Though Champagne is perfect on its own, an extra bit of colour and punch is always welcome. We trialled a number of Champagne cocktails at our team parties over the years, and here are our favourites. They are fun, easy to make, and big crowd-pleasers.
Spiced Orange Champagne Punch (Makes 4)
Heat 250ml orange juice, 3 tbsp sugar, 2 cinnamon sticks and 2 star anise pods over low heat for 5 minutes. Allow to cool and pour into each glass until 1/3 full. Top with champagne.
Classic French 75 (Makes 2)
Slice a lemon peel and twist into a spiral. Create a syrup by heating 2 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp water together. Mix 2 tbsp gin, 1 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tsp of the syrup (or more to taste) in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake. Strain into a champagne flute and top with champagne. Add the lemon peel and some raspberries.
Christmas Pomegranate Cocktail (Makes As Many As You'd Like)
Blend pomegranate seeds in a blender. Pour through a sieve and collect the juice. Fill the glass by a third with pomegranate juice and top up with champagne. Decorate with a couple of blueberries.
Cherry and Thyme Champagne Cocktail (Makes 2)
Drain the juice from a 225g jar of cocktail cherries into a saucepan. Simmer the juice and a few sprigs of thyme over low heat for 5 minutes. Take off the heat and allow to cool. Put 2 tbsp of juice into each glass and add a cherry. Fill the rest of the glass with champagne and add a sprig of thyme to garnish.
Festive Cranberry Bellini (Makes As Many As You'd Like)
Heat 1 300g packet of fresh cranberries over low heat. Add 1 tbsp of caster sugar (add more if you want it sweeter) until you create a paste-like consistency. Allow to cool and put 1-2 teaspoons into each glass. Add Champagne to fill the glass and stir carefully.