Tim Laird, the Chief Entertaining Officer at Brown-Forman, shows us how to toast to the New Year with champagne and cocktails.
Laird shows us the difference between champagne and sparkling wine. He says champagne pairs with everything from sliders to caviar.
For the perfect New Year's Eve party, sparkling cocktails are a must, from the classic Champagne Cocktail to a Kir Royal to Seelbach cocktails. You can include a good luck platter for your guests, consisting of park, black-eyed pea dip and greens. For dessert, strawberries and whipped cream with Chambord.
Recipes:
Champagne cocktail
In a white wine glass with Korbel Brut Champagne add a sugar cube soaked in Angostura bitters.
Kir Royal
In a white wine glass with Champagne add 3/4 ounce Chambord.
Seelbach Cocktail
Named after the Louisville, Kentucky hotel where it was first crafted in 1917, the Seelbach cocktail is a classic mix of bourbon, Cointreau and both Angostura and Peychaud's bitters and topped with champagne.
1 ounce bourbon
½ ounce Cointreau
7 dashes Angostura bitters
7 dashes Peychaud's bitters
Korbel Brut Champagne
Ice cubes
Tools: mixing glass, barspoon, strainer
Glass: flute
Garnish: lemon twist
Stir ingredients briefly over ice, strain into a chilled glass, top with Champagne and garnish.
Good Luck Black-Eyed Pea Dip
2 15½ -ounce cans black-eyed peas, drained
1 cup red onion, diced
1 cup red pepper, diced
1 cup green pepper, diced
1 jalapeño pepper, seeds and ribs removed, diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
½ cup Italian salad dressing
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
Pita Chips
In a medium-size bowl, combine the black-eyed peas, red onion, red pepper, green pepper, jalapeno, garlic, Italian dressing and black pepper. Refrigerate overnight. Take out 30 minutes before serving and add the cilantro. Serve with pita chips.
Serves 8 - 10
FIVE EASY STEPS TO PROPERLY OPENING A BOTTLE OF CHAMPAGNE
Serve Your Champagne This Holiday With Style And EaseChampagne is for sipping in style and celebrating the holidays and it all begins with opening the high-pressured bottle of bubbly. By following these simple tips from Tim Laird, you can open the champagne bottle like a pro and be the hit of the party.
1. Chill the bottle for at least four hours in the refrigerator.
Cheers!
2. Remove the foil cap covering the top of the bottle, exposing a wire hood.
3. Undo wire hood with six half-turns of the knob.
4. Hold bottle at a 45º angle, with a towel in hand, grasp the cork tightly and slowly twist the bottle with your other hand
5. Ease cork off bottle by holding the cork and turning the bottle letting off a small sigh while keeping the bottle at 45º angle for a moment (this lets the air in and helps keep the foam from overflowing the bottle)
For more information on Tim Laird's book, click here.
For a link to Tim Laird's facebook page, click here.
