12 Easy Mocktails You Can Make with a Can and a Garnish
By Jason LaValla, founder, Casamara Club · September 2026
Jump to:
- What "Easy" Means Here
- The 12 at a Glance
- The 12 Easy Mocktails
- Why a Botanical Soda Makes an Easy Mocktail
- Garnish, Glass, and Ice
- For a Crowd, and for a Mixed Table
- Where to Get the Cans
- FAQ
- Sources
Most "easy mocktail" recipes are not easy. They want a syrup you make the night before, a muddler, a shaker, and four things from the produce aisle. The twelve below are the drinks we actually pour at home: one cold can, one glass, one garnish. Every one of them is written on our recipes page as the house serve for that flavor, so nothing here is invented for the post.
The short answer: The easiest mocktail is a cold botanical soda poured a little at a time into a small glass with a single citrus garnish. No shaker, no syrup, no measuring, about a minute. Our six sodas carry the bitterness, acidity, and aromatics a cocktail needs at 4 to 5 grams of sugar per 12-ounce can, so the garnish is the whole recipe.
What "Easy" Means Here
Two ingredients or fewer, and one of them is the can.
A cold can, a glass, one garnish, with a single two-ingredient exception at the end (orange juice and a can). Nothing is shaken, muddled, or measured. The method is the same for all twelve: "Serve cold, in small, unfussy glassware. Pour a small amount at first; as it warms slightly in the glass, the aromatics open up. That's the whole trick." The can stays on the table and you top off as you go. Ice is optional for the six botanical sodas and standard for Superclasico Aperitivo; more in our post on how to serve Casamara Club.
The 12 at a Glance
Every drink below takes about a minute, because there is nothing to do but pour and garnish.
| # | Drink | Base | Garnish | Time | Glass |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alta, orange twist | Alta (Italian style) | Orange twist | 1 min | Rocks or highball |
| 2 | Como, orange twist | Como (Alpine style) | Orange twist | 1 min | Highball or picardie |
| 3 | Como, lime wheel | Como | Lime wheel | 1 min | Highball |
| 4 | Onda, lemon twist | Onda (Sicilian style) | Lemon twist | 1 min | Wine or rocks |
| 5 | Onda, green olive | Onda | Green olive | 1 min | Rocks |
| 6 | Sera, orange twist | Sera (Riviera style) | Orange twist | 1 min | Highball or wine |
| 7 | Sera, grapefruit | Sera | Grapefruit wedge | 1 min | Highball |
| 8 | Isla, lime wedge | Isla (Caribbean style) | Lime wedge | 1 min | Highball or bodega |
| 9 | Isla, mint sprig | Isla | Mint sprig | 1 min | Highball or bodega |
| 10 | Fora, lemon wedge | Fora (Garden District) | Lemon wedge | 1 min | Picardie or wine glass |
| 11 | Superclasico Aperitivo over ice | Superclasico Aperitivo | Orange wheel | 1 min | Tumbler, rocks, or bodega |
| 12 | Breakfast Cocktail (non-alcoholic) | Superclasico Aperitivo + orange juice | None | 2 min | Flute or Collins |
Glassware and garnish for 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 11 are the house serves from the recipes page; 3 and 7 borrow the garnish from the page's mixed-drink lines and pour it without the spirit, which is our suggestion; timing is ours.
The 12 Easy Mocktails
Each card is the serve as written on the flavor, plus what the garnish is doing.
1. Alta with an orange twist
Alta is our Italian-style botanical soda, "Classic aperitivo aromatics with an extra dry finish". Recipes page: "Glassware: Rocks or highball. Garnish: Orange twist." Twist the peel over the glass, drop it in. The orange oil sits on top of the chinotto the way it would on a Negroni, and that is the whole drink.
2. Como with an orange twist
Como, Alpine style: "cooling citrus, breezy wildflower, mentholated herbs". "Glassware: Highball or picardie. Garnish: Orange twist." The peppermint in the can does what a bunch of mint does in a mojito.
3. Como with a lime wheel
Same can, different citrus. Como's mixed-drink garnish on the recipes page is a "lime wheel", written for the tequila highball it calls "a margarita soda". Pouring it without the tequila is our suggestion, not a serve the page writes: the lime still points the drink that way, green, cold, a little tart.
4. Onda with a lemon twist
Onda, Sicilian style: "leafy green sage, citrus, gentle bitterness". "Glassware: Wine or rocks. Garnish: Lemon twist and/or green olive." In a wine glass with a lemon twist, this is the one we pour with dinner; Onda "is excellent with linguine alla vongole".
5. Onda with a green olive
The driest drink on the list. The same garnish line allows "green olive", and the recipes page calls the gin version "an 'extra dry' martini soda". Skip the gin: Onda cold in a rocks glass, one good olive dropped in. No ice, or one large cube.
6. Sera with an orange twist
Sera, Riviera style: "tart grapefruit, delicate spice". "Glassware: Highball or wine. Garnish: Orange twist." Pink, dry, and the closest thing on this list to a spritz with nothing added.
7. Sera with a grapefruit wedge
Sera's mixed-drink garnish is "orange or grapefruit", written under the rum-or-tequila highball the recipes page calls "a paloma". Leaving out the spirit is our suggestion, not a serve the page writes: a grapefruit wedge squeezed over cold Sera in a highball is the paloma direction on its own.
8. Isla with a lime wedge
Isla, Caribbean style: "blackstrap molasses, soft ginger, warm island spice". "Glassware: Highball or bodega. Garnish: Lime wedge and/or mint sprig." Squeeze the lime in. The product page calls the flavor "reminiscent of a rum mule", and this is the one we hand to people who say they do not like bitter drinks.
9. Isla with a mint sprig
The other half of Isla's garnish line: "mint sprig". Slap the sprig once between your palms so you can smell it, then set it in the glass. Cold ginger under fresh mint, over ice.
10. Fora with a lemon wedge
Fora, Garden District: "lush strawberry, hibiscus, rhubarb". "Glassware: Picardie or wine glass. Garnish: Lemon wedge." The lemon keeps the strawberry from reading as sweet; the finish is dry, closer to a rosé than to a strawberry soda.
11. Superclasico Aperitivo over ice
Superclasico Aperitivo is the one that is not subtle: "Bittersweet and full-flavored, deep with chinotto, kola nut, and vanilla. It drinks like a proper cocktail because it is one." The serve, verbatim: "the whole can, poured cold over rocks with an orange wheel, in a tumbler". Ice is standard here.
12. Breakfast Cocktail (Non-Alcoholic)
The two-ingredient exception, and the only full cocktail on the recipes page written without a spirit. From the recipes page, verbatim:
- 2 oz fresh orange juice
- Superclasico, to top
- "Add orange juice to a champagne flute without ice, or Collins glass with ice."
- "Pour Superclasico over top."
Bittersweet over fresh orange, in the mimosa's place at the table. The page adds that "for a touch of alcohol" you can put ¼ oz of Campari in the glass first; that is the version for a mixed brunch.
Why a Botanical Soda Makes an Easy Mocktail
A soda that already carries bitterness, acid, and aromatics needs only a garnish; soda water and juice need a syrup to taste like a drink.
Most mocktail recipes are long because plain soda water brings nothing to the glass, so the recipe builds the drink from parts: a sour, a sweet, an aromatic, then fizz. Our sodas already hold those three: separately extracted botanicals, real sugar or honey at 4 to 5 grams per 12-ounce can, and lemon or lime juice. That is why the finish is extra dry and why a twist is enough.
On the sugar, from our FAQ: "We think a few grams of real sugar is a much cleaner, tastier way to add depth of flavor to the botanicals we're playing with." No stevia, no monkfruit, no alternative sweeteners. Superclasico Aperitivo is a full cocktail in an 8-ounce can and carries 12 grams of sugar; it is on this list because it needs nothing but ice and an orange wheel.
Garnish, Glass, and Ice
Small glass, cold can, one garnish, ice only if you want it.
Garnish. A twist is for the oil, a wedge is for squeezing, a wheel is for looks, a sprig is slapped once for aroma, an olive is for the driest builds. From our serving post: "Garnish only if it genuinely improves the drink. Express citrus oils over the glass, rim it, drop it in. None of this is required; all of it is nice."
Glass and ice. The Duralex Picardie is the house recommendation and works for every drink here; the rest is in the FAQ below and under highball in the Botanical Index. A can straight from the fridge is already cold, so the six sodas do not need ice; if you use it, large cubes melt slower. The bottle is "carbonated higher, and it maintains its fizz long after opening", which is why the Alta and Como links above go to bottles.
For a Crowd, and for a Mixed Table
Line up small glasses, pour a little into each, and leave the cans out; add a spirit to the same glass if the table wants one.
For parties, "plan two drinks per guest for the first hour and one per hour after". No pitcher is needed, because there is nothing to mix. If half the table drinks, the same glass takes a spirit. The highball method from our serving post: "Spirit and ice first, at the bottom of small, unfussy glassware, then the soda poured slowly down the wall of the glass, not directly over the ice. About three parts soda to one part spirit. Garnish with citrus."
Where to Get the Cans
The variety pack has all six sodas, and Superclasico Aperitivo ships in its own case.
All twelve drinks come from seven cans, each linked above. The Transatlantic variety pack carries all six sodas in one case, available now; Superclasico Aperitivo is available now in 12-can packs and up. The two newest Superclasico cans, the Margarita and the Mojito, are coming soon and take the same treatment: cold, small glass, a lime wheel.
Available now
Botanical Soda
Extra Dry Variety in Cans
Six flavors. One extra dry taste profile, perfect for pairing.
Shop the variety pack →Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the easiest mocktail to make?
A: A cold botanical soda in a small glass with a citrus twist. Alta with an orange twist or Onda with a lemon twist take about a minute and need no tools. If you want something that drinks like a full cocktail, Superclasico Aperitivo over ice with an orange wheel.
Q: Do I need a shaker?
A: No. None of the twelve drinks here are shaken, muddled, or measured. The only two-ingredient build, the Breakfast Cocktail, is orange juice in the glass and Superclasico poured over it.
Q: What glass should I use?
A: "Small and unfussy beats large and precious." A rocks glass, a highball, or a Duralex Picardie works for everything on this page; Onda and Fora also like a wine glass, and Superclasico belongs in a rocks glass or bodega cup.
Q: Can I add a spirit later?
A: Yes, in the same glass. Spirit and ice first, soda poured slowly down the wall of the glass, about three parts soda to one part spirit, citrus garnish. Alta with dry gin and Isla with Jamaican rum are the house favorites.
Q: How many drinks does one can make?
A: Poured a little at a time, a 12-ounce can or bottle comfortably serves two glasses at a time, topped off as you go. Superclasico Aperitivo is an 8-ounce can and the serve is the whole can over ice.
Sources
- Casamara Club, Cocktail Recipes & Recommended Serve, read September 6, 2026 (all serves, garnishes, glassware, and the Breakfast Cocktail).
- Casamara Club, How to Serve Casamara Club, read September 6, 2026 (highball method, ice, glassware, drinks per can).
- Casamara Club, FAQ, read September 6, 2026 (real sugar line).
- Garnish technique (expressing a twist, slapping mint): Jeffrey Morgenthaler, The Bar Book (Chronicle Books, 2014); Difford's Guide, "Cocktail garnishes."
Find Casamara Club at casamaraclub.com. Ships to all 50 states.
For restaurant wholesale inquiries: sales@casamaraclub.com
