The Marina Spritz: A Drink Worth Holding

Here's something I've noticed over the years: very few people who cut back on alcohol miss the alcohol itself. What they miss is the ritual. The cold glass. The moment at five o'clock when the day changes gear. Standing in a group holding something that isn't a glass of water.

So rather than going without, make something worth holding. This is our house favourite — pink grapefruit, rosemary and soda. It's sharp, faintly herbal, genuinely refreshing, and it looks the part in a proper glass.

"Nobody misses the alcohol. They miss the ritual. So keep the ritual."

You'll need (makes one)

½ pink grapefruit, juiced (about 80ml)

1 tsp rosemary syrup (see below)

Squeeze of fresh lime

Chilled soda water to top

Plenty of ice, a rosemary sprig and a slice of grapefruit

For the rosemary syrup

Warm 100ml water with 2 tablespoons of honey until it dissolves, drop in two sprigs of rosemary, take it off the heat and leave it to sit for twenty minutes. Strain into a jar and keep it in the fridge — it lasts a couple of weeks and one batch makes a lot of drinks.

Then

Fill a tall glass with ice. Add the grapefruit juice, syrup and lime. Top slowly with soda so you keep the fizz. Stir once — gently — and garnish. That's it.

Why it's a better choice

Grapefruit brings vitamin C and real flavour rather than syrupy sweetness, and because you're using fresh juice and a teaspoon of honey, there's a fraction of the sugar you'd find in a bottled mixer or a commercial mocktail. No alcohol also means no disrupted sleep — and sleep, as I never stop saying, is where your training actually pays off.

One small note if you take medication: grapefruit interacts with a number of common prescriptions, including some blood pressure and cholesterol medicines. If that's you, swap in blood orange or ruby-red mandarin — just as good, and worth a quick word with your pharmacist.

Enjoy!