CHAMPAGNE PUNCH
Champagne punch is a light, fruity drink that isn't too sweet and isn't too strong. There aren't any ingredients that you have to add to Champagne punch, not even the Champagne! Sparkling wine will do just fine, it's less expensive and nobody will even know the difference
1920's CHAMPAGNE PUNCH
1 quart of Champagne (about two and a half 750ml bottles)
2 TB Orange Curacao ……………………………................2 cups sugar
1 cup of water ………………………………………............... 2 cups brewed tea
The juice from two fresh squeezed lemons
2 cups rum …………………………………………................. 4 TB Brandy
Mix ingredients together in punch bowl; top with soda water before serving.
Now, here are a few substitutions that bring this 1920's Champagne Punch into the modern era:
Blue Curacao instead of orange
Omit the water
Use pineapple juice instead of tea
Substitute flavored brandy as opposed to non-flavored brandy
Top with flavored club soda instead of soda water
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SWEET & TART CHAMPAGNE PUNCH
12 ounces of cranberry juice
12 ounces of frozen limeade concentrate (or Minute Maid brand's Cherry-Limeade in ½ gallon)
12 oz (one can) frozen pink lemonade concentrate
2 bottles of Champagne or sparkling wine
1 lemon AND 1 lime, sliced thin …………......................... 1 liter carbonated water
Mix all the ingredients together in a punch bowl. Float the lime and lemon slices on top of the punch for a garnish.
MIMOSA CHAMPAGNE PUNCH
24 ounces of frozen orange juice concentrate
3 bottles of champagne or sparkling wine …….........……. Plus 8 cups of Ginger Ale
Mix all the ingredients together in a punch bowl and serve in Champagne flutes garnished with an orange slice. Perfect for a Sunday brunch.
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The Basics of Champagne Punch
Punch made with Champagne or sparkling wine has very few basic ingredients which are:
Champagne - As mentioned above, less expensive sparkling wine is a perfect substitute.
A bit of liquor - Rum is generally used, but liquors like Curacao, Chambord, Grand Marnier or Cointreau are also great additions.
A carbonated beverage - This can be ginger ale, flavored carbonated water, soda water or tonic.
Fruit juice - You can choose from frozen fruit juice concentrate or fresh squeezed fruit juice.
Creating Your own Champagne Punch Cocktail
It is so easy to invent your own Champagne punch. All you have to do is think of two or more types of fruit that compliment one another and go from there. Here's a short list of a few fruits with flavors that blend well together:
Cranberry and orange
Strawberries and raspberries
Peaches (or nectarines) and pears
Cantaloupe and honeydew
Building the Recipe
Once you have the basic fruit flavors that you want, move onto liquors. For this example, let's use strawberries and raspberries and build a champagne punch recipe from there:
12 oz of frozen strawberries AND 12 oz frozen raspberries
3 bottles of Champagne or sparkling wine
½ cup of strawberry flavored vodka
1 liter of raspberry flavored sparkling water
1 pint of fresh raspberries
1 pint of fresh strawberries, sliced
Puree both the frozen strawberries and raspberries then mix the pureed fruit with the Champagne, flavored vodka and sparkling water in a large punch bowl. Float the fresh raspberries and sliced strawberries on top for a garnish. If you want to add another flavor that would go well with this punch, try a little blueberry flavored vodka and float a few fresh blueberries on top.