September 04, 2010
Wine Tasting

Wine Cocktails Recipes


There's a certain glamour to both cocktails and champagne, so it's no surprise that glamorous stars like Marilyn Monroe have come to be associated with champagne cocktails — and that some champagne cocktails have been named after stars, including Marilyn Monroe. The Marilyn Monroe champagne cocktail is made from a base of champagne or sparkling wine, some apple brandy (or regular brandy and apple juice, if you have no apple brandy), and a dash of Grenadine syrup.

Click for Full Recipe: How to Make a Marilyn Monroe Champagne Cocktail

Southern-style cocktails tend to incorporate southern flavors and southern ingredients, creating cocktail that are a little bit out of the ordinary — and the Southern Belle Champagne Cocktail is no exception. Combining Amaretto and Apricot Brandy with dry Champagne or sparkling wine, the Southern Belle is not your average Champagne Cocktail. This will be a good chance to get some of these ingredients for use in other cocktails as well, assuming you don't use them all up with champagne.

Click for Full Recipe: How to Make a Southern Belle Champagne Cocktail

Nelson's Blood is a champagne cocktail created from an unexpected mixture of champagne and tawny port, two entirely different derivations from standard wine. Nelson's Blood is named after Horatio Nelson, a famous British naval officer during the late 18th century. Admiral Horatio Nelson achieved some spectacular victories during the Napoleanic Wars, most notably the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 where he was killed. Nelson's Blood is a champagne cocktail unlike any other.

Click for Full Recipe: How to Make a Nelson's Blood Champagne Cocktail

Nothing's better for beating the heat or relaxing after a hard day than a nice cold cocktail. Some of the best of these cocktails are made with champagne or sparkling wine, not just the spirits people usually use for cocktails. The Champagne Cooler is a great champagne cocktail and it's simple to make because it only requires champagne or sparkling wine, some brandy, and a bit of any orange liqueur: Triple Sec, Cointreau, or Blue Curacao.

Click for Full Recipe: How to Make a Champagne Cooler Cocktail

The ale flip is a complex cocktail made from ale, brandy, lemon juice, egg, sugar, and ginger. Technically an ale flip is more a beer cocktail than a wine cocktail because the primary alcoholic ingredient is beer rather than wine (brandy). Whether it's a beer cocktail or a wine cocktail, flips of any type are among the oldest mixed drinks. Flips were originally drunk aboard English ships where mixtures of rum, sugar, and eggs were heated with red-hot iron to create froth ("flipping").

Click for Recipe: How to Make a Ale Flip Wine & Beer Cocktail

Blue Curaçao is a popular addition to champagnes and sparkling wines, with the most basic such cocktail being the Champagne Blues cocktail: a mixture of champagne, Blue Curaçao to taste, and a bit of lemon. Blue Curaçao is made from a relative to the orange, so it has a flavor similar to oranges and is complimented by the addition of other citrus flavors such as lemon or an orange liqueur like Grand Marnier.

Click for More: How to Make a Champagne Blues Champagne Cocktail

Mixing stout beer and champagne may sound unappetizing, but Black Velvet is a popular drink because the beer and champagne compliment each other. Black Velvet is also called a Bismark because it was reportedly a favorite drink of German Chancellor Otto von Bismark. The Black Velvet was created in 1861 in London while England mourned the death of Prince Albert, the consort of Queen Victoria. A "poor man's" Black Velvet can be created with apple cider or perry instead of champagne.

Click for More: How to Make a Black Velvet or Bismark Champagne Cocktail

Absinthe
Absinthe
Photo © d4rk

Ernest Hemingway is credited with creating this champagne cocktail, named "Death in the Afternoon" after one of his books. Hemingway himself contributed the basic Death in the Afternoon cocktail to a 1935 book of celebrity recipes: “Pour one jigger absinthe into a Champagne glass. Add iced Champagne until it attains the proper opalescent milkiness. Drink three to five of these slowly.” Given the interaction between champagne bubbles and the absinthe, you probably don't want to go over five!

Click for More: Death in the Afternoon Recipe

Pink Flirtini
Pink Flirtini
Photo © qwrrty

The Flirtini is a champagne cocktail recipe made famous by the HBO series Sex and the City. Although the cosmopolitan cocktail has been more closely associated with Sex and the City Flirtinis prepared in pitchers became popular with people getting together to watch the show together. The basic Flirtini recipe is just vodka, champagne or sparkling wine, and pineapple juice. A fancy Fliritini includes fresh pineapple and Cointreau.

Click for More: Flirtini Champagne Cocktail Recipes

Mimosas in Champagne Flutes
Mimosas in Champagne Flutes
Photo © Joe Shlabotnik

Mimosas are associated very strongly with Mother's Day and brunches. It may be that more mimosas are drunk on Mother's Day than any other day of the year. Nevertheless, a mimosa is a great wine cocktail for any special occasion and any time of the day. There is just something about the bubbly texture of champagne or sparkling wine combined with the fruity, sweet flavors of orange juice — when combined in champagne flute, the mimosa is almost irresistible.

Click for Recipes: Mimosa Recipes

Glass of Peach Bellini
Glass of Peach Bellini
Photo © star5112

The Bellini is a famous champagne cocktail created by Giuseppe Cipriani, proprietor of Harry's Bar in Venice. Cipriani named his drink after Giovanni Bellini, his favorite Italian painter, because the color of the champagne cocktail matched the color Bellini used in one of his paintings for a saint's toga. The Bellini has become one of the most famous and popular of all wine cocktails or champagne cocktails. It's also difficult to make because of the scarcity of pureed peaches.

Click for More: Bellini Recipe

(1 vote, average 1.00 out of 5)
Kir Royale
Kir Royale
Photo © cowbite

A Kir Royale (Kir Royal) is a pre-dinner apertif made popular in France after World War II. There are a variety of Kir Royale recipes but all are made with two basic ingredients: champagne and creme de cassis (black currant liqueur). The variations on recipes all have to do with strength: some like their Kir Royale to be stronger and sweeter while others prefer a softer, milder flavor.

Click for More: Kir Royale Recipe