10 cocktails with champagne: what to mix with sparkling wine, besides a mimosa
Content 18+. Excessive alcohol consumption is harmful to your health.
Updated
Behind the bar, you quickly learn one rule: guests order champagne when there's a reason, and cocktails with champagne — when they want to create a reason. Bubbles brighten everything they touch: gin, cognac, rum, even sherry. At the same time, sparkling cocktails are some of the easiest to work with: half of the recipes in this selection come together right in the glass, without a shaker and unnecessary movements.
I'm deliberately leaving the mimosa out of the equation — everyone knows how to mix juice with sparkling wine. Below are ten drinks from the catalog 24cocktails.com: from timeless classics like the French 75 to unjustly forgotten ones like the Alfonso and the Atomic cocktail. I provide the ingredients and steps exactly as they are written in the catalog cards, with a link to the full recipe with photo.
A few words about measurements: some recipes are written in milliliters, some in ounces (oz). One ounce is about 30 ml, tsp is a teaspoon, part is a part. And one rule for all ten points: the sparkling should be ice-cold, and it’s always added last.
1. French 75
If you remember just one recipe from this whole collection — let it be this one. Gin, lemon, and sugar provide the skeleton of a classic sour, and champagne turns it into something festive and dangerously drinkable: about 14% ABV, but it goes down like lemonade. The cocktail is named after the French 75mm gun from World War I — a nod to how it hits the unprepared guest.
Ingredients
- Gin — 1 1/2 oz
- Sugar (superfine) — 2 tsp
- Lemon juice — 1 1/2 oz
- Champagne — 4 oz, chilled
- Orange — 1
- Maraschino cherry — 1
How to prepare
- Mix gin, sugar, and lemon juice in a shaker filled with ice.
- Shake vigorously.
- Strain into a chilled champagne glass.
- Top up with champagne and gently stir.
- Garnish with a slice of orange and a maraschino cherry.
Tip: only shake the gin part — never send sparkling wine into the shaker. And make sure the sugar is completely dissolved before straining: it won't dissolve in a cold drink.
2. Bellini
A Venetian classic from 'Harry's Bar', named after the painter Giovanni Bellini — for its delicate peach color, reminiscent of the tones in his paintings. This is the most delicate drink in the collection: about 13% alcohol, no garnish, nothing extra. Perfect for a late breakfast and any occasion when a mimosa has become tiresome.
Ingredients
- Champagne — 6 oz
- Peach schnapps — 1 oz
How to make
- Pour the peach schnapps into a chilled champagne flute.
- Add the sparkling wine.
- Gently stir the cocktail.
Tip: both components should be from the fridge, and you need to stir with one or two movements of the spoon from bottom to top — otherwise, the foam will rise like a cap and half the bubbles will escape. In the classic Venetian version, by the way, they use white peach puree.
3. Kir Royale
Two ingredients, zero tools, one hundred percent result — that's why Kir Royale is loved by both bartenders and hosts of house parties. The blackcurrant liqueur gives the drink a deep ruby color and berry sweetness, while the sparkling wine adds dryness and lightness. The cocktail is named after Félix Kir, the mayor of Dijon, who treated all the city's guests to a similar mix on white wine; the 'royal' version is made with champagne.
Ingredients
- Crème de Cassis — 1 part
- Champagne — 5 parts
How to make
- Pour the crème de cassis into a glass.
- Gently top with champagne.
Tip: don’t stir — the bubbles will lift the liqueur from the bottom in beautiful swirls. A common mistake is to over-pour the cassis: stick to the 1 to 5 ratio, or you’ll end up with a fruit compote.
4. Hugo
The easiest contender on the list — about 10% — and the main summer spritz of the last decade. Hailing from South Tyrol, where it was invented as an alternative to the tired Aperol Spritz. Elderflower, Prosecco, and soda — sounds simple, but it works like a charm: fresh, aromatic, and not heavy.
Ingredients
- Prosecco (sparkling wine) — 60 ml
- St-Germain elderflower liqueur — 20 ml
- Thomas Henry soda — 12.5 ml
How to make
- Pour the ingredients into a glass with ice.
- Give it a brief stir.
- Garnish with a mint leaf and a lime wedge.
Tip: use plenty of ice, a full glass — large cubes melt slowly and won't dilute the drink. Give the mint a gentle clap in your hands before serving: the aroma will be released, and the leaves will stay intact.
5. Champagne Cocktail
The ancestor of the entire genre: recipes for the 'champagne cocktail' can be found in bartending guides from the 19th century. A sugar cube soaked in bitters sits at the bottom, imparting spice and bubbles to the drink, while the cognac adds body. The strength is around 16%, and the character is festive: this is a cocktail for toasts, not for a hot afternoon.
Ingredients
- Sugar cube
- Angostura Bitters
- Cognac Rémy Martin 1738 — 30 ml
- Brut Champagne — 100 ml
How to Prepare
- Dip the sugar cube in bitters and place it in the glass.
- Pour the chilled cognac over the soaked cube.
- Top with champagne.
Tip: don't stir at all — the sugar cube acts like a bubble generator and should dissolve on its own, gradually changing the flavor from the first sip to the last. Be sure to chill the glass beforehand.
6. Americana
The same champagne cocktail, but with an American twist: instead of cognac — bourbon. Fifteen milliliters — seems like a small amount, but the vanilla and caramel notes of the bourbon are noticeable in every sip. A great option for those who love whiskey but want something lighter than a classic Old Fashioned.
Ingredients
- Sugar — 1 cube
- Angostura bitters — 4 dashes
- Bourbon — 15 ml
- Brut champagne — top up
How to make
- Cover the sugar cube with bitters and place it in the glass.
- Pour the bourbon, then the champagne into a chilled glass.
- Garnish with a slice of peach.
Tip: exactly four dashes of bitters, not 'to taste' — Angostura can easily overpower both the bourbon and the sparkling wine. If you don't have a dropper, drip it onto a sugar cube over a separate saucer, not over the glass.
7. Alfonso (Alfonso)
A half-forgotten gem: according to bar legend, the cocktail is named after the Spanish King Alfonso XIII, who was served it during his European exile. Instead of strong spirits, it uses Dubonnet — a red aperitif made from wine with quinine and herbs, so the drink comes out smooth, around 11%. A good choice for an aperitif before a long dinner.
Ingredients
- Sugar — a cube of white sugar
- Angostura bitters
- Dubonnet (Dubonnet Red) — 15 ml
- Brut Champagne
How to prepare
- Dip a sugar cube in bitters and place it in the glass.
- Pour in the Dubonnet and then the champagne into the chilled glass.
- Garnish with lemon zest.
Tip: Before dropping the zest into the glass, squeeze it over the drink with the shiny side down — the citrus oils will float on the surface and act as a finishing aroma. Keep the glass, as is customary in this genre, in the freezer until the last moment.
8. Air Mail
A Cuban classic associated with the era of the first airmail routes — hence the name. Essentially, it's a Daiquiri with honey, topped off with champagne: rum, lime, honey syrup, and sparkling on top. The tropical character and wine dryness come together surprisingly smoothly here — my personal favorite on this list for a summer evening.
Ingredients
- Havana Club 3 Year Old Rum — 30 ml
- Lime juice (freshly squeezed) — 15 ml
- Honey syrup (3 parts honey to 1 part water) — 15 ml
- Brut champagne — 45 ml
How to make it
- Mix the first three ingredients with ice.
- Strain into a glass filled with ice — ideally an ice 'column'.
- Top with champagne.
Tip: don't try to replace the syrup with pure honey — in a cold shaker it will clump and settle on the ice. Dilute the honey with hot water in a 3 to 1 ratio beforehand and keep it in the fridge: it will be enough for a dozen cocktails.
9. Ambrosia (Ambrosia)
The name is a promise — 'the drink of the gods', and in terms of ingredients, this is indeed the most luxurious item on the list: cognac, calvados, triple sec, and lemon under a crown of champagne. The cocktail's origins are linked to the New Orleans restaurant Arnaud's. Apple and grape, each distilled in their own way, surprisingly create a cohesive flavor — dry, fruity, and grown-up.
Ingredients
- Cognac Rémy Martin 1738 — 30 ml
- Calvados Avallen — 30 ml
- Triple sec De Kuyper (40%) — 7.5 ml
- Lemon juice (freshly squeezed) — 7.5 ml
- Brut champagne — to taste
How to make it
- Shake the first four ingredients with ice.
- Strain into a glass.
- Top up with champagne.
Advice: When it comes to champagne, «to taste» means «a little bit»: fill a third of the glass, give it a try, then decide. Remember, this is a strong story — about 20% — and the flute is small for a reason.
10. Atomic Cocktail
The final note — and the strongest, about 23%. The Atomic Cocktail is linked to Las Vegas in the 1950s, when the city was living the atomic aesthetic. Vodka, cognac, and amontillado sherry sound like a random mix, but the nutty dryness of the sherry ties everything together into an elegant, not at all «touristy» drink. Serve in the evening, in small portions, without haste.
Ingredients
- Ketel One Vodka — 30 ml
- Rémy Martin 1738 Cognac — 30 ml
- Amontillado Sherry — 20 ml
- Brut Champagne — 20 ml
How to prepare
- Mix the first three ingredients with ice.
- Strain into a chilled glass.
- Top with champagne.
- Garnish with orange zest.
Tip: Sherry is a wine, not a strong spirit: an open bottle of Amontillado lasts a couple of weeks in the fridge, not months. If the bottle has been open since last year — don’t bother, the taste is already off.
Ten recipes — ten reasons to open a bottle of sparkling wine not just for the sake of it, but with purpose. Start with a French 75 or a Kir Royale, and when you want to dive deeper — the catalog has the rest of the champagne classics, with photos, precise measurements, and step-by-step instructions.
All cocktails in this category →
Mark the bottles on your shelf — the site will show you what you can mix right now →