For those who would like to serve a punch at this party time of year rather than having to man a bar to make individual drinks, here is a champagne punch recipe that my mother created many years ago.
Mom’s “Pink” Champagne Punch
Rhine Wine - 1 bottle
Champagne - 1 bottle
Curacao - 1/2 cup
Grenadine - 1/4 cup
Club Soda - 1 bottle
Chill all and mix all in a pretty punch bowl. Serve.
Options: May substitute 3/4 cup Apricot Brandy for the Curacao and the Grenadine, but it will not be pink if you do.
I needed to host a celebratory reception for about 100 people the other evening. I decided to use Mom’s “pink champagne” punch recipe. I had trouble finding the rhine wine and the real curacao. I also didn’t want to spend a small fortune, remember we are talking 100 people. So after much trial (someone had to do it!) and some error I came up with and used the following:
1 bottle (750 ml) Schloss Biebrich - Sekt “champagne” ($4 per bottle at Trader Joe’s)
1 bottle (750 ml) Alice White Chardonnay ($4 per bottle on close out sale)
1 bottle (1 liter) Club Soda
1/2 cup Cointreau
1/4 cup grenadine
Chill all well, mix all in your pretty punch bowl, and serve!