Raspberry Lime Rickey: Easy 3-Step Sparkling Drink
This raspberry lime rickey is a bright pink, bubbly drink that tastes like summer in a glass. A quick homemade raspberry syrup gets mixed with fresh lime juice and topped with cold club soda. It’s sweet, tart and wonderfully fizzy, and it comes together in three easy steps.
I make a jar of the syrup whenever raspberries are on sale or when I have a bag of frozen berries in the freezer. Four drinks cost about $4, and you can turn it into a cocktail with a splash of gin in seconds.
Prep: 10 minutes | Cook: 5 minutes | Total: 15 minutes, plus cooling | Serves: 4 | Diet: vegan, gluten-free
What Is a Raspberry Lime Rickey?
The rickey started out as a cocktail in the 1880s, made with gin or bourbon, lime juice and soda water and no sugar at all. Soda fountains later created a sweet, alcohol-free version called the lime rickey, made with lime syrup and fizzy water. Adding raspberry became especially popular in New England, where a raspberry lime rickey is still a classic at old-fashioned diners and ice cream shops. Today, it’s one of the easiest mocktails you can make at home, and it’s naturally vegan and gluten free. The tart lime keeps it from tasting too sweet, while the raspberries add color and a fresh berry flavor.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Three simple steps. Make syrup, add lime, top with soda.
- Real fruit flavor. No bottled mixes or artificial colors.
- For everyone. Serve it as a mocktail or add gin for a cocktail.
- Make ahead. The syrup keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge.
- Budget friendly. Frozen berries work perfectly.
Ingredients for a Raspberry Lime Rickey
You only need a few ingredients. Use fresh limes for the best flavor. Bottled lime juice tastes flat in a drink this simple.
For the Raspberry Syrup
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries (185g)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar (100g)
- 1/2 cup water (120ml)
For the Drinks
- 1/2 cup fresh lime juice, from about 4 limes (120ml)
- 3 cups cold club soda or seltzer (720ml)
- Ice
- Optional: 4 ounces gin or vodka for cocktails (120ml)
To Garnish
- Lime wheels
- Extra fresh raspberries
- Fresh mint sprigs, optional
Ingredient Notes
Raspberries: Fresh or frozen both work. Frozen raspberries are cheaper and break down even faster in the syrup.
Sugar: Regular sugar makes a clean syrup. Honey or maple syrup work too, though honey makes it no longer vegan.
Limes: Roll them on the counter before cutting to get more juice. Four limes give about 1/2 cup.
Club soda: Club soda has a slightly salty taste that brightens the drink. Plain seltzer or sparkling water is fine. Lemon-lime soda makes a sweeter version.
How to Make a Raspberry Lime Rickey
- Make the Syrup. Combine the raspberries, sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook for 5 minutes, mashing the berries with a spoon.
- Strain and Cool. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a jar, pressing on the seeds. Let the syrup cool, then chill until cold. You’ll have about 3/4 cup.
- Squeeze the Limes. Juice the limes and strain out any seeds.
- Build the Drinks. Fill 4 tall glasses with ice. Add 3 tablespoons of raspberry syrup and 2 tablespoons of lime juice to each glass. Add 1 ounce of gin if making cocktails.
- Top with Soda. Pour about 3/4 cup of club soda into each glass and stir gently from the bottom to mix.
- Garnish and Serve. Add a lime wheel, a few raspberries and a mint sprig. Serve right away while it’s fizzy.
Tips for the Best Raspberry Lime Rickey
Chill everything. Cold syrup, cold lime juice and cold soda keep the drink fizzy longer.
Strain well. Pressing the berries through a fine strainer removes the seeds and gives a smooth, bright syrup.
Add soda last. Pour the soda in last and stir gently from the bottom so you don’t lose the bubbles.
Taste and adjust. Like it tart? Use more lime. Prefer sweeter? Add an extra spoonful of syrup.
Use big ice cubes. Larger cubes melt more slowly and don’t water the drink down as fast.
How to Make a Pitcher for a Party
To serve a crowd, triple the syrup and lime juice and stir them together in a large pitcher. Chill until party time. When guests arrive, fill glasses with ice, pour about 1/3 cup of the raspberry-lime base into each one and top with club soda. If you add the soda to the pitcher, do it right before serving and use it within 30 minutes so it stays bubbly. For a self-serve station, set out the base, a bucket of club soda bottles, a bowl of lime wheels and a bottle of gin with a jigger. Everyone can make their own raspberry lime rickey just the way they like it.
Easy Variations
- Gin rickey: Add 1 ounce of gin to each glass for a classic cocktail twist.
- Vodka: Vodka gives a cleaner flavor that lets the raspberry shine.
- Mint: Muddle a few mint leaves in each glass before adding ice.
- Other berries: Use strawberries, blackberries or a berry mix for the syrup.
- Less sugar: Cut the sugar in half and add a little more fruit.
Homemade drinks let you control how much sugar goes in. If you’re looking for healthier everyday options, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health has a guide to healthy drinks worth a read.
Fresh vs Frozen Raspberries
I get asked about this a lot, and the honest answer is that frozen raspberries are often the better choice for a raspberry lime rickey. They’re picked and frozen at peak ripeness, they cost less than fresh berries for most of the year and they break down into syrup in just a few minutes. Fresh raspberries are lovely in summer, especially as a garnish, but there’s no need to pay top price for berries you’re going to cook and strain. If your fresh berries are getting soft or a little bruised, the syrup is the perfect way to use them up before they spoil. Whichever kind you use, taste the syrup once it cools. Very tart berries might need an extra tablespoon of sugar, while very sweet summer berries might need a squeeze of lime right in the syrup. That small adjustment is what makes a homemade raspberry lime rickey taste balanced every time.
Glassware and Garnish Ideas
Presentation is half the fun with a drink this pretty. Tall highball or Collins glasses show off the pink color and give the bubbles room to rise. For a party, mason jars feel casual and are hard to tip over outside. Run a lime wedge around the rim and dip it in sugar for a sparkly edge, or freeze raspberries inside ice cubes for a colorful surprise as they melt. A paper straw, a lime wheel and a sprig of mint finish it off nicely.
What This Recipe Costs
Here’s what I paid this fall: frozen raspberries $1.50 for half a bag, limes $1.20, club soda $1.00, sugar $0.15. That’s about $3.85 for 4 glasses of raspberry lime rickey, or less than $1 each without alcohol.
What to Serve with It
This drink goes with almost any party menu. Serve it with salty snacks like my boat dip and chips, or with brunch favorites. If you’re making a drinks table, my apple cider mojito is another easy, fizzy option for fall.
Storage
Syrup: Store the raspberry syrup in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Lime juice: Fresh lime juice keeps for 2 to 3 days in the fridge, but it tastes best the day it’s squeezed.
Mixed drinks: Enjoy them right away. The soda goes flat if they sit.
Freezing: Freeze extra syrup in an ice cube tray, then add a cube to lemonade or iced tea.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a raspberry lime rickey alcoholic?
Not traditionally. The soda fountain version is a mocktail. You can add gin or vodka to make it a cocktail.
Can I use store-bought raspberry syrup?
Yes. Use about 2 to 3 tablespoons per glass and adjust to taste. Homemade syrup tastes fresher.
What’s the difference between a rickey and a mojito?
A mojito has mint and rum and is usually sweeter. A rickey is lime, soda and either syrup or a spirit, with no mint required.
Can I make it with lemon?
Yes, but it becomes more like a sparkling raspberry lemonade. Lime gives the classic rickey flavor.
How do I make it less sweet?
Use 2 tablespoons of syrup per glass and an extra squeeze of lime.
Mix One Up Today
A raspberry lime rickey is one of the simplest ways to make an ordinary day feel special. Simmer some berries, squeeze a few limes and top with bubbles, and you have a pretty pink drink everyone will love. For more seasonal ideas, browse my seasonal recipes.
If this fizzy drink made your day, share the recipe with a friend who loves a good mocktail, and follow me on Pinterest for more cheap and cozy drinks. After you make it, scroll down to the recipe card and leave a star rating, then tell me in the comments if you made it a mocktail or a cocktail. Cheers!
