Rhetorical question: Who doesn’t love champagne? I love it so much (Veuve Clicquot to be exact) that I have a scar on my knee from my 30th birthday party to prove it. Seriously, nothing says party like champagne. So Liz and I threw together this quick, easy champagne bar to take any event to the next level.
Bubbles B*tches!
I can’t tell you how hard I laughed when Liz unveiled the balloon letters she found on Amazon. She had them spelled out on the floor and seriously, I was dying. To be honest, I’m a little jealous I didn’t think of it. It was the perfect start to our design scheme and we literally created the look of the whole set-up based on those rose gold balloons.
A bubble bar is fun by definition. Liquor + Bubbles = Fun. Prove me wrong. So, it seemed important to use a combination of bright, cheerful colors to set the mood. I think we can all also agree that celebrations deserve streamers, and this fun package from Target made creating a whimsical background to our bubble bar super easy. We just created a wall of crepe paper stripes with a ladder and a little tape then added our slightly adult-rated message on top of it.
Side bar: I can’t emphasize enough just how impactful and how important it is to think about the backdrop when you are setting up any food or beverage station against a wall. It’s the first thing your eyes will focus on, since it’s usually the largest area. Whether it’s a fun message or a design element, it’s a perfect opportunity to wow your guests, so don’t overlook it. Expletives are optional, of course.
Ya Basic
Everything we used for this bar was pretty basic, but beautiful nonetheless. We used some inexpensive carafes from World Market to display our mixers and white cake stands from Amazon to add height. We added simple tags to indicate what each carafe contained. You can download and customize them here, if you’d like to use them for your own cocktail party.
A gold ice bucket adds some sparkle and these champagne glasses are so reasonably priced, you won’t care if someone gets a little too tipsy and breaks one. Also, did you notice our fruit and croissant spreads are just in standard ramekins and glass prep bowls? Seriously, so easy and affordable.
A Fruitful Endeavour
Since we had a TON of fruit from all the juicing, we opted to decorate with it. This is one of Liz’s favorite things to do as is obvious by almost every table she designs. Seriously, if I can put a bird on it, she can definitely add a mandarine to it.
It’s no coincidence that the colors of the fruit matched the decor. We planned it that way. Or rather, we planned the decor around the colors of the fruit since our juices would be front and center on the display.
Cheers to champagne cocktails
Of course the real star of this party is the booze. We started with a selection of various sparkling wines and nothing over $15. Prosecco and Cava are usually a bargain and perfect for mixing. Here are some of our favorite concoctions.
French 75
The French 75 is almost always a crowd favorite, but be careful – this little drink packs a punch. We are using a gin recipe here, but the original calls for cognac, which is equally delicious. To make a pitcher use the following proportions.
INGREDIENTS
2 cup London dry gin
1 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup simple syrup
Champagne (or any sparkling wine)
Long spiral lemon twists (for serving)
PREPARATION
Step 1
Combine gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup in a pitcher. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Step 2
Pour cocktail mixture into each flute. Top with Champagne; garnish with lemon twist.
Hawaiian Mimosa
Liz and I both love pineapple, and this recipe for Hawaiian Mimosas is a sooo good. We used pineapple juice instead of actually juicing pineapples, but if you have a juicer why not go for the gold and make your own juice. To make a pitcher, here’s what you need:
INGREDIENTS
2 cups of coconut rum like Malibu
4 cups of pineapple juice
Champagne (or sparkling wine)
Pineapple wedge or cherry for serving
PREPARATION
Step 1
Combine rum and pineapple juice in a pitcher. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Step 2
Pour cocktail mixture into each flute. Top with Champagne; garnish with pineapple wedge or cherry.
Orange Mimosa
Obviously we couldn’t resist serving traditional orange mimosas. It’s two ingredients. What could be easier? This one is actually better with freshly squeezed oranges. Seriously, if you have the time and proper equipment, you won’t be disappointed with the results. Just be sure to use a strainer. Pulpy mimosas are a little weird and are counterproductive to a beverage that supposed to be effervesent.
INGREDIENTS
Fresh-squeezed orange juice
Champagne (or sparkling wine)
Orange spiral for serving
PREPARATION
Add orange juice to flute. Top with Champagne; garnish with an orange spiral.
Bellini
In the same vein of mimosas, we also served Bellinis. Technically, you only need peach puree and champagne, but we added a little bit of Peach Schnapps to make them a little peachier and more potent.
INGREDIENTS
4 cups Peach Puree
1/4 cup Peach Schnapps
Champagne (or any sparkling wine)
PREPARATION
Step 1
Combine peach puree and peach schnapps in a pitcher. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Step 2
Pour cocktail mixture into each flute. Top with Champagne.
PAMA BLACKBERRY MIMOSA
Our last mix was a bit of an experiment. For those of you unfamiliar, Pama is a pomegranate liqueur. We combined it with muddled blackberries and viola – we had a damn fine cocktail.
INGREDIENTS
4 cups Pama (Pomegranate Liqueur)
2 cups fresh blackberries (and more for garnish)
2 tablespoons sugar
Champagne (or any sparkling wine)
PREPARATION
Step 1
Muddle blackberries in sugar at the bottom of a pitcher. Add Pama and stir vigorously. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Step 2
Pour cocktail mixture into each flute. Top with Champagne; garnish with a blackberries.
FLOWERS SO PRETTY YOU’ll WANT TO EAT THEM
You may have noticed that we didn’t use many flowers, but we did add edible varieties to each of the champagne flutes for a fabulous presentation. Did you know there are a ton of flowers that are edible? We used marigolds and pansies for this set up, but if you do some research and you’ll find an endless variety you can add to any menu.
WE SAID IT WAS EASY
With the exception of shopping, which we just made a whole lot easier with links and the Shop the Post below, we finished this set up in under 2 hours, including the juice mixtures. So what are you waiting for? Call your gal pals and tell them they have boozy brunch plans this weekend. It’s as easy as pop, fizz, clink!
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