Rosemary Pear Spritz Mocktail

Before you start

Pear is a gentle fruit, sweet and soft with a faint floral edge, and it disappears easily in a mixed drink. This spritz gives it two supports: a resinous rosemary syrup that adds a piney, savory note, and lemon juice that sharpens the fruit so it tastes like biting into a ripe pear rather than like canned nectar. Soda water stretches it into a long, light drink for an autumn table.

The syrup is the step to get right. Rosemary turns medicinal if it is boiled or steeped too long, so the sprigs go into the syrup off the heat and come out after 20 minutes. Choose pear nectar for body or a cloudy pressed pear juice for a lighter, crisper glass; the recipe works with either, with a small syrup adjustment.

Ingredients

• Rosemary syrup100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
• 100 ml (scant ½ cup) water
• 2 sprigs (about 10 cm each) fresh rosemary
• Spritz90 ml (3 oz) pear nectar or cloudy pear juice — chilled
• 15 ml (½ oz) fresh lemon juice
• 10 ml (2 tsp) rosemary syrup — 15 ml if using unsweetened pear juice
• 90 ml (3 oz) soda water — or non-alcoholic sparkling wine
• 1½ cups (about 220 g) ice cubes
• Garnish2 thin slices ripe pear
• 1 small sprig fresh rosemary

Method

1. Heat the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves and the syrup just simmers, about 3 to 4 minutes.
2. Take the pan off the heat and push the rosemary sprigs under the surface. Steep for 20 minutes, then taste: it should smell clearly of rosemary without tasting bitter. Strain into a jar and let it cool.
3. Fill the wine glass with ice and slide the pear slices down the side so they show through the glass.
4. Add the pear nectar, lemon juice and rosemary syrup, and stir briefly with the bar spoon to combine.
5. Top with the soda water, then lift the spoon once through the drink to blend it gently.
6. Run the small rosemary sprig over the rim, then tuck it into the ice. Serve while the soda is lively.

Tips for success

• Slice the garnish pear at the last minute or brush it with lemon juice so it does not brown.
• For a party, mix the pear, lemon and syrup in a pitcher and keep it cold. Pour over ice and top each glass with soda to order.
• Lightly toast the garnish sprig with a match or lighter for a smoky aroma, keeping it well away from the glass and anything flammable.

Substitutions

Pear nectar

Unfiltered apple juice gives a sharper, more familiar drink. Keep the syrup at 10 ml, since apple juice is usually sweeter than pressed pear.

Rosemary

Thyme makes a lighter, lemony syrup; sage is earthier and works well with pear. Steep either for 15 minutes only.

Soda water

Ginger ale adds spice and sweetness; leave out the syrup if you use it. Non-alcoholic sparkling wine makes it drier and more festive.

Variations

Spiced pear

Add a cinnamon stick and two cardamom pods with the rosemary when steeping.

Pear and ginger

Muddle two thin coins of fresh ginger in the glass before adding ice.

Troubleshooting

The syrup tastes like cough medicine

The rosemary boiled or steeped too long. Add herbs off the heat and pull them at 20 minutes.

The drink tastes flat and sugary

Pear needs acid. Add another 5 ml lemon juice, or switch to a cloudy pressed juice with more natural tartness.

The pear flavor gets lost

Thin juices fade under soda. Use nectar, or cut the soda to 60 ml.

Storage

Keep the rosemary syrup refrigerated in a clean, sealed jar and use it within about 2 weeks; discard it if it turns cloudy or develops mold. The mixed spritz should be drunk soon after topping with soda.