Party season is definitely upon us.
You can’t seem to pop online without seeing at least one photo/status update about some party one of your friends has been to. Or maybe you’re that friend who keeps putting those photos up. Ha!
Well, this time last year, I remember running around the shops to get the best deal on champagne and prosecco for this little shindig to usher in the New Year and celebrate the amazing view of the London fireworks in the new flat.
Between the manic rushing around and trying to figure out how to get dozens of bottles of champagne and prosecco back to London, it’s safe to say I was justifiably stressed.
This year, I’m gathering the usual suspects again for what is now becoming a New Year’s tradition but I refuse to give in to the stress that comes with the holidays. I’m bragging about it now like I invented some stress-free way to source drinks for our ‘soiree’ but in truth, I’m only so smug because of 31Dover.
Essentially, that’s us sorted all year round for drinks as I refuse to do things the hard way ever again by trying to haul dozens of bottle of wine home from the stores.
All this talk of champagne, of course, brings me to the crux of the matter; the 7 recipes that are guaranteed to be a hit at your next party.
Let’s get started, shall we?
1.) The French 75
This champagne cocktail (also know as the 75 Cocktail) is easily one of the most famous ones out there and apparently dates back to 1915 in Paris.
Created by barman Harry MacElhone at the New York hotel the name is thought to derive from the fact that the cocktail said to “have such a kick that it felt like being shelled with the powerful French 75mm field gun“.
Ingredients:
- Gin
- Champagne
- Lemon juice
- Sugar
Instructions:
Mix up your gin, lemon juice and sugar in a cocktail shaker, strain into your champagne flute and top it off with champagne. Simple!
2.) Black Velvet
The drink was created to mourn the death of Prince Albert (husband of Queen Victoria) in 1861.
As we discovered during our recent trip to Dublin, the idea of drinking champagne during the mourning of the Prince seems too celebratory so they decided to give it ‘a black cape’ and although it’s not used in that same way anymore, it’s still one of the firm favourite champagne cocktails out there.
Ingredients:
- Guinness
- Champagne
Instructions:
Fill the flute halfway with champagne, the top off with Guinness (or any other stout of your choosing).
The idea is to have the two floating separately (kinda like if the champagne was wearing a black cape so don’t splash the Guinness on top of the champagne. Instead, add it in by placing a spoon upside down and pour the Guinness onto the spoon so it runs slowly and evenly onto the mix.
3.) The Passion
This is my very own cocktail mix and one that’s an easy winner every time. I’m a huge fan of Passion fruit (can’t get enough of the stuff), especially when included in any drinks so it was only a matter of time before it crept its way into my one of my favourite tipples.
Ingredients:
- Passion fruit
- Lemon juice
- Brown Sugar
Instructions:
Add the brown sugar to an empty champagne flute, then top up the flute to 3/4 of the way with champagne. Add a dash of lemon juice (for that extra tang). Scoop out the contents of your passion fruit and crush them in a separate glass/bowl and add a teaspoon of your newly crushed passion fruit to the glass.
4.) Mimosa
Ah, Mimosas!
The champion of brunches all over the world! The mimosa is thought to have been invented at the Hôtel Ritz in Paris by Frank Meier in 1925.
Ingredients:
- Orange juice (or Grapefruit juice)
- Champagne
Instructions:
Add orange juice first, then your champagne. Or vice versa if you like, the idea is to have them both mixed up.
N.B.: I always think this is one of the best champagne cocktails out there as Vitamin C is always recommended to help avoid or get over a hangover so you can get nice and merry with this cocktail without the same potential for a hangover as if you just drank champagne on its own.
5.) Kir Royale
The first time I properly remember having one of these was during a trip to Luxembourg. The origins of the Kir Royale are actually based in Burgundy in France when it was just known as the Kir (same cocktail essential – just mixed with white wine instead of champagne) and was named after the priest Canon Félix Kir, who was a hero in the French Resistance during the Second World War and the Mayor of Dijon, a town in Burgundy.
Ingredients:
- Crème De Cassis
- Champagne
Instructions:
Add the champagne first and then add the Crème De Cassis. Typically, add 1 part, Crème De Cassis, for 4 parts of Champagne though this is entirely up to you (for instance you could always add more Crème De Cassis if you prefer a rosier looking colour.
6.) Champagne Punch
History:
I doubt there’s any strong history behind this one. I bet your some fellow party drinks enthusiasts just played around with the stuff and realised that champagne tastes even better (i.e. sweeter) with lots of fruits in it. 🙂
Ingredients:
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Blueberries
- Lemon juice
Instructions:
Crush up half of the fruits. Chop up the remainder. Add the champagne to the flute followed by lemon juice (a splash should suffice), some of the crushed fruits (about half a teaspoon) and top it all off with the chopped fruits (not too many otherwise you’ll find yourself struggling to get to the good stuff underneath)
7.) The classic Champagne Cocktail
As generic as the name sounds, this cocktail is actually very specific and is one of the few listed on the International Bartenders Association’s Cocktail lists. The cocktail is thought to date back as far as 1862 when it was created by “Professor” Jerry Thomas. The version back then (thought to be the “classic” American version) skips out on the brandy.
Ingredients:
- Sugar
- Angostura bitters
- Champagne
- Brandy
- Orange peel
- Maraschino cherry (to garnish. I don’t like Maraschino cherries so I tend to skip this one).
Instructions:
Start with your champagne in the flute, then add Angostura bitters on a sugar cube which you then put into the champagne. Next, you add your brandy to the champagne and finish up with orange peel and maraschino cherry garnish.
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