Champagne Drinks
for a Special Picnic

There are nothing like champagne drinks for adding a touch of luxury to a special romantic or wedding picnic.

Whether you are taking your picnic to a special race meeting or holding a wedding on the beach champagne always means a celebration is happening.

Real champagne from the Champagne region of France is the only sparkling wine that can legally be called "Champagne". It is fermented in the bottle which is a slow process that makes it expensive. Many other countries make fantastic sparkling wines by the same method which are often much less expensive. Cheaper sparkling wines are fermented in tanks and then bottled. A quicker and cheaper method.

Most people settle for good quality sparkling wine especially at a picnic where the setting is casual. The bubbles will still tickle your nose.

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Remember that you may have to drive home so make champagne drinks into long cool drinks for a picnic. Mixing a sparkling wine with fruit juice cuts down the alcohol content and is leaves you feeling more refreshed.

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Tips and Hints for Sparkling Wine

• Keep your sparkling wine cool. About 7 degrees centigrade
  
• Use a medium quality sparkling wine without spending too much money .
  
• Choose a drier or "Brut" variety unless you like drinks really sweet. Experiment and find your own particulat favourite.
• Keep your glasses cold. Pack them with the wine in an insulated container on the way to the picnic.
• Learn how to open a bottle of sparkling wine .

• When you are pouring sparkling wine fill the glass a little at a time to stop the glass overflowing.
• If you going to make champagne drinks at a picnic carry the ingredients seperately and mix them on the spot. This way you keep the sparkle in the wine until the last minute.

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To Help You Enjoy Champagne At Your Picnic

• Carry your wine in a cooler bag like this.
  

The bag will keep it really cold whether you are going on a picnic or just to visit friends. Keep it ready in the freezer so it is cold whenever you need it.

• Better still pack your whole picnic in an insulated bag that keeps not only the wine but the food cool as well.

• Only use cheap wine glasses. You don't want to have to worry about breaking your best glasses or the dangers of broken glass on a picnic. It is best to use plastic glasses. They are unbreakable and if you get good quality they will last for years.

• Make sure you have somewhere safe to put your drinks between sips. Stands that stick into the ground to hold your glasses firmly upright prevent accidental spills.

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Sparkling Sangria

Sparkling sangria is an ideal drink for a picnic. A long cool drink it is just right for a hot summer afternoon.

Prepare the most of the ingredients at home and carry then to the picnic in a jug . Add the sparkling wine just before serving .

You can use any fruit that is in season. Peaches, nectarines or strawberries all make lovely additions to sangria . It pays to add some citrus for its fresh tang.

You will need

• 1/2 cup brandy
• 1/4 cup orange liqueur
• 2 tablsp sugar
• 250 gms frozen raspberries
• 1 orange
• 1 lime
• 1 lemon
• A bottle of sparkling wine
• Ice cubes

Slice the citrus fruit finely. Pour the brandy, and orange liqueur into a jug. Stir in the sugar until it dissolves.

At the picnic add the fruit and the ice. Pour in the sparkling wine .

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Classic Champagne Cocktail

For a special romantic picnic, a proposal or a picnic wedding toast you can't go past the classic champagne cocktail.

This recipe makes about 4 glasses

You will need

• 4 sugar cubes
• 2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
• 60 mls cognac
  
• 1 bottle Champagne

Drop a sugar cube into each glass. Sprinkle with bitters. Pour over the brandy. Top up each glass with champagne

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Sparkling Raspberry Wine Cocktail

This makes a pink champagne drink. Very feminine and romantic.

Use frozen fruit to keep the drink really cold.

You will need

• 1 bottle of sparkling wine
• 250 gms of frozen raspberries
• 1/4 cup triple sec (Grand Marnier or Cointreau)
  
• 1/4 cup sugar

Take all the ingredients with you on your picnic. There are only a few. At the picnic mix them all together in a jug (clear plastic is best for a picnic). Pour into your glasses and drink straight away so that you don't lose any bubbles.

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Pink Champagne

A tart and very refreshing drink to make with sparkling wine.

You will need

• 3 cups of pink grapefruit juice
• 1 cup pomegranate juice
• 1 bottle sparkling wine

Mix the pink grapefruit juice and pomegranate juice together.

Pour into glasses

Top up with sparkling wine.

There are many combinations of juice, spirits and sparkling wine and more are being invented all the time. Check out an amazing selection here.

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