The best Champagne cocktail recipes to try
Champagne really needs no introduction. It’s the perfect drink for any Christmas or New Year’s celebrations, but did you know the high acidity in the fizz can actually help to balance out sweet liqueurs in cocktails?
Not only that, but the effervescent mouthfeel can also elevate the simplest cocktail into something that’s worth recreating over and over again.
Champagne doesn't always have to be expensive, and our best budget Champagne tested by our experts at the GHI comes in at £18.50 a bottle. So if you have any leftovers, why not consider making a fun cocktail with it this season. Just make sure you store it properly once opened.
We recommend keeping your bubbly chilled in the fridge (a colder temperature slows down the release of the bubbles), and you can forget the metal spoon trick – we prefer to use a Champagne stopper which can keep any opened bottles full of fresh fizz for up to three days.
There are simple recipes like a Buck's Fizz, which is the perfect excuse to have a celebratory Champagne cocktail for breakfast, and the more well-known Champagne cocktail recipe, which traditionally uses sugar and bitters to elevate the drink. Other classic recipes include the likes of a French 75 (which uses gin), and an Airmail (which uses dark rum), showing just how versatile adding sparkling wine to a cocktail is.
We've compiled some of our favourite recipes, a mix from Good Housekeeping's triple-tested recipes, to exciting upgrades from some of the best bars in London, to give your cocktail game a refresh this season.
Do I need to use Champagne in a cocktail?
Whether it be Prosecco, Crémant, Cava, or English sparkling wine, you can easily substitute Champagne in these recipes, just make sure you look for a dry alternative (usually labelled with the word Brut) as this means the sparkling wine will have a lower sugar content and a higher acidity, making it the perfect partner for a cocktail that includes a sweet element.
Also, if you're only serving for one or two people, then a whole bottle might not be your best option. We've found the best mini Prosecco's on the market you can buy.
Buck's Fizz
It doesn't get much easier than this classic Champagne cocktail. A Buck's Fizz is the best way to start Christmas morning.
This recipe is two-parts Champagne to one-part orange juice, whereas a Mimosa is equal parts of the two.
Recipe: Buck's Fizz
Champagne Cocktail
Upgrade your glass of Champagne with this recipe which uses an orange liqueur, grenadine and fresh orange for a refreshing drink.
Recipe: Champagne Cocktail
Poinsettia cocktail
If you love a cosmo, you'll love this Poinsettia cocktail with orange liqueur, cranberry juice and topped up with either Champagne or Prosecco - delicious!
Recipe: Poinsettia cocktail
Negroni Fizz
If you love a negroni, try this blood-orange version which is topped up with fizz for festive flair.
Recipe: Negroni fizz cocktail
Aperol Spritz
We couldn't not mention one of our favourite drinks in this list. An Aperol Spritz is topped up with Prosecco and you can choose your ratio, depending on how strong you like it to be.
Recipe: Aperol spritz
Spiced Blackberry Kir Royale
A kir royale is such a special (and not to mention incredibly easy) drink to make and this one has cinnamon, ginger and allspice added to the blackberry puree for added warmth.
Recipe: Spiced blackberry kir royale
The perfect Bellini
This perfect Bellini is simple to make and combines fresh peach puree, orange blossom water, almond extract and maraschino liqueur with bubbly for a nutty, sweet cocktail.
Recipe: The perfect Bellini
The Bee's Knees
The bartenders over at Beetle Juice in Brixton have created this bold ginger-based cocktail which is finished with honey and fizz for an uplifting taste.
You'll need:
50ml Ramsbury gin
15ml Lemon juice
10ml Ginger liqueur
15ml Honey
Top with bubbles
Method: Add gin, lemon juice, ginger liqueur, honey and ice into a cocktail shaker and shake hard for 30 seconds. Strain into a flute and top up with bubbles.
Speechless cocktail
Brown's Hotel, where the first BAFTA awards were held has created this rich and complex cocktail called Speechless to celebrate their anniversary. The bartenders use a tequila reposado (which has been resting in oak barrels for at least two months) which gives this cocktail a lovely light floral and vanilla note that pairs well with the citrus notes.
You'll need:
35ml Patrón Tequila Reposado
10ml Lemon juice
15ml Muyu Chinotto liqueur (or Grand Marnier)
Ruinart Brut Champagne to top up
Method: Add all ingredients except Champagne into a cocktail shaker. Shake well. Pour into Champagne flute and top with bubbly.
Bergamericano Spritz
The team behind the wonderful restaurant Luca, in Clerkenwell, have created this simple spritz which uses one of our favourite liqueurs called Italicus. It's full of floral bergamot notes. Mixed with grapefruit for tartness and bubbly for a refreshing finish.
You'll need:
40ml Italicus
75ml Grapefruit juice
Top up with a Prosecco or Champagne of your choice
Method: Add the Italicus and grapefruit juice into a highball glass. Fill with ice, gently stir and top up with fizz of choice. Add a slice of grapefruit to garnish.
Snowy Egret
If you're ever in London's Shoreditch, the guys over at TT Liquor do some really great cocktails that get you coming back for more. They've shared a recipe for their Snowy Egret which is a take on a Sgroppino, but uses a melon-based liqueur in the sorbet for a fresh and fruity taste, topped up with Champagne.
You'll need:
Melonade sorbet
Champagne to top up
Melonade sorbet method: Mix 6 parts of Melonade to 1 part simple syrup and freeze. Add water and blend to aerate and freeze once more to achieve the final product.
The Melonade sorbet is then served as a heaping scoop in a large coupette and finished with Champagne to create the Snowy Egret.
Pink Kurisumasu
The Ivy Asia has launched an exclusive cocktail with Laurent-Perrier called Pink Kurisumasu. Available in their St. Paul's restaurant, it combines tropical passionfruit liqueur with citrus fruits, plus topped up with sparkling rosé for a sweet and extra special cocktail.
You'll need:
15ml Passion fruit liqueur
15ml Lemon sugar syrup
10ml Pink grapefruit syrup
Top up with Laurent-Perrier Cuvée Rosé
Method: Mix together passionfruit liqueur, lemon sugar syrup and pink grapefruit syrup. Stir then double strain into a flute or coupe.
Top up with rosé bubbly of choice. Garnish with cotton and popping candy if you like.
Bombay Chai Sour
The swanky Champagne bar, The Stage, situated in the Londoner hotel are serving up delicious cocktails with serious flavour. They've shared the recipe for their Bombay chai sour which uses peppery rye whisky, Peychaud's liqueur (similar to Aperol), and is finished with a warming chai tea infusion, an egg white for creaminess, and bubbly of course.
You'll need:
50ml Sazerac Rye Whisky
10ml Peychaud’s Liqueur
15ml Lemon Juice
10ml Sugar Syrup
50ml Chai Tea infusion*
50ml Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Champagne
1 Egg White
Edible flowers to garnish, if you like
Method:
*To make the chai tea infusion: Infuse two Chai tea bags into 500ml boiling water for 8-10 minutes. Set aside and cool down before use.
Dry shake all the ingredients except for the Champagne. Add ice to the cocktail shaker and shake for 15 seconds. Pour the cocktail into the glass and top up with Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label. Add the garnish if you like.
Peach 76
The newly opened Amaro bar, which is run by former Head Mixologist of The Savoy, Elon Soddu, has shared this delicious riff on a French 75. It has a peach and almond-forward flavour profile, topped up with Prosecco, but feel free to top with whatever fizz you have to hand.
You'll need:
15ml Vodka
15ml Creme de Peche
5ml Almond Grappa
15ml Amaretto Disaronno
10ml Lemon Juice
5ml Sugar
80ml Prosecco
Method: Shake all the ingredients and top the drink with Prosecco. Garnish with a slice of peach if you like.
You Might Also Like
