Champagne isn't just for wedding toasts and hip hop videos anymore. What was once generally reserved for special occasions is now popping up on drink menus all over the country in cocktail form, and the standard brunch Mimosa is just the tip of the sparkling iceberg.
Read on for some old classics and new concoctions, as well as where to find 'em in the Valley.
One classic champagne cocktail is the French 75, made with gin (or sometimes cognac or brandy), sugar, lemon juice and champagne. Culinary Dropout in Scottsdale offers this beverage along with another classic, the White Peach Bellini, as well as a newer drink called the Jalisco Flower that contains tequila, grapefruit juice, St. Germain and sparkling wine (which is close enough to champagne in our book).
Bloom offers a Peach Champagne Cocktail with gin, simple syrup, lemon juice, peach puree and the bubbly.
Sam Fox obviously got the memo.
Even some sushi joints are popping their corks. Roka Akor features the Dai-Dai Bellini with sparkling wine, blood orange puree and Campari, while Sushi Roku at the W Scottsdale offers the Champagne St. Germain (which is pretty much what it sounds like). This same combination is referred to as the St. Germain at Hanny's in Phoenix.
Speaking of Phoenix, the bars there are not to be outdone by Scottsdale. The Parlor offers the St. James, which contains Grey Goose Citron, elderflower liqueur and bubbly Prosecco as well as the Orange Tree, made with Prosecco, Orange Cello and Aperol.
You can also get an Aperol Spritz at St. Francis, made from bitter orange, rhubarb liqueur and Prosecco or a Feztini at Fez, which contains raspberry vodka, Chambord, champagne and a sugared rim.
The list goes on, but now you've got plenty to choose from, so get to drinkin'!
Do you have a favorite bubbly cocktail? Share it with us!
