Champagne Cup Punch
Stir ∙ 3 min ∙ 18.3% ABV ∙
The Champagne Cup Punch is a sparkling wine cocktail built with Cognac, orange liqueur, and maraschino cherry syrup, stirred and served in a flute. Fruity and bright with a warm brandy undercurrent, the sparkling wine lifts a cherry-orange sweetness into a light, effervescent finish — an easy celebratory sipper.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Stir the first 3 ingredients with ice: Cognac 25 mlCognac orange liqueur (e.g., Grand Marnier) 15 mlMaraschino cherries syrup 10 ml
- Strain into the chilled glass
- Top with Dry sparkling wine and briefly stir
- Garnish with a maraschino cherry
- Note: Can be scaled up and served from a punch bowl or a large pitcher
Tips
- Stir the cognac, orange liqueur, and maraschino syrup together first in a mixing glass with ice, then strain into the flute before topping with sparkling wine to preserve carbonation.
- Add the dry sparkling wine last and pour it gently down the side of the flute to avoid excessive foam-up and loss of fizz.
- Chill the cognac base and the flute itself beforehand so the sparkling wine doesn't lose temperature and go flat too quickly on contact.
- Use a single maraschino cherry dropped in just before serving as garnish, not stirred in, so it doesn't cloud the syrup ratio.
History
The Champagne Cup belongs to the English tradition of "cups," chilled wine-based mixed drinks served in tall glasses with fruit, herbs, and ice that were a fixture of Victorian-era garden parties and summer entertaining, alongside relatives like claret cup. Champagne, being a luxury import, made its cup version a particular status marker at high-society gatherings in nineteenth-century London. The drink was codified in print in the twentieth century, with Harry Craddock including a Champagne Cup recipe in his 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book, and Leo Cotton publishing his own version in 1935 dressed with orange and pineapple slices, cucumber peel, and mint. These printed recipes helped fix the "cup" format of brandy or liqueur combined with sparkling wine and fruit garnish as a distinct category from the single-glass Champagne Cocktail.
FAQ
How do you make a champagne punch?
Combine Cognac, an orange liqueur such as Grand Marnier, and maraschino cherry syrup, then top with dry sparkling wine and stir gently. It is served in a flute and finished with a maraschino cherry garnish, making it a quick single-glass punch rather than a large-format bowl recipe.
What is a classic champagne cocktail?
A classic Champagne Cocktail is built from a sugar cube soaked in bitters, topped with sparkling wine and finished with a lemon twist. The Champagne Cup Punch is a different, fruitier variation, built instead on Cognac, orange liqueur, and cherry syrup.
What is a Kir Royale made of?
A Kir Royale is just two ingredients: crème de cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) topped with dry sparkling wine. It has no brandy or citrus, making it simpler and less fruit-forward than the Champagne Cup Punch, which layers in Cognac, orange liqueur, and cherry syrup.
What are the ingredients in a Champagne Cup Punch?
Cognac, an orange liqueur such as Grand Marnier, maraschino cherry syrup, and dry sparkling wine, stirred together and served up in a flute with a maraschino cherry garnish.
Is a Champagne Cup Punch shaken or stirred?
Stirred. The sparkling wine needs a gentle hand rather than a shake, since shaking would blow off the carbonation before the drink ever reaches the glass.
What glass is a Champagne Cup Punch served in?
A flute glass, which is the standard choice for sparkling wine cocktails because its narrow shape preserves the bubbles longer than a wide-mouthed glass.
