Crowd-pleasing Sparkling Cocktails for Your Holiday Entertaining

When it comes to throwing a party, nothing says “celebration” quite like the sound of a cork popping. But why stop at just pouring glasses of bubbly when you can take things up a notch with some easy-to-make, crowd-pleasing sparkling wine cocktails? 

Leelanau 75

A local take on an elegant classic, this cocktail uses Mammoth Distilling Contemporary Northern Gin, lemon juice and MAWBY Aparkling Wine. Easy to make and pretty to look at, your guests will love this refreshing and sophisticated drink.

What You Need:

• 1 oz gin
• 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 oz simple syrup
• 4 oz MAWBY Us

How to Make It: Shake the gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup with ice, then strain into a champagne flute. Top with Us and garnish with a lemon twist. The Leelanau 75 is perfect for when you want to impress with minimal effort.

Visions of Sugar Plums

For something sweet and chic, try this festive take on a Kir Royale. Instead of traditional creme de cassis, or blackberry liquor, we use locally made plum liqueur from Northern Latitudes Distillery, made from plums grown in Leelanau County. The richness of the plums makes for a slightly fruity cocktail, best enjoyed with a drier, brut style bubbly, like Us or Blanc. 

What You Need:

• 1/2 oz plum liqueur (or crème de cassis)
• 4 oz MAWBY Us or Blanc

How to Make It: Pour the plum liquor or crème de cassis into a flute glass, then top with sparkling wine. If you are feeling fancy, try a sugar rim. Before you pour the cocktails, wet the rim of the glass with water or lemon juice. Put some sanding sugar in a bowl; other decorative sugars like sparkle sugar or pearl sugar will also work. Invert the glass, slowly roll the rim in the sugar, and viola! 

Holiday Punch

Everybody loves a holiday punch! Guests can serve themselves and, with a little prep time, hosts can make this in advance, giving you more time to enjoy the party. 

What You Need:

Cinnamon simple syrup

1/2 C sugar

1/2 C water

2 cinnamon sticks

Place all ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Gently dissolve the sugar into the water, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Let cinnamon sticks steep for 1 hour. Remove sticks and set syrup aside. Then gather up these ingredients:

2 C pomegranate juice

3/4 C brandy

1 bottle MAWBY Redd

Sliced fruit (pear, lime, apple)

How to Make It: Mix pomegranate juice, brandy and ¼ cup cinnamon simple syrup in a pitcher. Add sliced fruits and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight. 

When ready to serve, add a bottle of MAWBY Redd. Pour into glasses over ice. 

A toast to the host with the most!

We hope you found some inspiration for your next holiday party or get together. These three cocktails bring just the right amount of festive, fizzy fun to any party. Cheers to great times with great friends and great MAWBY drinks.