Homemade drinks: lemonades, fruit drinks, compotes and smoothies by formula

Sugar dissolves poorly in cold water and ends up crunching at the bottom of the jug. That's why bartenders sweeten cold drinks with syrup.

Simple syrup: sugar and water 1:1 by weight (for example 200 g sugar and 200 ml water). Heat, stirring, until the sugar has completely dissolved — no need to boil. Cool. It keeps in a clean bottle in the fridge for 3–4 weeks.

The formula: 1 part citrus juice, 1 part syrup, 4–5 parts water. Per litre: 150 ml lemon juice (4–5 lemons), 120–150 ml syrup, 700–750 ml cold still or sparkling water. Stir, taste and adjust the sweetness and sourness.

To get more juice, roll the lemon firmly on the counter or warm it for 10 seconds in the microwave. Add zest carefully: the white pith underneath is bitter.

The main mistake is boiling the berries whole. Long boiling destroys vitamin C and the fresh flavour. A proper mors (Russian berry drink) is made in two stages: juice separately, pulp separately.

Compote: per 2 litres of water, 400–500 g fruit or berries and 150–200 g sugar. Bring the water and sugar to the boil, add the fruit and simmer for 5–10 minutes (berries 3–5). Take off the heat, cover and leave to infuse for 1–2 hours — the flavour deepens. A pinch of citric acid or a slice of lemon lifts it.

Uzvar is a dried-fruit compote: per 2 litres of water, 250–300 g dried fruit (apples, pears, prunes, raisins, apricots) and 2–4 tbsp honey or sugar. Rinse the fruit. Simmer the apples and pears for 15 minutes, then add the rest and simmer another 5–10 minutes. Infuse covered for several hours, ideally overnight. Add honey once warm.

A good smoothie balances liquid, a creamy base, fruit and something filling. The order in the blender matters too: liquid at the bottom, solid and frozen things on top, so the blades don't jam.

Iced tea turns bitter if you brew it normally and then chill it: tannins keep coming out while it cools.

Method 1, hot: brew the tea twice as strong as usual (4–5 g per 250 ml) for 3–4 minutes, strain and pour straight over a glass full of ice. Fast chilling keeps the aroma and clarity.

Method 2, cold brew: 8–10 g tea per 1 litre of cold water, 8–12 hours in the fridge, then strain. The tea is smooth, sweetish and not bitter. Add lemon, peach, mint or syrup.

Per 3 litres of water: 500 g rye bread, 150–200 g sugar, 5–10 g dried or 20 g fresh yeast, a handful of raisins.

Cube the bread and dry it in the oven at 180 °C until dark brown but not black — the colour of the rusks sets the colour and flavour of the kvass. Pour boiling water over and leave for 4–6 hours. Strain, add the sugar and the yeast dissolved in warm water. Cover with muslin and leave somewhere warm for 12–24 hours until foamy and slightly sour.

Strain, bottle, drop 2–3 raisins into each bottle and seal tightly. Refrigerate for a day — the kvass turns fizzy. It keeps 3–4 days.

Alcohol-free mulled wine: 1 litre grape or cherry juice, 1 orange in slices, 2 cinnamon sticks, 4–5 cloves, 2 star anise, a few allspice berries and a piece of ginger. Heat to 70–80 °C — don't boil, or the spices turn bitter. Infuse covered for 15–20 minutes.

Proper cocoa: per 250 ml milk, 1–2 tsp cocoa powder, 1–2 tsp sugar and a pinch of salt. Mix the cocoa and sugar with 2–3 tbsp hot milk into a smooth paste, then add the rest of the milk and heat, stirring. For hot chocolate, melt 30–40 g dark chocolate in the milk.

Shop-bought drinks contain 8–12 g sugar per 100 ml. Homemade ones can be half as sweet: start with half the syrup and add to taste. Acidity and aroma (citrus, mint, ginger) make a drink vibrant even when it isn't very sweet.

Filled ice cubes: put berries, mint leaves and citrus pieces into ice-cube trays, top with water and freeze. For clear ice, use boiled and cooled water.

Fruit water: cucumber and mint, strawberry and basil, orange and rosemary — cover with cold water and leave in the fridge for 2–4 hours. No sugar, and still delicious.