10 Mocktails for Pregnancy: Easy Alcohol-Free Drinks

The easiest pregnancy mocktails are pasteurized juice, sparkling water, fresh fruit and a little honey over ice. The ten below run from a ginger lemonade sparkler to a mango lassi, and most take five or ten minutes. Leave out any ingredient your doctor or midwife has told you to avoid, and skip herbal teas they haven’t okayed.

One label habit is worth keeping: “non-alcoholic” isn’t always zero. Many zero-proof spirits, beers and wines contain up to 0.5% ABV, so if you want none at all, look for 0.0% on the bottle. Bitters, liqueurs and fermented drinks like kombucha stay off this list.

The Ten at a Glance

Before You Start

• Use pasteurized juice and dairy. FDA advice for pregnancy is to choose juice that’s been pasteurized or otherwise treated, and pasteurized milk and yogurt. Washing fruit doesn’t pasteurize fresh-squeezed juice, so the recipes below use bottled treated juice or whole fruit.
• Wash produce and herbs under running water before you cut them, and scrub cucumbers and melons before peeling.
• Keep it cold. FoodSafety.gov’s rule is to toss perishable drinks left out more than two hours, or one hour when it’s above 90F (32C).
• Read labels for added sugar, caffeine and allergens on anything bottled.

All measurements use US cups and fluid ounces. A 12- to 16-ounce glass suits most of these. Add the sparkling water last so it stays fizzy.

1. Ginger Lemonade Sparkler

Fresh ginger gives this one real heat, and lemon keeps it sharp.

• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon pasteurized lemon juice
• 1/2 cup chilled sparkling water
• Ice

Warm the ginger, honey and water in a small pan until the honey dissolves. Strain it and cool it quickly in an ice bath, then stir in the lemon juice, ice and sparkling water.

2. Watermelon Mint Cooler

Pink, cold and barely sweet. Taste it before you think about adding sugar.

• 1/2 cup pasteurized watermelon juice
• 1 tablespoon pasteurized lime juice
• 1/2 cup sparkling water
• 2 rinsed mint leaves
• Ice

Stir the watermelon and lime juice over ice, then add the sparkling water and mint. Makes about 9 ounces before ice.

3. Cucumber Lime Cooler

The cucumber slices perfume the drink without turning it into juice.

• 3 rinsed cucumber slices
• 1 tablespoon pasteurized lime juice
• 1 teaspoon honey dissolved in 1 teaspoon warm water, then cooled
• 3/4 cup sparkling water
• Ice

Stir the honey mixture and lime juice over ice, then add the cucumber slices and sparkling water.

4. Mango Lassi

Thick enough to count as a snack. This is a smaller, less sweet take on the Allrecipes restaurant-style lassi.

• 1 cup rinsed, peeled and diced fresh mango, heat-treated mango puree or canned mango
• 1/2 cup pasteurized plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup pasteurized milk
• 1 teaspoon honey, optional
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

Blend until smooth and divide between two glasses. With prepared puree it’s ready in about 5 minutes, or about 10 with fresh fruit.

5. Berry Coconut Water Refresher

Two ingredients and a glass of ice.

• 1/4 cup pasteurized berry juice
• 3/4 cup pasteurized coconut water
• Ice

Stir together over ice. Makes 1 cup before ice. Bottled juice keeps this one simple, since freezing berries doesn’t clean them.

6. Peach Ginger Fizz

Peach and ginger, blended and topped with bubbles. Use a 16-ounce glass.

• 1/2 cup rinsed, pitted fresh peach slices or drained canned peach slices
• 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 cup sparkling water
• Ice

Warm the ginger, honey and water, strain and cool it quickly. Blend with the peach, pour over ice and stir in the sparkling water.

7. Sparkling Lemonade

The one to hand someone at a party when everyone else has a flute.

• 1 tablespoon pasteurized lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon simple syrup
• 1/2 cup sparkling water

Stir in an 8-ounce flute and serve. Makes about 5 ounces.

8. Strawberry Basil Lemonade

Sweet strawberry and sharp lemon, with a basil leaf on top if you like it.

• 1/4 cup pasteurized strawberry puree
• 1 tablespoon pasteurized lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon honey dissolved in 1 teaspoon warm water, then cooled
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1 rinsed basil leaf, optional

Stir everything together, add ice in a 12-ounce glass and set the basil leaf on top.

9. Cranberry Cooler

Tart, red and about as easy as it gets. It sticks to cranberry juice and skips the herbal tea.

• 1/2 cup pasteurized cranberry juice
• 1/2 cup sparkling water
• Ice

Combine over ice. Makes 1 cup before ice.

10. Golden Milk Cooler

Golden milk served cold, with warm spice from turmeric and ginger.

• 1 cup pasteurized or UHT oat drink
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 small pinch ground black pepper, optional

Whisk everything together in a small pan and bring it to a gentle simmer, stirring. Cool it quickly in an ice bath and serve over ice. The spices are kitchen amounts for flavor, not a supplement dose.

Which One to Make

• Something cold and plain: cucumber lime cooler, watermelon mint cooler or berry coconut water.
• Something with a bit of bite: ginger lemonade sparkler, peach ginger fizz or golden milk cooler.
• A glass for a party or a toast: sparkling lemonade, strawberry basil lemonade or cranberry cooler.
• Something that counts as a snack: mango lassi.

Serving a Crowd

Make the fruit and dairy drinks right before you serve them, and keep any extra in the fridge to use the same day. Syrups and noncarbonated mixes can be frozen in portions. For a pitcher, multiply a single recipe by the number of guests and add the sparkling water at the last minute. Our baby shower mocktails are built for batching.

The mango lassi has dairy, and oat drink isn’t automatically free of every allergen, so check labels if a guest has allergies.

Common Questions

What should you not drink while pregnant?

Alcohol, including “non-alcoholic” drinks that can still contain up to 0.5% ABV. FDA advice also says to avoid unpasteurized juice and raw milk. Beyond that, skip herbal teas and any ingredient your doctor or midwife has told you to avoid, and ask them about caffeine.

Are mocktails OK during pregnancy?

A mocktail is only as alcohol-free as its ingredients. Ones made from juice, sparkling water, fruit and syrup contain no alcohol. Mocktails built on zero-proof spirits, bitters or kombucha can contain small amounts, so check every label or leave them out.

Do non-alcoholic spirits and beers contain alcohol?

Many do, up to 0.5% ABV. Look for 0.0% on the label if you want none at all.

Can I drink a piña colada mocktail while pregnant?

A virgin piña colada is pineapple juice and coconut cream blended with ice, with no rum. Use pasteurized pineapple juice and read the label on any bottled mix for alcohol and added ingredients.

Can I drink kombucha while pregnant?

Kombucha is fermented and contains a small amount of alcohol, which is why it isn’t on this list. Ask your doctor or midwife before drinking it.

What can I drink instead of wine at a party?

Sparkling lemonade in a flute looks the part. The cranberry cooler and strawberry basil lemonade work the same way in a wine glass.