If Champagne is the ultimate celebration drink, then Champagne cocktails really make your celebrations pop. Is there anything better than offering your guests a sparkling cocktail in an elegant flute or coupe – or treating yourself to one before the guests arrive?
Decanter Premium: The perfect gift for a special wine lover
The great news is that many Champagne cocktails are super-simple to make, and involve little more than pouring your ingredients into a glass. ‘The Kir Royale is the ultimate easy-to-make sparkling cocktail,’ says Pietro Collina, bar director for Thesleff Group, a collection of top London restaurants and bars.
‘It is simply a mix of Champagne and crème de cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) and a lemon twist. The beauty of this drink is that it works as a template for endless variations. Once you master the ratio, you can swap the cassis for apricot liqueur, peach or St-Germain (elderflower) to create your own signature Royale for the evening.’
It’s easy to make a Kir Royale Credit: NBCUniversal / Getty Images
Top tips for making Champagne cocktails
While it’s surprisingly easy to create drinks with wow factor at home, there are a few useful tips that will help you to make Champagne cocktails like a pro. First: think about your glassware.
‘Flutes are always popular for drinks like French 75s and feel very festive, while also having the benefit of preserving the carbonation in your cocktail longer due to a smaller surface area for bubbles to dissipate,’ advises Alex Leidy, general manager at Silver Lyan in Washington DC.
‘You can never go wrong with a classic flute; it preserves the carbonation the best,’ agrees Collina. ‘However, if you want to add a bit of theatre and vintage flair to your New Year’s Eve, use a cocktail coupe. It looks elegant, though you have to drink it a little faster before the bubbles disappear!’
Whichever glass you choose, remember to chill it. ‘Beyond matters of preference, the best kind of glass for a sparkling cocktail is a cold one,’ says Leidy. ‘Putting whatever glassware you intend to use in the fridge or freezer for a few hours before hosting will go a long way towards keeping the final drink at its most refreshing for as long as possible.’ It also gives your glass a festive frosted look.
Credit: Brent Hofacker / Alamy
What Champagne to use?
Don’t use vintage Champagne or exclusive cuvées in sparkling cocktails. The complexity of these prestige Champagnes will be lost in the mix. Instead choose a non-vintage (NV) cuvée. ‘An entry-level bottle from any reputable Champagne house is perfect,’ notes Leidy. Supermarket own-labels are also a good value choice.
Next think about the style of fizz. ‘Brut or extra brut Champagnes are best for spirit-forward or minimal-ingredient cocktails,’ recommends Carmine Marano, bar manager of Advocatuur, Rosewood Amsterdam. You can even choose an ultra brut, the driest style of Champagne to balance out sweeter cocktails.
There are six recommendations at the bottom of this article to give you inspiration.
Credit: Senko Nelly / Moment / Getty Images
Festive Champagne cocktails: 12 recipes to make at home
Credit: Louise Haywood-Schiefer
Air Mail
This tropical twist on the Champagne Cocktail (see below) first appeared in a recipe pamphlet published in Cuba by the Bacardí company in 1930. The Cuban air mail service began in the same year, which might mean the drink was invented then and named after it; but there’s no evidence to support that theory – nor do we know who actually created it. Nonetheless, it’s a great party drink. Although the original recipe called for Cuban rum, specifically Bacardí Gold, you can use any gold rum (aged one to three years). Try Bacardí Carta Oro (£23.94, Master of Malt). To make your own honey syrup, dissolve 5ml honey in 5ml warm water.
- Ingredients: 45ml gold rum, 15ml lime juice, 15ml honey syrup, Champagne to top
- Glass: Highball
- Garnish: None
- Method: Put the rum, lime juice and honey syrup in a shaker with ice and shake until your hands are cold. Strain into an ice-filled highball glass and top with Champagne.
Credit: Oleksandr Prokopenko / Alamy
Buck’s Fizz
The Buck’s Fizz was invented in 1921 at the Buck’s Club in London. Viewed by many as the classic breakfast cocktail, it’s also a great choice for festive celebrations thanks to its orange citrus taste. Exact quantities can be adjusted according to the size of your glass; just remember to always use a 2:1 ratio. Or for a lighter option, try a Mimosa. This twist on a Buck’s Fizz is a mix of equal parts Champagne and orange juice.
- Ingredients: 100ml Champagne, 50ml freshly squeezed orange juice
- Glass: Champagne flute
- Garnish: Orange slice
- Method: Pour the Champagne into a chilled flute, then pour in the orange juice.
Credit: Louise Haywood-Schiefer
Champagne Margarita
This recipe comes from The Cocktail Edit, a new book by Decanter contributor Alice Lascelles. ‘I can’t think of a combination more hedonistic than tequila and Champagne – and this one is wickedly good,’ she says. ‘It would be a great drink to kick off a party, or even as a thirst-quenching punch. Just lengthen with a bit of sparkling or still water and charge with lots of ice. For more elegance, serve in a coupe, undiluted, over a single ice cube.’
- Ingredients: 50ml tequila, 25ml lime juice, 12.5ml sugar syrup, 50ml Champagne
- Glass: Cocktail glass or rocks
- Garnish: Lime wheel
- Method: Shake the first three ingredients and strain over ice and top with Champagne.
Credit: Image Professionals GmbH / Alamy
Classic Champagne Cocktail
One of the oldest cocktails, tracing its roots back to the mid-1800s, this simple mix is a decadent treat – plus it’s easy to make. Simply build the ingredients in the glass and stir gently to mix. No cocktail shaker required. Try H by Hine (£22.75, The Whisky Exchange) a Cognac created especially for use in cocktails.
- Ingredients: 1 sugar cube, 2 or 3 dashes Angostura Bitters, 20ml Cognac, Champagne to top
- Glass: Champagne flute
- Garnish: None
- Method: Drop the sugar cube into a chilled Champagne flute and saturate it with the bitters. Add the Cognac. Top up the glass with Champagne, stir gently to mix and serve.
Credit: Louise Haywood-Shiefer
Cranberry Fizz
This is a seasonal twist a classic Bellini, which is made with Prosecco and peach purée. You can buy ready-made cranberry syrup, such as Routin 1883 Cranberry Syrup (£14.95, Amazon). But it’s easy to make your own fruit syrup if you have fresh cranberries. Put 200g of cranberries, 50g caster sugar and 150ml orange juice in a pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for five minutes, then strain through a sieve and leave to cool. This will give about 200ml of purée, which will keep in the fridge for a week.
- Ingredients: 10ml cranberry syrup, 75ml Champagne
- Glass: Champagne flute
- Garnish: None
- Method: Pour the syrup into the bottom of a chilled Champagne flute. Slowly top with Champagne and stir gently to mix.
Credit: Brent Hofacker / Alamy
French 75
Created in 1915 at the New York Bar in Paris by Harry MacElhone, this gin and fizz combo delivered such a kick that it felt like being shelled by a powerful French 75mm field gun used in World War I. A few of these will certainly get your party started… Use a well-balanced London Dry gin, such as Portobello Road 171 (£30, Amazon).
- Ingredients: 60ml gin, 30ml freshly squeezed lemon juice, 5ml sugar syrup, Champagne to top
- Glass: Champagne flute or coupe
- Garnish: Lemon twist
- Method: Put the gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup into a cocktail shaker. Fill half way with ice and shake until your hands are cold. Strain into a chilled glass (flute or coupe) and top with Champagne. Garnish with a lemon twist.
Kir Royale
Starting life as a simple Kir or Kir Aperitif, this mix was created at the Café George in Dijon, where it was known as a Cassis Blanc and was made with Bourgogne Aligoté. But it was popularised by World War II French Resistance hero, Canon Félix Kir, who gave his name to the drink. Your Kir becomes Royale when you add Champagne instead of white wine – choose an ultra brut or zero dosage style to balance the sweet fruitiness of the crème de cassis. Try Gabriel Boudier Crème de Cassis de Dijon (£16.50, Soho Wine Supply).
- Ingredients: 10ml crème de cassis, Champagne to top
- Glass: Champagne flute
- Garnish: None
- Method: Pour the crème de cassis into a chilled Champagne flute and fill the glass slowly with Champagne.
Millionaire’s Martini
This Martini-with-Champagne mix harks back to the era of classic cocktails and has been revived by Sipsmith, the gin brand that kick-started the craft gin revolution in the UK. The recipe is taken from SIP: 100 Gin Cocktails with Only Three Ingredients, a great book that shines a light on simple gin mixes and is packed with cocktail history.
- Ingredients: 40ml London Dry gin, 40ml dry vermouth, Champagne
- Glass: Coupe
- Garnish: Lemon twist
- Method: Combine the gin and vermouth in an ice-filled mixing glass and stir until properly chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe glass and top with Champagne.
Credit: bhofack2 / iStock / Getty Images Plus
Old Cuban
One for fans of Daiquiris and Mojitos, this deluxe rum-and-mint mix was created by top bartender Audrey Saunders in 2001. An icon of the New York bartending scene, Saunders is best known for her work at the Pegu Club in Soho, though this recipe predates her time there. One of her skills was reinventing classic recipes, and this mix, which uses an aged rum rather than the white rum of a Mojito or Daiquiri, puts a decadent spin on those drinks, while adding the zinginess you’d find in a French 75 (see above). Try using Appleton Estate 8 Year Old Reserve Rum. (£32.50, The Whisky Exchange).
- Ingredients: 45ml gold rum, 22.5ml lime juice, 22.5ml brut Champagne, 15ml sugar syrup, 6 fresh mint leaves, 2 dashes Angostura Aromatic Bitters
- Glass: Coupe
- Garnish: Mint leaf
- Method: Muddle the mint leaves, lime juice and sugar syrup in a shaker. Add the rum, bitters and ice, then shake until your hands are cold. Double-strain into a chilled coupe and garnish with a mint leaf.
Sloe Gin Fizz
The Gin Fizz is a classic and simple mix of gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup, topped with soda water. For a more festive and decadent take, use Champagne and a fruity sloe gin, such as Hayman’s Sloe Gin (£26.50, Amazon). Use frozen blackberries or raspberries to garnish if you don’t have fresh ones.
- Ingredients: 50ml sloe gin, 25ml lemon juice, 10ml sugar syrup, Champagne
- Glass: Champagne flute
- Garnish: Blackberry or raspberry
- Method: Put the gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup in a shaker with ice. Shake until your hands are cold, then strain into a tall Champagne flute. Top with Champagne.
Sparkling Red Bells Ring
This fruity twist on a French 75 was created by the team at Mr Fogg’s bars in London. Simone Spagnoli, group bars manager, says: ‘For a show-stopper, the Sparkling Red Bells Ring is the perfect choice. Using the French 75 as a base, the addition of winter fruit and spiced red berries syrup is not only festive in taste, but also creates a vibrant red colour. Make this if you want to impress in-laws or friends.’ He recommends serving it as a pre-Christmas lunch tipple. ‘We use Moët & Chandon Impérial Brut NV Champagne, as the white fruit notes of pear, white peach and apple work particularly well with the spiced red berries,’ Spagnoli adds.
- Ingredients: 30ml St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur, 20ml apple juice, 20ml pomegranate juice, 10ml Monin Spiced Red Berries Syrup, 10ml fresh lime juice, 30ml NV Champagne
- Glass: Champagne flute
- Garnish: Red fruit
- Method: Put all of the ingredients except the Champagne into a shaker with ice. Shake until your hands are cold and strain into a chilled flute. Top with Champagne.
Credit: Dorling Kindersley / Alamy
Twinkle
This modern classic was created in 2002 by Tony Conigliaro at The Lonsdale bar in London – and it has to be best name ever for a sparkly party drink. The original recipe used elderflower cordial, but St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur (£27.95, Amazon) works brilliantly and is more commonly used today.
- Ingredients: 30ml vodka, 15ml elderflower cordial or St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur, Champagne to top
- Glass: Champagne coupe
- Garnish: Lemon twist
- Method: Put the vodka and elderflower cordial (or liqueur) into a cocktail shaker. Fill half way with ice and shake until your hands are cold. Strain into a chilled coupe and top with Champagne. Garnish with a lemon twist.
