Wash and hull or pit the fruit as needed. Chop fruit into roughly 1/2-inch pieces. Place 2 cups chopped fruit in a nonreactive bowl or jar. Add 1 cup granulated sugar and gently toss to coat. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 1–2 hours, or refrigerate overnight for a deeper extraction, stirring once or twice. The sugar will draw juices from the fruit (maceration).

Infuse with Vinegar

After maceration, pour off any liquid released by the fruit into a separate jar if present. Add 1 cup apple cider vinegar to the macerated fruit and stirred juices (or add vinegar directly to the fruit in the jar). Stir to combine, pressing down on fruit to submerge it beneath the vinegar. Cover tightly.

Steep

Let the fruit-vinegar mixture steep in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours and up to 2 weeks. Taste after 24 hours; longer steeping increases vinegar flavor and fruit extraction. Shake or stir the jar once a day to redistribute flavors.

Strain and Adjust

When the shrub tastes balanced (fruit-forward with pleasing acidity), strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth into a clean jar, pressing on solids to extract liquid. Discard solids. If the concentrate is too sharp or too sweet, adjust: add up to 2 tablespoons water to mellow, or 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice to brighten. Refrigerate the finished shrub; it will keep 2–4 weeks.

Club (To Build Drink)

Assemble Shrub & Club (Single Serving)

Fill a highball or Collins glass with about 1 cup ice. Add 2 tablespoons of the chilled shrub concentrate to the glass. Pour in 6 ounces chilled club soda. Stir gently once or twice to combine without flattening the soda. Taste and adjust: add another tablespoon shrub for more fruitiness or a splash more soda to lighten.

Garnish and Serve

Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint or basil and a citrus wheel or a small piece of the seasonal fruit used in the shrub. Serve immediately with a straw or stirrer. For a large batch, keep shrub chilled and premeasure 2 tablespoons shrub per 6 ounces club soda when serving.