Tis' the season for hot cocoa, cinnamon, sugar cookies, and champagne! This time of year is all about the celebrations... receiving champagne, and giving champagne, the delightful sound of corks popping, bubbly fizzing and pouring forth into beautiful long-stemmed champagne flutes, and toasting to the holidays and the New Year ahead. 

 

Champagne also happens to be a LILA Fashion International favorite... give us any excuse to crack open the bubbly, and we won't disappoint. Be it for smaller, more intimate events or major milestones like our second birthday coming up on January 1st, 2017, we like to commemorate the occasion with a well-deserved glass (or two!) of champagne. 

 

And while we'll never turn down straight bubbly, we love coming up with fresh twists on the traditional. So, if you're planning on playing host this New Year's Day, we've got a few recipes up our red velvet sleeve for favorite champagne cocktails that are sure to get you and your party in the mood to celebrate. Happy concocting!

 

Pomegranate Mimosas 

(Makes 4 Cocktails)

Ingredients

• 1 bottle Prosecco (Cupcake is our fave!)
• 1 c. sweetened pomegranate juice 
• 4 tbsp pomegranate seeds (for garnish)

 

Assembly

1. In champagne glasses, fill with 1/4 cup sweetened pomegranate juice and top off with champagne.

2. Garnish with pomegranate seeds.

 

This is the perfect last minute cocktail. It's simply prepared, yet looks so very festive. It's for those unexpected visits from friends and family who just happen to pop in to say "hi" because it's the holidays. The pomegranate also carries particular significance in Greece since ancient times, as it represents both abundance and good luck. Any wonder why it's our favorite? Often gifted over the holidays as a gouri (good luck charm), the pomegranate is intended to bring the receiver well wishes for the New Year. We always feel on point when serving up our Pomegranate Mimosas, by both honoring an ancient tradition and impressing our guests. Plus, it doesn't hurt that they taste as sweet and delicious as they look! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blackberry Thyme Sparkler

(Makes 4 Cocktails)

Ingredients

• 1 c. blackberries + 8 more for garnish
• 1 c. Water
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 bottle of champagne
• 4 ounces or 1/2 c. gin
• 4 long sprigs of thyme
• 1 c. ice
•  gold baking sugar for the rim

 

Assembly

1. In a small saucepan, bring water, sugar and blackberries to a boil. Next, reduce heat and allow the mixture to simmer for ten minutes, until the blackberries are soft and the simple syrup has turned into a bright pink or red color. 

2. Remove the mixture from the heat and using a strainer extract the blackberries. Allow the mixture to cool and proceed to refrigerate. You can keep this mixture refrigerated for up to one week - so feel free to make your simple syrup in advance! 

3. On the day of your party, prepare your champagne glasses by coating the rims in gold baking sugar. **Note: The secret to getting the sugar to adhere is to use the tiniest bit of butter - no one will be able to taste it, yet it works like a charm! Therefore, place the smallest amount of butter between your fingers and rub it around the rim before dipping the glass into the gold baking sugar. Can't find gold backing sugar? Don't fret! Plain white sugar looks just as elegant.

4. Once your rims are glistening, drop two fresh blackberries into each glass, followed by two ounces of homemade blackberry simple syrup. Finally, fill the rest of the glass with champagne and garnish with a sprig of thyme in each glass. 

 

This sweet concoction makes for a lovely addition to your holiday meal. From the presentation to the flavor, the Blackberry Thyme Sparkler is undoubtedly a crowd pleaser. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amaretto Cherry Fizz

Ingredients

• 1 c. pitted fresh cherries
• 1 c. amaretto (almond-flavored liqueur)
• 1/2 c. fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons)
• 1/2 c. pasteurized egg whites
• 2 c. chilled brut prosecco

 

Assembly

1. Place fresh cherries in a glass container; pour amaretto over cherries. Cover, shake gently, and let stand in a cool, dry place for at least 48 hours.

2. Strain the cherries through a fine sieve over a bowl, reserving both the amaretto and the cherries.

3. Pour amaretto into a large cocktail shaker, or if you don't have a cocktail shaker feel free to use a quart-sized mason jar. Add lemon juice and egg whites. Add as much ice as possible, cover, and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Next, strain about 1/4 cup into each of 8 chilled cocktail coupes or Champagne flutes; top each serving with 1/4 cup prosecco. Garnish with amaretto-soaked cherries and serve immediately.

 

This cocktail was made to impress. It takes a little longer to prepare than the other two but it is definitely worth the effort. It is fancy and sophisticated and balances the tartness of the lemon with the sweet nuttiness of the amaretto liqueur and the soft frothiness of the shaken egg white. It is a flirty twist on a classic cocktail. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glassware details

Pomegranate Mimosas + Blackberry Thyme Sparkler // Champagne Glasses provided by The Little Apple

Amaretto Cherry Fizz // Vintage Heirloom Champagne Flutes

 

All photography owned by LILA Fashion International