Wine
10 Best Wine Cocktails
Beyond being delicious in its own right, wine is also a vital ingredient in the kind of Australian cocktail recipes that will take your entertaining to the next level of refreshment. Enjoy these easy summer drinks with wine that are just the ticket for bringing some extra flair to your celebrations.
From red wine cocktails and white wine cocktails, to perennially popular Sparkling wine cocktails, our delectable list has the perfect wine-based cocktail for every occasion.
Top 10 Wine Cocktails
Red Wine Cocktails
How To Make Sangria
Ah, Sangria! Has there ever been a more well-known red 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 red 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!
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 Shop Grenache
White Wine Cocktails
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 white wine cocktail, we suggest using a dry-style white such as a crisp Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.
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.
Sauvignon Blanc Shop Chardonnay Shop Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio
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.
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.
Sauvignon Blanc Shop Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio
Sparkling Wine Cocktails
How To Make A Sparkling Wine Cocktail (Champagne 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 – feature 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.
Sparkling Wine 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
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!
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
How To Make A Mimosa
Another supremely easy-to-make, delightfully refreshing Sparkling 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.
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
How To Make Elderflower Prosecco
The delicate white flowers of the elderberry bush not only have medicinal qualities, but they also 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 Sparkling wine drink that you and your guests will adore!
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
How To Make A Spicy Summer
There are a bunch of ‘spicy’ cocktail recipes out there, but this one is 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.
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
Rosé Wine Cocktails
How To Make Frosé
Rosé is 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 the thing to keep icy cool by the pool.
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
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.
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
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 underway 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!