Learn • Bert’s Recipes

Small Batch Lemonade Base — Bright, Not Syrupy

This is the lemonade we build everything on: simple, bright, and balanced enough to play nice with tea, fruit, or just a handful of ice and a good porch chair. Market-ready if you scale it, easy enough for a Tuesday at home.

Difficulty: Easy Total time: ~15 minutes + chill Style: Tart-first, gently sweet Use for: Lemonade, tea blends, mocktails
Pitcher and glasses of lemonade with citrus slices and ice
Small batch, big sunshine. Built to be sipped, not chugged like soda.

Ingredients

Two sizes: a home pitcher and a 1-gallon batch that mirrors how we think about markets and local delivery. You can tweak sweetness once you taste it cold.

Home Pitcher (About 1 Quart)

  • 1 cup (240 ml) fresh lemon juice (about 4–6 lemons)
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup (100–150 g) sugar or simple syrup, to taste
  • 3 cups (720 ml) cold water
  • Ice for serving
  • Lemon slices or citrus wheels for garnish

Market / Party Batch (About 1 Gallon)

  • 2 cups (480 ml) fresh lemon juice
  • 2 to 2 1/2 cups (400–500 g) sugar or equivalent simple syrup
  • 12 cups (2.8 L) cold water (to reach about 1 gallon total)
  • Ice for chilling/serving or pre-chilling containers
  • Citrus slices for garnish (optional, but great for PET cans and jugs)
Sweetness note: We lean toward the lower end so the lemonade stays refreshing, not sticky. You can always add more sugar after chilling, but you can’t un-sugar it.

Equipment

  • Pitcher or large jar
  • Citrus juicer (hand or electric)
  • Small pot (if making simple syrup)
  • Fine strainer (optional, if you want less pulp)

Step-by-Step

  1. Make a quick simple syrup (optional but recommended). In a small pot, combine equal parts sugar and water (for example, 1 cup each). Heat gently and stir until the sugar is fully dissolved, then cool slightly.
  2. Juice the lemons. Juice your lemons and strain out seeds. A bit of pulp is fine — it reads as “real lemonade,” not factory mix.
  3. Build the base. Add lemon juice to your pitcher along with your sugar or cooled simple syrup. Stir well to combine.
  4. Top up with cold water. Add the cold water and stir. Taste a small sample at room temperature: it should taste a touch stronger and sweeter than you want once it’s iced.
  5. Adjust to taste. Add a bit more lemon juice if it’s too sweet, or a little more syrup if it’s too sharp. Tiny adjustments go a long way.
  6. Chill thoroughly, then serve over ice. Refrigerate until cold. Serve over ice with citrus slices. For RTD-style service in PET cans or jugs, chill the containers first so you don’t dilute with too much ice.
Storage: Keep refrigerated and aim to serve within 2–3 days. For markets and local delivery, treat it like a fresh product with clear “keep cold” notes.

Easy Tweaks & Variations

  • Tea half-and-half: Mix this lemonade 50/50 with our House Iced Tea for a classic porch drink.
  • Fruit riff: Muddle fresh berries or add a splash of fruit puree to the glass, not the whole batch.
  • Herbal twist: Steep a small amount of mint or herbal tea in part of the water, then mix into the base.
  • Market-ready: For PET cans or sealed jugs, keep the recipe the same but tighten your labeling: “Keep refrigerated, use within 3 days of purchase.”
  • Less sugar crowd: Offer a “light” version by cutting sugar by 25% and calling it out on the sign.

Keep Pouring with Coo Coo’s Coffee

As we dial in how we bottle, can, or jug this for local delivery, this page will stay the base recipe — with notes if we adjust strength for RTD or concentrate formats.