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Champagne Holiday Cocktails

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champagne cocktail
When I was a kid, I always imagined I would grow up to wear strappy high heels with designer dresses and that I would dash off to parties full of urbane conversations. At these events I would drink champagne cocktails. Blame it on a childhood watching too many Doris Day and Deborah Kerr movies, but my real-life adulthood never quite lived up to my Pillow Talk expectations.

After recently pondering the lack of glamour in my life, I realized that although elegant cocktail gatherings can be delightful, I actually enjoy my life of small dinner parties with friends and family more than I probably would the type attended by Ms. Kerr and Ms. Day ("probably" is the key word here). So instead of longing for a 1960s life unachieved, I decided to start making champagne cocktails.

There are so many reasons to serve champagne cocktails, but the top three are:

1. Champagne (or prosecco, cava, or any other sparkling wine) tastes delightful when mixed with other alcoholic beverages.

2. The shimmering splendor of a champagne cocktail, particularly when partnered with alcohols that have a rich color, make them perfect for the holiday season.

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3. Champagne cocktails are effortless to prepare.

Making this elegant fizzy drink is as easy as pouring two or more types of alcohol into a glass. This means that even the failed martini makers among us can feel like accomplished bartenders. The original champagne cocktail consists of champagne, bitters and sugar, but as I'm not a big fan of bitters, I go for sweeter amalgamations. Port, Muscat or other dessert wines are my top choices, although raspberry, cherry and pear liqueurs are a close second. Grand Marnier, Cointreau, and brandy also work well, and I hear blueberry schnapps makes a gorgeous aperitif. But honestly, just mix in whatever sounds good to you.

It doesn't matter if you're having a chic cocktail party or an intimate celebration dinner; it's easy to add a splash of Doris Day chic to your holiday season.

How to Make a Champagne Cocktail:

Place 1 ounce of your chosen alcohol into champagne flute and then fill with champagne, prosecco, cava or sparkling wine.

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