Brillante is sparkling mineral water from the Tehuacán Valley in Puebla, naturally mineralized on a journey of roughly eight years through volcanic rock. Family run since 1983, Mexican owned, bottled in 12 fl oz glass. Find us at @drinktehuacan.