Winter Mocktails: 3 Warm Herbal Tea Recipes to Keep You Cozy

When the weather turns cold, the drink in your hand matters. These winter mocktail recipes are built on herbal tea, so they taste layered and complex without any alcohol. Each one starts with a loose-leaf blend, which means real flavor from real plants instead of a pile of sugar.

Serve them at Friendsgiving, keep them in rotation through the holidays, or lean on them all of January when you want something warm and festive in a mug. All three are quick, use simple pantry ingredients, and are easy to scale up for a crowd.

Here you'll find:

• Non-Alcoholic Hot Toddy Recipe
  
• Hibiscus Mint Mulled Cider Mocktail
• Herbal Hot Cocoa

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Non-Alcoholic Hot Toddy Recipe:
Tulsi Peppermint

with Sage Advice Herbal Tea

A good hot toddy is warm, a little sharp, and deeply grounding, and you can get all of that without the whiskey. Sage Advice Herbal Tea is a savory, garden-fresh blend of tulsi, garden sage, peppermint, lemongrass, yarrow, goldenrod, and mullein. A squeeze of lemon brings the bright, tangy bite, and a spoonful of herbal honey rounds it out. It's the mug you want after a cold walk, and it works just as well as a festive non-alcoholic option at a holiday gathering. 

Ingredients:

• 8 fl. oz water
• 1 tablespoon Sage Advice Herbal Tea
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoons herbal honey, or to taste (I used Elder Sage Herbal Honey.)
• optional garnish: lemon wheel, fresh sprig of garden sage

Instructions:

1. Add apple cider and Sage Advice Herbal Tea to a small saucepan. Bring to barely a boil.
2. At the very first signs of boiling, turn off the heat and place a lid on the pot. Infuse for 10 minutes.
3. Strain into your favorite mug, then stir in lemon juice, and honey to taste. Garnish as desired and enjoy.

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Hibiscus Mint Mulled Cider Mocktail

with Disco Nap Herbal Tea

Made with our bestselling hibiscus mint tea, Disco Nap, this extra botanical take on a seasonal mulled cider is a cozy, alcohol-free drink that suits a holiday table or a weeknight on the couch. The tart hibiscus and sweet cinnamon bring out the floral nuances of the apple cider. And there's a subtle cooling peppermint finish that's equal parts unexpected, intriguing, and wildly tasty.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz apple cider
• 1 tablespoon Disco Nap Herbal Tea
• optional garnish: fresh or dried apple slice, cinnamon stick, a sprinkle of Golden Hour Florafetti Edible Flower Garnish

Instructions:

1. Add apple cider and Disco Nap Herbal Tea to a small saucepan. Bring to barely a boil.
2. At the very first signs of boiling, turn off the heat and place a lid on the pot. Infuse for 10 minutes.
3. Strain into your favorite mug. Garnish as you wish.

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Herbal Hot Cocoa

with Sweater Weather Herbal Tea

This herbal hot cocoa tastes like all the good things of the season in a mug. Sweater Weather Herbal Tea blends cinnamon, ginger, orange, and cacao nib with anise hyssop, hibiscus, calendula, and goldenrod so you get warm spice and a little citrus brightness before the chocolate even enters the picture. Simmered in milk with dark chocolate and a spoonful of Gingerbread Herbal Honey, it turns into a cup of cocoa that feels like winter and has far more goodness going on than the kind in a packet.

Ingredients:

• 8 fl. oz milk of choice (I used unsweetened, unflavored organic soy milk.)
• 1 tablespoon Sweater Weather Herbal Tea
• 2 tablespoons semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon cacao powder (or cocoa powder)
• 1-2 teaspoons Gingerbread Herbal Honey, to taste
• optional garnish: dusting of cinnamon, homemade or store-bought marshmallow, chocolate shavings

Instructions:

1. Add milk and Sweater Weather Herbal Tea to a small saucepan. Bring to barely a boil.
2. At the very first signs of boiling, turn off the heat and place a lid on the pot. Infuse for 10-12 minutes.
3. Then strain the milk, pressing as much milk from the herbs as you can. Give a quick rinse to the saucepan to get rid of any herbs that may have been left behind and return the infused milk to the saucepan.
4. To the milk, add in the remaining ingredients. Over low-medium heat, whisk together until chocolate is melted and all ingredients are thoroughly combined. 
5. Adjust to desired sweetness. Then pour into your fave mug, plop in a marshmallow, and enjoy.