Wine
10 Best Wine Cocktails
Is there nothing wine can do? Beyond being delicious in its own right, it’s also a vital ingredient in the kind of cocktails that will take your entertaining to the next level of refreshment. Here are some easy wine cocktail recipes that are just the ticket for bringing some extra flair!
Top 10 Wine Cocktails
- Sangria
- White Sangria
- Sparkling Wine Cocktail
- Aperol Spritz
- Mimosa
- Frosé
- Grapefruit Spritzer
- Spicy Summer
- Strawberry Rosé
- Elderflower Prosecco
1. How To Make Sangria
Ah, Sangria! Has there ever been a more well-known wine cocktail than Spain’s famous punch? A traditional drink of both Spain and Portugal commonly served at restaurants, bars and festive occasions, Sangria’s origins are lost to time. Typically consisting of red wine and chopped fruit with other ingredients added according to taste, it’s one wine cocktail guaranteed to draw a crowd! We suggest using the traditional Spanish varietals of Tempranillo or Garnacha/Grenache for a truly authentic Reál Sangria!
View Sangria Recipe
Ingredients
4 oranges
4 lemons
1 apple, unpeeled and core removed, diced
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup Brandy
750ml bottle red wine (Tempranillo or Grenache)
¼ cup caster sugar
750ml bottle soft drink (lemonade, soda water or ginger ale)
Method
1. Thinly slice 1 orange and 1 lemon. Cut each slice into small wedges and place in a large bowl. Add apple, cinnamon and brandy. Stir to combine, then cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. Juice remaining oranges and lemons. Combine 1½ cups of wine, 1½ tablespoons sugar, 1½ cups soft drink, ¼ cup orange juice and 1½ tablespoons lemon juice in a jug. Add half the apple mixture and stir to combine. Repeat with remaining ingredients in a separate jug.
3. Spoon crushed ice into 8 tall glasses. Pour over Sangria and serve.
Shop Tempranillo
Looking for great-value Tempranillo for your Sangria? You can’t go wrong with the Sfera by Wirrega Vineyards Tempranillo 2019, an earthy and savoury yet juicy Limestone Coast expression.
View all Tempranillo or view Grenache
2. How To Make Sangria Blanca (White Sangria)
A relatively recent interpretation, white Sangria takes everything you know and love about the classic wine cocktail recipe and adds a whiter shade of pale to the mix! For this attractive and refreshing cocktail, we suggest using a dry-style white such as a crisp Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.
View Sangria Blanca Recipe
Ingredients
1⁄3 cup caster sugar
¼ cup brandy
750ml dry white wine (Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio)
1 orange, sliced and cut into small wedges
1 pink lady apple, cored and diced
250g seedless red grapes
1.25L bottle soda water, chilled
Ice cubes, to serve
Method
1. Combine sugar, brandy and wine in a large jug. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add orange, apple and grapes. Cover and refrigerate overnight to allow flavours to develop.
2. Add soda water and ice just before serving.
Shop Sauvignon Blanc
A 2 x Gold medal-winning Limestone Coast expression at a fantastic price, the Wangolina Sauvignon Blanc 2019 delivers an expressive, vibrant palate of citrus and tropical fruit paired with crunchy acidity and a mouth-watering finish – just the thing for your white Sangria!
View all Sauvignon Blanc
3. How To Make A Champagne Cocktail (Sparkling Wine Cocktail)
A classic wine cocktail believed to have been made popular in the mid 19th century by ‘Professor’ Jerry Thomas’ Bon Vivant’s Companion, the Champagne Cocktail is as simple to prepare as it is classy. Though it has ebbed and flowed in popularity, it has seen uncountable interpretations over the years, most of which – like the recipe below – features the key ingredient of a single sugar cube for an extra dash of showmanship. We recommend any brut cuvée, non-vintage Australian Sparkling for the ultimate bang-for-your-buck.
View Champagne Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients
1 sugar cube
2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
Dry-style (Brut) Sparkling wine
1 slice lemon for lemon twist, to serve
Method
1. Place a sugar cube in a chilled champagne flute or coupe and lash the glass with 2 or 3 dashes of bitters.
2. Fill glass with Sparkling wine, add lemon twist, and serve.
Shop Sparkling Wine
“Accessible and honest” is how Crittenden describe their Geppetto range, and the Crittenden Geppetto Sparkling NV Brut certainly fits the bill. With ripe, silky fruit throughout and fine yet soft acidity, it’s a top-value drop for this classic Champagne cocktail recipe.
View all Sparkling wine
4. How To Make Aperol Spritz
How good is an Aperol Spritz? A classic go-to wine cocktail first invented in 1919 by the Barbieri brothers, this popular, orange-red concoction is just the thing to chill out with on a summer afternoon. Some recipes feature a dry white wine, but for our money the original Prosecco-based recipe remains the best!
View Aperol Spritz Recipe
Ingredients
Ice
1 bottle Prosecco, chilled
Aperol
Club soda (or sparkling mineral water)
Sliced orange, to garnish
Method
1. Fill a glass with ice. Add Prosecco, Aperol and soda.
2. Stir gently to combine, then garnish with a slice of orange to serve.
Shop Prosecco
King Valley is the home of Australian Prosecco, and Dal Zotto helped pioneer its popularity here in Australia. The lively, crisp flavours and mouth-watering finish of the Dal Zotto Pucino Prosecco NV are just perfect for making a top-notch Aperol Spritz!
View all Prosecco
5. How To Make A Mimosa
Another supremely easy-to-make, delightfully refreshing wine cocktail, the Mimosa has a long, storied history. Some attribute its origins to the Buck’s Fizz invented at London’s Buck’s Club, some say it was Frank Meier of the Ritz Hotel in Paris, and still others swear it was famed movie director Alfred Hitchcock, while staying in San Francisco! Whatever the case, there’s simply no better wine cocktail to kick off a cruisy day than the mimosa.
View Mimosa Recipe
Ingredients
Orange juice
Dry Sparkling wine
Grand Marnier (optional)
Method
1. Fill flute 1⁄3 full with freshly-squeezed orange juice.
2. Top up flute with brut (dry) Sparkling wine.
3. If desired, add a teaspoon of Grand Marnier and serve.
Shop Sparkling Wine
Tumbarumba’s growing conditions result in lovely Sparkling styles, and the bright, fresh lemony notes of the Molly’s Cradle Premium Brut NV is a wonderful regional example, sure to make a delicious base for your next Mimosa!
View all Sparkling wine
6. How To Make Frosé
Rosé has quickly become one of the go-to summer wines for Australian wine lovers, and it’s no wonder – dry, crisp and delightfully fruity, it’s a refreshing option for both red and white wine drinkers. The only thing that could make it better on a hot summer’s day? Some extra chill! This super easy-to-make frozen Rosé recipe is just thing to keep icy cool by the poolside.
View Frosé Recipe
Ingredients
1 bottle Rosé
1 lime, juiced
2-3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 punnet strawberries (250g)
1½ tablespoons rose water (optional)
Fresh mint and lime wedge, to garnish
Method
1. Divide the Rosé into 2 large ice cube trays and freeze overnight for about four to five hours. The Rosé will not freeze completely, but should feel quite solid.
2. Hull and halve the strawberries and add to a blender.
3. Add the frozen Rosé, lime juice and rose water to the blender and blend until smooth.
4. Gradually add the brown sugar and blend until the sweetness cuts through and balances the acidity of the lime juice and the Rosé.
5. Serve in either a Martini or wine glass and garnish with fresh mint and a wedge of lime.
View our original Frosé recipe here!
Shop Rosé
Enjoy the fresh flavours of Yarra Valley Rosé for your Frosé with Dominique Portet Fontaine Rosé 2019 – a little savoury with attractive spice notes alongside citrus, red berry and musk, for a flavoursome and refreshing Frosé like no other!
View all Rosé
7. How To Make A Grapefruit Spritzer
Essentially a variant on the classic Aperol Spritz, a Grapefruit Spritzer is a delightful drop for summer gatherings. Tart, refreshing and zesty, it’s simple to make and a goes down an absolute treat when the temperature rises! We suggest a dry-style white wine for your base, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc.
View Grapefruit Spritzer Recipe
Ingredients
1⁄3 cup sugar
1 bottle of dry white wine (Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc)
1 cup ruby red grapefruit juice
¼ cup Campari
3 cups seltzer or sparkling water
Raspberries and sliced grapefruit, to garnish
Method
1. Make up the syrup by bringing sugar and a 1⁄3 cup of water to simmer in a small saucepan, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and let cool completely, about 20 minutes.
2. Combine the white wine, grapefruit juice, Campari and syrup in a jug and refrigerate until ready to serve.
3. Pour into ice-filled glasses and top with sparkling water. Garnish with raspberries and grapefruit.
Shop Pinot Grigio
A deliciously refined yet flavoursome example from one of Pinot Grigio’s top regions, King Valley, the Gapsted Reserve Pinot Grigio 2019 delivers crisp fruit drive and subtle savoury elements in a light dry frame with refreshing acidity – a sensational base wine for a classy Grapefruit Spritzer.
View all Pinot Grigio
8. How To Make A Spicy Summer
There are a bunch of ‘spicy’ cocktail recipes out there, but this one is definitely a favourite of ours. Tequila and jalapeno peppers certainly help this little number live up to its name, but if you don’t like things too hot you can certainly dial back the quantity! A Sparkling Rosé adds a splash of vibrancy and tingle to the tastebuds.
View Spicy Summer Recipe
Ingredients
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
1 bottle Tequila
Lime juice
Watermelon
1 jalapeno pepper
1 bottle Sparkling Rosé
Mint, rose and jalapeno, to garnish
Method
1. Make simple syrup by adding sugar and water to a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir sugar until dissolved. Let cool, then pour into a glass jar.
2. Combine ¼ cup of tequila, ¼ cup of lime juice and about 40mls of simple syrup in a shaker. Cut two 1-inch cubes of watermelon and one circular slice of jalapeno and add to shaker (for a less spicy kick, remove the pepper seeds).
3. Muddle mixture until thoroughly blended. Add ice and shake for at least 30 seconds. Double strain into a wine glass over a large ice cube, then fill glass to the top with Sparkling Rosé and garnish with mint, rose and – for the brave – an extra jalapeno!
Shop Sparkling Rosé
Uncomplicated and easy-drinking, the Woodbrook Farm Brut Cuvée Rosé NV delivers a bright and fresh palate of crisp red berry fruit and lemony acidity with persistent flavour length – a great base for your Spicy Summer wine cocktail!
View all Sparkling Rosé
9. How To Make Strawberry Rosé
Looking for a stunning warm weather sipper? Look no further than this simple, charming and oh-so-pretty wine cocktail recipe! A Strawberry Rosé takes the light, fruity pleasures of Rosé and adds a vodka and sweet berry twist, for a summer drink sure to become a regular fixture at your summer festivities.
View Strawberry Rosé Recipe
Ingredients
1 cup white sugar
1 cup water
½ cup basil leaves (rinsed)
1 punnet fresh strawberries
8 teaspoons Vodka
2 ½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 bottle Rosé
Method
1. To prepare basil-infused simple syrup, add sugar, water and basil leaves in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Simmer for 1 minute, then remove from heat and let steep for 30 minutes. Strain into a jar and let cool.
2. Hull and halve strawberries, then muddle a strawberry in a shaker. Add vodka, lemon juice and 2 ½ teaspoons basil simple syrup and ice to the shaker. Shake well and pour into a cocktail glass with ice. Top with chilled Rosé and garnish with a fresh strawberry slice.
Shop Rosé
From the iconic Margaret River region comes a delightful Rosé from one of its pioneering producers – the Vasse Felix Classic Dry Rosé 2020. Made in the modern style it is vibrant and juicy with a mix of grapefruit, mandarin, delicate cherry and alpine strawberry notes – sure to make this Strawberry Rosé cocktail shine in your glass!
View all Rosé
10. How To Make Elderflower Prosecco
The delicate white flowers of the elderberry bush not only have medicinal qualities, they make a lovely liqueur that makes for a light floral addition to any wine cocktail, imparting a soft botanical freshness to your tastebuds. When combined with Prosecco, you have a marvellous summer drink that you and your guests will adore!
View Elderflower Prosecco Recipe
Ingredients
Elderflower liqueur (such as St Germain)
Angostura bitters
Prosecco
Lemon slice, to garnish
Method
1. Pour ½ part elderflower liqueur into a wine glass with a couple of drops of bitters.
2. Fill remaining glass with Prosecco and stir.
3. Garnish with a slice of lemon, and serve.
Shop Prosecco
A stylish drop from Australia’s most-celebrated Sparkling winemaker, Ed Carr, the Yarra Burn Prosecco 2019 offers up a light, crunchy and spicy palate of ginger, cinnamon and white pepper with tight lemony acidity and a crisp, dry finish – utterly mouth-watering, and just the thing for your elderflower wine cocktail.
View all Prosecco
Summer Entertaining Made Easy With Wine Cocktails
While no guide to wine cocktails can ever be complete, these 10 great recipes will get your summer celebrations under way in no time – all easy to make, and all utterly delicious! From the exotic Elderflower Prosecco to classics like Sangria and Mimosa, you’re all set for a summer of stylish imbibing… so have fun, and remember to drink responsibly.
Want to view more wine recipes? Check out how to make our favourite mulled wine here!