Whether you’re trying veganism for the first time or have been vegan for years, drinks are the easiest part of the diet to get right at home, since most drinks have no animal products and the few that are milk-based can easily be swapped for plant alternatives.

Making your vegan beverages yourself gives you control to ensure what you’re drinking is plant-based; it also lets you decide how sweet they are. Becoming your own barista allows you to control sugar content, which is often high in pre-bottled drinks, and using seasonal fruit and herbs keeps options delicious, varied, and budget-friendly. 

The recipes below follow the seasons loosely, but feel free to make them any time of the year when you want something refreshing or comforting to drink.

Water First

Water is in every beverage and makes up most of what you drink, so it is worth considering its quality before trying any recipe. 

A hint of chlorine or limescale hardly registers in strong coffee, but it shows up quickly in pale iced tea, cordials, and plant milks, and filtering your water beforehand is usually enough to fix it. It also helps ice come out clear instead of cloudy, which looks better in a glass if you’re making drinks to entertain.

Spring and Summer Drinks

Cold brew iced tea is a great starting point, because the recipe asks for very little: four tea bags or a couple of tablespoons of loose leaf go into a litre of cold water and sit in the fridge for eight to twelve hours while you get on with other things. 

Without any harsh heat, the tea comes out much softer and less bitter, and many people find they do not need sweetener at all. Black, green and fruit teas all suit this method, and a few slices of peach or some mint torn into the jug while it steeps adds a little more flavour.

For a hot afternoon, a cucumber and mint cooler takes around five minutes. Blend half a cucumber with a big handful of mint, the juice of two limes, two tablespoons of agave or maple syrup and about 500ml of water, pass it through a fine sieve, and top each glass up with sparkling water so it stays light.

A lemon and ginger cordial is handy because one batch lasts a couple of weeks. Simmer 150g of sliced fresh ginger with 300g of sugar and 500ml of water for about a quarter of an hour, stir in the juice of four lemons, strain into a clean bottle and keep it in the fridge. 

One part cordial to five parts cold or sparkling water makes a satisfying summer drink, while the same cordial in hot water is soothing when you have a cold. Some refined white sugar is processed with bone char, so strict vegans should buy sugar labelled as vegan or use unrefined cane sugar.

Oat Milk at Home

Healthy oat milk is the cheapest plant milk to make and the most forgiving, since the oats need no soaking. 

Blend 100g of rolled oats with a litre of very cold water and a pinch of salt for thirty seconds at most, then strain through a clean cloth or nut milk bag, and resist the urge to squeeze hard because that pushes out starch and leaves the milk slimy. 

Cold water and a short blend do more for the texture than anything else, and the milk will keep for about three days in the fridge, separating a little as it sits, which a good shake sorts out. It is good over ice with coffee and works in the warm drinks below.

Autumn and Winter

Warm spiced apple is a great hot drink and a sensible way to use up a carton of juice. Warm a litre of your favourite apple juice gently with a cinnamon stick, four cloves and a few orange slices for around ten minutes, keeping it below a boil (a hard boil dulls the spices). A large pan can sit on a low heat for a gathering, and leftovers reheat well the next day.

Golden milk suits evenings when you want something warm without caffeine. Heat 250ml of plant milk with half a teaspoon of turmeric, a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon, a little grated ginger and a pinch of black pepper, then add a teaspoon of maple syrup. The pepper is there for more than taste, as it is generally thought to help the body absorb curcumin from the turmeric, and whisking while it heats keeps the spices from sinking.

Hot chocolate is easiest to put together with vegan milk alternatives. Just heat two tablespoons of cocoa, a tablespoon of sugar and 250ml of soy or oat milk slowly, stirring as you go. Soy gives the thickest cup thanks to its protein.

Not all cocoa is equally plant-based, and it pays to read the label on cocoa or drinking chocolate since cheaper mixes sometimes contain milk powder.

Keeping yourself stocked

A few habits make all of this easier, such as keeping some glass bottles for cordials, freezing spare fruit and ginger in portions, and making small batches of drinks that get finished within a few days. 

Once the basic methods are familiar, swapping in different fruit, herbs or spices according to what is in season comes naturally, and that flexibility is what keeps homemade drinks worth making in January as much as in July.