Ruby Prosecco Cocktail

Rosy-red and sparkling, with a cranberry orange flavor, this Prosecco Cocktail is perfect for Christmas, Valentine’s Day or a winter brunch.

Prosecco Cocktail

When I first spotted this Prosecco Cocktail (on the Comfort of Cooking Blog), I considered it a  Christmas Prosecco Cocktail. Rich with cranberry and orange juice, the drink perfectly celebrates the flavors of the season. 

But it was so pretty, with its rosy-red color and sparkling bubbles, I decided to use it as a Romantic Cocktail for Valentine’s Day too. And I’d also be happy to serve it at a winter brunch or as an Easter or Mother’s Day drink–as long as the cranberries hold out! 

The simple drink consists of a homemade cranberry and orange syrup topped with Prosecco. It’s a kind of cousin to everyone’s favorite brunch drink–the champagne topped Orange Mimosa. Or a bit like a bubbly Cosmopolitan (Orange and Cranberry Martini).  All yum!  

Now for a bonus, the syrup is made, not just with juice, but with whole cranberries and orange zest.  This makes it even fruitier and more colorful. And if you make the syrup ahead of time (note: it’s easy), the drink comes together in a snap.

syrup

What is Prosecco?

Like Champagne and Cava, Prosecco falls into the category of sparkling wines.  Per Usual Wines, it is “a sparkling wine that hails from Northeastern Italy. In the same way wines produced in Champagne are named after their native home, Prosecco wine is named after the Italian town of Prosecco.”

Besides their different origins, Prosecco and Champagne are made with different grapes and they are fermented differently.  But given the dominance of the fruity syrup in this drink, you should be able to use any type of sparkling wine.

And although Prosecco has a reputation for being cheaper, you can find both inexpensive and premium brands.  Just like other sparkling wines!

pouring sparkling wine

Why You’ll Love This!

Flavorful.  The combo of cranberry and orange flavors is a classic.  And topping with sparkling wine gives it a touch of elegance.

Fun & Festive.  Colorful and sparkling, you can’t help but have fun with this drink.  I guess that’s why “bubbly” has such a reputation.

Make ahead.  Sorry, you can’t make the whole drink ahead (the bubbles would disappear).  But you can make the syrup in the days before your event.  Then before serving, just pour a little syrup in a glass and top with prosecco.  Easy-peasy!

Ingredient shot

What You’ll Need

Ingredient Notes

  • Cranberries, cranberry juice.  These provide color and cranberry flavor
  • Sugar or sugar substitute.  This sweetens the tart juice.
  • Orange–juice and zest.  This adds a note of orange flavor.
  • Prosecco or other sparkling wine.  This provides alcohol and bubbles.  You can use tonic or other fizzy water for a mocktail

Special Tools

  • No special tools required.

Step by Step Directions

Combine cranberries and cranberry juice in a food processor or blender. Blend until berries are well chopped.

chop cranberries

In a small saucepan, combine the berry mixture, sugar, orange juice and zest. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low. Simmer for a few minutes until thickened and syrupy.

cook in saucepan

Using a fine mesh strainer, strain syrup into a small bowl and refrigerate until cool.  

strain syrup

Just before serving, add 2-3 tablespoons of syrup to each glass (see note). Top with sparkling wine and serve.

top syrup with prosecco

How to Serve

This drink is best served in a champagne glass.  You can use a tall flute like I show here or a saucer shaped coupe glass. 

Now part of the fun of a holiday drink (okay any drink) is a nice garnish. For Christmas, I would probably use a sprig of rosemary and maybe some sugared cranberries. For Valentine’s (or Mother’s Day), it’s hearts all the way!

How to make a Strawberry Heart Garnish

What’s more fun than strawberry hearts on a skewer!  To make this I cored some berries, cut them in half to look like hearts, then threaded onto a shish kabob skewer.  It took zero talent and almost no time!

core strawberry

berries on skewer

Variations and Special Diets

Like many drinks, this Prosecco Cocktail is vegetarian, vegan and dairy-free.  And if it’s a mocktail you’re looking for, just substitute tonic or another sparkling water for the Prosecco. 

It’s even easy to make this lower carb!  You simply substitute a sweetener (that measures like sugar such as allulose) for the sugar, then substitute unsweetened cranberry juice plus 1/4 cup additional sweetener for the cranberry juice cocktail. You won’t notice the difference!

Now if all of this has you really psyched for festive cocktails consider this Downton Abbey Christmas Champagne Cocktail or the super easy Sorbet and Champagne Cocktail.  Or for something alcohol free (but still pink!), consider a Virgin Cosmopolitan or go healthy with this Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie or Rhubarb Lemonade!

Christmas Prosecco Cocktail

Leftovers

Sadly, leftover Prosecco will lose its bubbles fairly quickly.  But read below in Tips and FAQs for smaller size options if you don’t think you’ll finish a bottle. 

The syrup, on the other hand, is likely to keep refrigerated for a couple weeks if you’ve made the version with sugar.  The sugar free version may not last quite as long—while the acidity of the syrup still helps to preserve, I have observed a shorter refrigerated shelf life with sugar free jams and syrups.

Orange Cranberry Prosecco Cocktail

Tips & FAQs

The size of your glass will determine how many drinks you get from this recipe.  This will likely range from 4 for a large flute to 6 for a medium flute to as many as 8 with a small coupe.

I mixed in the first inch or so of the prosecco into the syrup in the glass with a stir stick.  This lightened the syrup a little and helped it mix in better without damping the bubbles noticeably.

When I use citrus zest in recipes, I try to go organic since besides possible pesticide residue, citrus fruits can be coated to retain moisture.  

syrup, orange, sugared cranberries

What do I do if I can’t finish a bottle of Prosecco?  This recipe will work nicely to serve 4-6 (or maybe even 8) drinks depending on the size of your glasses.  If that’s too much—or if you’re serving one drinker and one non-drinker (making the drink with fizzy water), you have options.

Consider mini-splits which come in a 187ml size which is 1/4 of a full bottle.  You can purchase these as singles or in multi-packs.  There are also 375 ml bottles, though I seemed to find fewer options in these.

prosecco cocktail

Prosecco Cocktail

Rosy-red and sparkling, with a cranberry orange flavor, this Prosecco Cocktail is perfect for Christmas, Valentine's Day or a winter brunch.
Author: Inger
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 5 mins
cooling time 30 mins
Course Beverage
Cuisine American
Servings 6
Calories 184 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 cup cranberries fresh or frozen, chopped
  • 1 cup cranberry juice cocktail
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar or sugar substitute (see note)
  • 1 orange juice and zest
  • 750 ml Prosecco or other sparkling wine (1 bottle)

Instructions
 

  • Combine cranberries and cranberry juice in a food processor or blender. Blend until berries are well chopped.
  • In a small saucepan, combine the berry mixture, sugar, orange juice and zest. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low. Simmer for a few minutes until thickened and syrupy.
  • Using a fine mesh strainer, strain syrup into a small bowl and refrigerate until cool. (You can put briefly into the freezer to cool it faster, but watch it carefully so it doesn't freeze.)
  • Just before serving, add 2-3 tablespoons of syrup to each glass (see note). Top with sparkling wine and serve.

Notes

The size of your glass will determine how many drinks you get from this recipe.  This will likely range from 4 for a large flute to 6 for a medium flute to as many as 8 with a small coupe.

Nutrition

Calories: 184kcalCarbohydrates: 33gProtein: 0.3gFat: 0.1gSaturated Fat: 0.01gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.03gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.01gSodium: 10mgPotassium: 162mgFiber: 1gSugar: 31gVitamin A: 57IUVitamin C: 31mgCalcium: 22mgIron: 1mg
I am not a health professional and nutrition data is calculated programatically. Accuracy may vary with product selection, calculator accuracy, etc. Consult a professional for the best information.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Updated from the original posted Feb 8, 2015.

16 thoughts on “Ruby Prosecco Cocktail

  1. Kathy

    Oooo! I love this drink…so special! And those heart shaped strawberries…so cute! Thanks for a great idea for Valentines Day!

  2. Karis

    What a great looking cocktail! I’m a big fan of prosecco in mimosas and bet it tastes great in this cocktail recipe too.

  3. grace

    i’m a real wimp when it comes to mixed drinks–i don’t like to taste any alcohol at all! i think this looks absolutely lovely and i might actually enjoy the flavor too!

    1. Inger Post author

      This is really an easy cocktail to drink Grace–almost like carbonated fruit juice with a little kick.

    1. Inger Post author

      I hate to say it, but now I want to keep the syrup around “just in case” there is something I need to celebrate!

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