Nothing shouts "it's the holiday!" better than a glass of bubbles (better known as
sparkling wine or even Champagne). You may have downloaded this for the recipes, but if you know me at all, I couldn’t resist including some facts about
sparkling wine.
SPARKLING WINE HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE THE MIDDLE AGES
For hundreds of years, winemakers didn't know what was causing their wines to fizz in the spring. Around the 1700s, winemakers came to an answer: what causes the bubbles to occur in wine is a second fermentation.
Yeast is responsible for creating alcohol in the first place in wine; fermentation is the process where yeast (either present on the skins of the grapes or introduced as a slurry by the winemaker) converts the grape sugars into alcohol and C02(carbon dioxide). It's the carbon dioxide that is responsible for the fizz or bubbles. Yeast doesn't like the cold – the little critters will go to sleep (they don't particularly like hot either, they die). In days of old, any remaining yeast in the wine would go to sleep in the winter, wake up in the spring, and go right back to work, creating alcohol and carbon dioxide.
In modern times, sparkling wine goes through a planned second fermentation. First, the grapes go through normal fermentation. When that's completed, a liquid called liqueur de tirage (a mixture of yeast, sugar, and wine) is added to the still wine. The wine is then rebottled into a thicker glass bottle and sealed with a crown cap. Then the magic begins; the wine begins a second fermentation. The carbon dioxide dissolves into the wine creating the
fizz we all know and love.
CHAMPAGNE COMES EXCLUSIVELY FROM FRANCE
Technically speaking, only sparkling wine produced in France's Champagne region can be called Champagne. The French are very protective of their brand and have gone to great lengths to keep the name.
Champagne from being used indiscriminately. It doesn't mean that sparkling wine from other regions is not as good; you just shouldn’t call it Champagne.
While there are several different methods to make Champagne, the two most common are
Méthode Traditionnelle and the Tank or Charmat method. Champagne is made in the Méthode Traditionnelle or traditional method. The second fermentation is performed when the wine is in a bottle (as opposed to another type of vessel). Crémant is another sparkling French wine made in the traditional method - it just is not made in Champagne.
The tank method, also known as the Charmat method, carries out the second fermentation in a pressurized tank instead of the bottle. Yeast and sugar are added to the tank, and the wine is usually chilled to stop fermentation. The Tank method is used to produce Prosecco and is employed to produce a sparkling wine that is sweeter with more fruit characteristics than traditional sparklers. It's also a whole lot less expensive than the Methode Traditionelle
method.
CONTEMPLATE SWEETNESS WHEN BUYING CHAMPAGNE
Another consideration is just how sweet you like Champagne or sparkling wine. It can range from bone dry to very sweet. In creating our sparkling cocktails, you’re likely to prefer a dryer wine, whereas you might enjoy a wine with a little sweetness if you plan to drink it on its own. When selecting your bottle, consider this scale of sweetness:
Level Residual Sugar
Brut Nature 0-3 grams per liter
Extra Brut 3-6 grams per liter
Brut 6-12 grams per liter
Extra Dry 12-17 grams per liter
Sec 17-32 grams per liter
Demi-Sec 32-50 grams per liter
Doux 50+ grams per liter
Generally, I use sparkling wine with a Brut sweetness level for mixing with other ingredients, and I love Demi-Sec sparkling while relaxing in the tub!
I love Champagne; it's utterly brilliant but expensive. When buying a sparkling wine
specifically for use with other components, you may consider looking at less- expensive alternatives. Sparkling wines from the U.S., specifically from Northern California, are great for use with sparkling wine cocktails. I kid you not, but Korbel Brut from Korbel Winery fits the bill at an affordable price point.
Not a diss against Champagne, but I truly believe that Champagne should be
enjoyed as a stand-alone drink; it doesn't need any help from additions.
SPARKLING WINE COCKTAIL RECIPES
The best way to start the holidays off with a bang is the frothy, delicious champagne cocktail. And to that end, here are six recipes (easy, I promise) guaranteed to help create that festive mood going into the holiday months.
You can make them as a one-off or a batch if you so choose. All ingredients should
be available in your supermarket or Trader Joe's. So, enjoy, and here's to kicking off the holiday season with a bit of bubbly!
Ball Drop
As the name implies, the perfect cocktail to be sipping on New Year's Eve as you watch the New York Times Square ball drop!
Ingredients:
1 ½ tablespoon Bourbon (Makers Mark will do)
1 tablespoon Orange-Flavored liqueur (you can use Cointreau, Triple Sec, or Grand Marnier, although I prefer Cointreau for mixing)
Orange twist and maraschino cherry for garnish
Sparkling Wine
Process:
Mix 1 1/2 tablespoons bourbon and 1 tablespoon orange-flavored liqueur in each glass. Top with sparkling wine.
Garnish with an orange twist and a maraschino cherry.
Golden Ring
I love Limoncello. It's an all-purpose liqueur that can be used to quaff alone, on ice cream, as an ingredient. This
cocktail should delight all who can't get enough lemony flavor.
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon Limoncello (Italian lemon liqueur readily available in supermarkets)
Sparkling white wine (you can use a sweeter sparkling with this recipe – look for a Moscato d'Asti if feeling adventuresome).
Lemon twists for garnish
Process:
Pour 1 tablespoon limoncello into each glass; top with sweet sparkling white wine (such as Moscato d'Asti). Garnish with lemon twists.
Red Ribbon
Versions of this cocktail have been around for eons. The combination of bitter /sweet with bubbles is amazing ! Aperol is one of those beverages you should have as a mainstay in your beverage arsenal.
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon Aperol or Campari (remember all of those Aperol spritzes from summer)
3 tablespoons orange juice
Orange bitters (try Angostura – this will really put the holiday zing in the drink)
Sparkling wine
Process:
For each drink, combine 1 tablespoon Aperol or Campari, 3 tablespoons orange juice and a dash of orange bitters in a shaker with ice; strain into a glass. Top with sparkling wine and garnish with an orange slice.
Kir Royale
This drink is totally my favorite wine cocktail. It's so elegant, so so easy!
Ingredients:
2 – 3 teaspoons Crème de Cassis Sparkling Wine
Raspberries for garnish
Process:
Add 2 to 3 teaspoons, Crème de Cassis, to each flute. Drop in 3 to 4 raspberries. Fill each flute with sparkling wine. Serve immediately
Makes 4 cocktails
Champagne Cocktail
This is the classic Champagne cocktail. Delicious, easy to make, and so elegant you'll be impressing your guests (or yourself).
Ingredients:
1 Sugar cube Angostura bitters
Sparkling Wine
Lemon twist for garnish
Process:
Place a sugar cube in a chilled champagne flute, drizzle with 2 or 3 dashes of bitters, fill the glass with brut sparkling wine and squeeze a lemon twist on top.
Cranberry-Lime Champagne Cocktail
I love cranberries in just about anything,
and what says "holiday time" better (other than sparkling, of course)?
Ingredients:
½ cup cranberry juice. (sweetened)
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 cups sparkling wine (Prosecco, for example)
Frozen cranberries and lime for garnish
Process:
Divide cranberry juice and juice between champagne flutes. Fill with sparkling wine (about 1/2 cup each). Float the cranberries and put the thin lime
slice on top.
Winter Cranberry Aperol Spritz
This scruptious drink is easy to make and so delicious!
Ingredients:
2 oz Aperol
3 oz prosecco
2 oz cranberry juice
1 oz club soda or sparkling water
Process:
Add ice to a wine glass. Pour in the Aperol, procecco and cranberry juice.
Top with club soda. Add in orange wedge and garnish with fresh rosemary and a few cranberries.