Ginger Lime Spritz
Ginger syrup, fresh lime and soda over ice. The alcohol-free ginger drink that is sharper and drier than a ginger beer — and a Mule the moment you add a spirit.
Built to the standard modern spec; not yet tested in our kitchen. How we test.
The recipe.
Scaling adjusts quantities only. Prepare shaken drinks in individual portions.
Let’s make a good drink.
Make the ginger syrup ahead: simmer equal parts sugar and water with a quarter-cup of sliced fresh ginger for ten minutes, cool, and strain.
Fill a wine glass or collins glass with ice and add the mint if using.
Add the ginger syrup and lime juice and stir.
Top with cold soda, stir once, and garnish with a lime wheel and a coin of ginger.
A thoughtful finish
- Fresh ginger syrup is the whole drink. A juicer makes a hotter, cleaner syrup than simmering; both are good.
- Equal parts syrup and lime keeps it dry; move the syrup up a quarter-ounce if you like it sweeter.
- An ounce and a half of vodka, bourbon, rum or tequila turns it into the corresponding Mule.
Common mistakes
- Ginger ale in place of ginger syrup and soda. It is sweet and mild.
- Too much syrup. It should bite.
- Flat soda.
A few good questions.
Is it just a Moscow Mule without vodka?
Close — a Mule uses ginger beer; this uses fresh ginger syrup and soda, which is sharper and less sweet. Add vodka and it is a very good Mule.
How spicy is it?
As spicy as your syrup. Fresh ginger syrup made with a lot of ginger is hot; a bottled one is mild. Adjust the measure.
Can I use ginger beer?
Then it is a Virgin Mule, which is also on this site. The syrup version is drier and hotter.
How long does ginger syrup keep?
Two to three weeks in the fridge; it loses heat slowly.
Variations
- Virgin Moscow Mule — Ginger beer, lime and mint.
- Moscow Mule — Vodka, lime and ginger beer.
- Lavender Lemonade — Lemon and lavender syrup over soda.
- Penicillin — Scotch, honey, lemon and ginger — the grown-up ginger drink.
Where it comes from
c. 2010s · United States
Contested. More than one origin is claimed for this drink. We show the competing accounts rather than pick one.
Ginger and lime are the backbone of the Moscow Mule, the Dark and Stormy and the Mexican Mule, and the alcohol-free bars of the 2010s simply dropped the spirit and lengthened the pair with soda. A fresh ginger syrup — ginger simmered or juiced into sugar syrup — is sharper and hotter than any bottled ginger beer, and with lime and soda it makes a drink that needs no spirit to justify itself. No one invented it; it is the Mule’s template with the vodka left out.
Sources
- Julia Bainbridge, Good Drinks, 2020 (book)
- Derek Brown, Mindful Mixology, 2022 (book)
- Difford's Guide, Ginger and Lime Spritz, 2018 (reference)
A little character in every sip.
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