This gorgeous champagne pomegranate cocktail balances the sweet taste of pomegranate juice with the bitterness of orange liqueur for a light refreshing champagne cocktail. It’s an easy three ingredient holiday cocktail recipe that will be sure to win over your guests. Great for Christmas, New Year’s Eve, or any holiday party in between. Happy Celebrating!

Square shot of a champagne pomegranate cocktail in a coupe glass

An Easy Champagne Cocktail

I get a festive feeling when celebrating the holiday season with a gorgeous drink in my hand, especially when it’s one made with champagne! With its tiny bubbles and beautiful ruby red color this pomegranate cocktail is one of my favorite cocktail recipes.

Light and refreshing without being knock your socks off strong, this fruit forward three ingredient holiday cocktail is super simple to make. No bartender required. No cocktail shaker needed. All you need is a fancy cocktail glass, or not – any glass is fine!

It’s the perfect recipe for a theme cocktail. Try it for Christmas parties, New Years Eve parties, Valentine’s Day dates, or any other special day where only a red cocktail will do! This year as you are planning those party menus, don’t forget to add this champagne pomegranate cocktail to the list. You won’t regret it!

Ingredients for champagne pomegranate cocktails.

What You’ll Need

Pomegranate juice
Orange liqueur
Champagne or sparkling wine
Pomegranate arils (aka pomegranate seeds) and orange peel – for garnish, optional

Recommended Kitchen Tools

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Check out my Amazon shop to see all of my recommended kitchen tools.

This is usually where I list the tools that make easier to successfully make one of my recipes. This recipe is so simple that you really don’t need anything, not a cocktail shaker, not even a stirring spoon. I’ve have, however, had requests for a link to my champagne coupes. While I picked mine up in person, the first one listed is the closest I could find. I also included some other gorgeous cocktail glass suggestions.

Coupe Glasses
Speakeasy Coupe Glasses
Etched Crystal Champagne Coupe
12-pack Classic Champagne Flutes (usually the same cost as disposable ones and dishwasher safe)

How to Make a Champagne Pomegranate Cocktail

This easy pomegranate cocktail is made from three simple ingredients. Since it’s served straight up instead of on the rocks you’ve got to start with chilled ingredients. So make sure you takes some prep time to refrigerate the ingredients or at least place them in ice.

In a 5 ounce champagne coupe or champagne flute add a few pomegranate arils and a strip of orange peel, if using.
Measure out an ounce each of the pomegranate juice and orange liqueur.
Top with 4 ounces of champagne or sparkling wine. Do not shake, do not stir. Let the bubbles work their magic.

Tips for Success

As with making any cocktail, the biggest secret to your success is in selecting your ingredients. While there aren’t usually too many brands of pomegranate juice to choose from, it can be a little overwhelming to stand in the liquor store surrounded by unfamiliar ingredients and know which to chose.

Selecting an Orange Liqueur

While liqueurs typically have the same alcohol content liquors, a liqueur uses a liquor base then is sweetened and enhanced with extracts to add flavor. Liquors (gin, vodka, bourbon, etc.) are often used as the base of the drink, while liqueurs are often treated as an accent to create depth and make the drink more interesting.

Like any liquor, liqueurs range in quality from well to top shelf. On the lower end, you will find cheap versions of triple sec or curacao. Mid-range liqueurs are still called triple sec or curacao, but they cost more and have higher-quality ingredients. On the high end, you’ll find the premium liqueurs like Cointreau and Grand Marnier.

Cointreau is my orange liqueur of choice in this pomegranate cocktail, but if I were buying in bulk for a party, I’d probably look for something a little more budget-minded.

Choosing Between Champagne, Cava, or Prosecco

Champagne or bubbly are the words people most often use to refer to sparkling wines. However, you do not need to use expensive French champagne to make this pomegranate cocktail. In fact, expensive French champagne is the last thing I would reach for when making a champagne cocktail, as real champagne and other high-end sparkling wines can be a bit too fancy and expensive for cocktails.

Instead, I would look for a mid-range locally made sparkling wine that uses the champagne method. For something a little more wallet-friendly, look for a bottle of cava or prosecco. Cava is a Spanish sparkling wine that undergoes a second fermentation in the bottle, aka the champagne method. Prosecco is an Italian sparkling wine made by adding carbonated gas to still wine.

Like any good cocktail, the end result is only as good as the ingredients you put in it. Since the bubbly in this cocktail is the biggest ingredient, it’s the most important. You should choose one you’d enjoy drinking straight. (Leftover bubbly makes for great mimosas too!)

Overhead shot of two champagne pomegranate cocktails in glass goblets with pomegranate arils and orange zest.

Serving Suggestions

Parties and celebrations are the best times to enjoy champagne cocktails like this pomegranate cocktail. The key in choosing how to serve them is to consider your guests first. When I serve these for my husband and I on Valentine’s Day or Christmas Day they look completely different than if I served them for a New Year’s Eve party with 50 of my closest friends.

Glasses

This champagne pomegranate cocktail looks gorgeous in a coupe champagne glass, which is the style of glass used to serve champagne before people started using champagne flutes. Like a martini glass, it takes a bit of elegance to walk around with it and not spill. It’s how I would serve them for a small crowd.

If your crowd of chosen guests aren’t the elegant type or you would simply prefer not cleaning up spilled champagne at your party, opt instead for a classic champagne flute. This is how I would serve them on New Year’s Eve, whether surround by 50 of my friends or curled up on the couch.

If that’s not your thing, you can serve this cocktail in any kind of glass you choose. A high ball or low ball is fine. Even a plastic cup would allow you to take these delicious drinks with you on the go.

Garnishes

To garnish or not garnish is totally up to you. While it definitely makes the drink look pretty and adds a festive flair, the garnish does take time to prepare. If your guests are the type to appreciate it and you have the time to do it, by all means include it.

A twist of orange peel, a sugared rim, and a few pomegranate seeds or arils definitely fancy up the glass. At my parties, those pomegranate seeds are going to run out way before I run out of the base ingredients, especially if I’ve stocked up on extras like pomegranate liqueur or pomegranate gin for those that want an extra kick.

Vertical shot of two champagne pomegranate cocktails in coupe glasses

How to Store

Typically my tips on storing a recipe apply to leftovers and the ability to make things in advance. Since most of us don’t end up with leftover cocktails, just leftover ingredients, I’m going to use this space as a word of warning: don’t make the drinks in advance.

First off, if you pour the champagne in advance, it’s going to lose its bubbles and won’t taste its best. Even combining the pomegranate juice and orange liqueur in advance won’t save you a lot of time, because it’s so super simple.

The ONLY thing I would do in advance would be to sugar the rims, if you choose to go that route, and prep the garnish. Having the orange peels and pomegranate arils easily accessible will make it easier and faster to prep and serve each drink. From there mix them up as you plan to drink them and encourage your guests to do the same.

Leftover pomegranate juice will last a 5 – 7 days after it’s open. The orange liqueur has a long shelf life after opening. Even (surprise!!) champagne will last a day or two in the fridge once open (it’s true!).

Don’t forget to drink responsibly!!!

If you like this recipe, please give it a FIVE-STAR rating, leave a comment, and share it on your favorite social channel!