Today, in honor of the sober curious and Dry January, we celebrate the original mocktail – Shirley Temple – and two more adult, but still non-alcoholic variations!

The Girlie Shirley Mocktail

This is the classic mocktail – the first mocktail that rose to popularity. It was created specifically for Shirley Temple so the child star could have a “drink” with the adults. While likely too sweet for many adults, children love it. It’s pretty, it’s pink, it’s sweet, it’s caffeine free, and should have a really cool garnish – like a little umbrella.

Tip: If your child thinks the name “Shirley Temple” makes the drink sound too childish, just call it “the pink drink.”

Ingredients and Template For A Girly Shirley

• Short Clear Glass (to show off the color!)
• Ice (Crushed or Small Cubes)
• Well-Chilled Sprite or Ginger Ale (NOT Ginger Beer)
• Grenadine
• A Twist of Lime
• A Couple of Cherries
• Umbrella or other Fun Garnish

Add ice to a short clear glass.

Add the Sprite or ginger ale.

If using Sprite, add a small squeeze of lime. If using ginger ale, add a much larger squeeze.

Add grenadine to taste – about 1 tablespoon. This pomegranate syrup basically adds sweetness and color without much flavor. Give it a gentle stir.

Add a couple of cherries (for kids, be sure they are pitted).

Add an umbrella or some other fun, frilly garnish and enjoy!

The Slim Shirley Mocktail

Will the real Slim Shirley please stand up, please stand up?

This is a more grown up – and smarter – version of the Shirley Temple. It’s lower calorie and far less sweet. It’s perfect for when you want something light and refreshing and thirst-quenching, rather than a “drink.” Yet it still looks and tastes a little special, and having one of these in your hand will stop nosy people from slurring at you, “Why arrren’t choo DRINNKINNG?”

For this mocktail, you’ll use a flavored sparkling water instead of the Sprite. A lemon, lime, lemon-lime, or cherry sparkling water may seem to be the obvious choice, but consider other options. I like Waterloo Cherry Limeade and Blackberry Lemonade.

Notice this is lightest of the Shirley Temples, a pale, almost coral pink as opposed to the deeper pink of a Girlie Shirley or the deep magenta of a Sassy Shirley. That’s because we are using the grenadine mostly for color, not sweetness (as in a Girlie Shirley), nor to smooth out and blend sharp tastes (as in a Sassy Shirley).

Ingredients and Template for a Slim Shirley

• Short Clear Glass (to show off the color!)
• Ice (Crushed or Small Cubes)
• Sparkling Water – Lime, Lemon Lime, Cherry, etc. – Just not plain!
• Grenadine
• A Cherry
• Lime Wedge

Add ice to a short clear glass.

Add your chosen flavor of sparkling water. Don’t settle for just plain club soda – you deserve more than that!

Add a small squeeze of lime, or to taste.

Add grenadine to taste – maybe a teaspoon. Give it a gentle stir to distribute the color evenly.

Add a cherry – or two.

Finish with a slice of lime for a garnish.

The Sassy Shirley

This one’s my personal favorite. It’s sassy, sparkling, scintillating, and even a little spicy (due to ginger beer).

Shirley Temples were originally made with ginger ale and a squeeze of lime, but early on these ingredients were replaced by Sprite. To play on this, I swapped the ginger ale for ginger beer. (The extra-spicy Q Mixers Hibiscus Ginger Beer is especially nice in this one!) An energetic squeeze of lime adds even more kick. And a generous spoonful of grenadine smooths out the hot and sour flavors and turns the mocktail a gorgeous ruby.

Ingredients and Template for a Sassy Shirley

• Short Clear Glass (to show off the color!)
• Ice (Crushed or Small Cubes)
• Ginger Beer – NOT Ginger Ale!
• Lime Juice
• Grenadine
• Cherries
• Lime Wedge

Add ice to a short clear glass.

Add Ginger Beer – NOT ginger ale!

Add a generous, enthusiastic squeeze of lime, or to taste.

Add grenadine to taste – maybe 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon, to “take the edge off” and give it smoothness.

Give the drink a gentle stir to distribute the color evenly.

Add a cherry – or two.

Finish with a slice of lime for a garnish.

Notes:

Ice

In alcoholic drinks, or more complicated mocktails, ice is usually added last. Alcoholic ingredients typically require more blending to evenly disperse (give it that “smooth” taste). And more complicated drinks (both with and without alcohol) that use shrubs or call for muddling also benefit from mixing first, then adding ice at the end. However, the ingredients in these three Shirley Temple mocktails are so simple, not much blending is needed aside from a quick stir with a straw. Also, whenever I’m “building” the color of a drink – with grenadine, butterfly pea powder, etc. – I like the ice to already be in the glass. Ultimately, though, for most simple mocktails it’s just personal preference when to add ice.

Cherries

If using maraschino or any kind of canned cherries, check to make sure there is no “carmine” or “cochineal extract” (crushed beetle shells) added for color. This is still a standard ingredient in many cherry products (including Doyle).

I love fresh cherries when they are in season, but be careful with pits, especially around kids.

Frozen cherries can help keep your drink cool without watering it down.

To Complete Your Experience:

Watch a couple of Shirley Temple’s best known performances on Youtube. There’s The Good Ship Lollipop, where the talented toddler performs on a plane full of men who seem entirely too interested. Wearing a dress so short it is barely a shirt, she sings lyrics such as “See the sugar bowl do the tootsie roll with the big bad Devil’s food cake,” and, “It’s a night trip, into bed we hop.” Reflect on how times have changed – what was cute back then is creepy and more than a little disturbing today.

A happier choice would be any clip of young Shirley dancing with Bill “Bojangles” Robinson. They became the first interracial couple to dance in a Hollywood movie and clicked – or should I say tapped? – so well together they were paired in multiple movies. The friendship between the small blonde child and 50-something year old Black man was genuine, strong, and entirely appropriate. It’s quite charming to watch them together.

Finally, if you are a reader, check out Shirley’s autobiography: Child Star.