Celebrate Your Traditional NYE Toast With This Ron Barcelo-Based Drink
By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Spirits Blogger
The traditional way to celebrate the beginning of a new year is with a champagne toast.
But here’s a twist on that tradition.
Instead of straight champagne, use it as a mixer to add to a drink. That’s the premise behind this creative cocktail, the Champagne Poppy. It starts out with the excellent Ron Barcelo rum (Dominican Republic) and includes grand poppy liqueur and then the champagne.
It provides an interesting mix of flavors that puts a different twist on a New Year’s Eve celebration. Or any other celebration, for that matter.
The rum to be used is the Ron Barcelo Imperial, aged four to 10 years. It has won several awards at various rum and spirits events. It is available at several stores, including Total Wine & More.
Grand poppy liqueur is a liqueur made in part from poppies. Distilled from molasses like rum it has a sweet, floral and bitter flavor, which matches well with the rum, as well as with the champagne.
When making this drink, be sure to use at least decent champagne, for Ron Barcelo is an outstanding rum and you don’t want to ruin the drink by pouring cheap bubbly into it.
No doubt, once you have the Champagne Poppy, then others around you will be wanting it, too. And come to think of it, if you’re hosting a New Year’s Eve house party (or a New Year’s Day “forget the hangover” get-together), make a few pitchers or fill a punch bowl with it. Pretty soon, you’ll be known as the person with the creative champagne drink.
Here’s the recipe.
Champagne Poppy Recipe
• .5 oz Ron Barceló Imperial
• .5 oz grand poppy liqueur
• 4 oz Champagne
Instructions. Place one bitters soaked sugar cube in a champagne flute. Stir all ingredients over ice and strain in champagne flute. Garnish with an orange twist.
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