New Year’s Eve was made for toasting, whether you are heading out to a bar or party, or celebrating with a few guests at home. Why not make a departure from the traditional champagne this year, and enjoy a sophisticated cocktail or two? Here are a few ideas if you are looking for a little bit of party inspiration.
Happy New Year
There is a cocktail designed especially for the occasion, titled appropriately enough, the Happy New Year. It was apparently invented by a German bartender called Charles Schumann. It’s a simple mixture of Cognac brandy, tawny port, freshly squeezed orange juice, and champagne or sparkling wine.
Classic champagne cocktail
There’s nothing wrong with sticking to a traditional choice on these occasions! A classic champagne cocktail is made from cognac, angostura bitters, and of course, champagne, although you could also use prosecco, crémant, or cava. A sugar cube is also sunk into the bottom of the glass to help circulate the bubbles.
Serve in a flute with a twist of orange peel and plenty of ice.
French 75
This classic cocktail never fails to bring a sense of fun and freshness to any occasion, and is perfect for a celebratory drink. A simple mixture of lemon juice, gin, powdered sugar or syrup, and champagne or sparkling wine, it is served in an ice filled flute.
The gin, sugar, and lemon juice should be shaken with ice and strained into a chilled glass, and topped up with the champagne. The result is a refreshing sherberty mixture which is easy to drink and always popular at parties.
Clementine martini
Martini cocktails are not always popular with people who drink only on special occasions such as New Year’s Eve, because they are quite strong and not to everyone’s taste. However, a clementine cocktail sweetens the mix by adding Cointreau and the juice of freshly squeezed clementines. You can also use cranberry juice instead.
To make, simply mix the fruit juice, vodka, Cointreau, in a jug and leave to chill in the fridge for a while. Serve in chilled Martini glasses or champagne flutes with a slice of clementine, and top up each glass with Cava, champagne, or prosecco.
Black Velvet
This is a perfect drink for those who are not seasoned cocktail drinkers. It’s simply a mixture of Guinness stout and champagne in equal parts, and they are poured into a chilled glass. It’s a traditional drink, still enjoyed today because the two unlikely ingredients complement each other very well.
Like most cocktails, it has various different origin stories. One of them has it that the Black Velvet was invented in Dublin in the 1860’s, after the death of Queen Victoria’s beloved husband, Prince Albert. Sparkling wine was considered too frivolous a beverage to enjoy at a time of national mourning, so the Irish took to disguising it with Guinness.
Mocktails
If you are hosting drinks at home, there is likely to be at least one person who is abstaining from alcohol. Offer them something more interesting than water or lemonade, with one of the many sophisticated cocktail recipes which are now plentiful.
If you would like to brush up on your skills, why not consider taking an online cocktail making class.
