From Brunch to Happy Hour: 3 Sparkling Wine Drinks to Make at Home

A sparkling wine drink should be easy, refreshing, and worth making again.

Whether you are setting out brunch for friends or opening the fridge around 5 p.m., sparkling wine gives you plenty of room to play with fresh fruit, citrus, and simple mixers. Opera Prima makes it even easier with options that already bring plenty of flavor to the glass.

Here are three drinks to try at home, each built around a different Opera Prima bottle and a different kind of occasion.

1. Strawberry Rosé Sparkler

Best for: Brunch, girls’ night, or a sunny afternoon

Opera Prima Rosé Moscato is a natural pick when strawberries and other fresh berries are on the menu. It is a sweet sparkling wine with strawberry, raspberry, and wild red fruit notes, plus fine bubbles and a refreshing finish.

Add a little lemon and sparkling water, and you have a bright drink that takes just a few minutes to make.

What You’ll Need

• 4 oz. Opera Prima Rosé Moscato
• 1 oz. fresh strawberry purée
• ½ oz. fresh lemon juice
• 1 oz. sparkling water
• 2 to 3 fresh strawberries
• Ice

How to Make It

1. Add the strawberry purée and lemon juice to a wine glass.
2. Fill the glass with ice.
3. Pour in the Rosé Moscato.
4. Top with sparkling water.
5. Stir gently once and add fresh strawberries.

The strawberry brings out the wine’s red fruit character, while lemon keeps the drink from feeling too sweet. It is the kind of pour that fits right in next to pancakes, pastries, fresh fruit, or a cheese board.

If brunch is your favorite excuse to open a bottle, try these easy sparkling wine cocktails for weekend brunch for more ideas.

2. Peach Bellini With a Citrus Twist

Best for: Brunch that keeps going into happy hour

If you want a peachy drink without measuring out several different ingredients, Opera Prima Bellini does most of the work for you. It is a ready to enjoy sparkling wine based drink with flavored juice, with peach and grapefruit aromas, a fresh palate, and a sweet profile.

You can serve it over ice as suggested by Opera Prima, or add a little fresh peach and grapefruit for a simple twist.

What You’ll Need

• 4 oz. Opera Prima Bellini
• ½ oz. fresh grapefruit juice
• 2 thin peach slices
• 1 small grapefruit wedge
• Ice

How to Make It

1. Fill a wine glass with ice.
2. Add the grapefruit juice.
3. Pour in the Opera Prima Bellini.
4. Stir gently.
5. Add the peach slices and grapefruit wedge.

That is it. You get the peach flavor you expect from a Bellini, with an extra hit of fresh grapefruit.

This is a particularly useful option when you are hosting because there is no separate sparkling wine and peach purée to prepare. Just chill the bottle, add ice, and dress up the glass.

For more Bellini inspiration, read about what a Bellini is and how it differs from other sparkling cocktails.

3. Citrus Brut Spritz

Best for: Happy hour, dinner with friends, or a pre dinner drink

When you want something drier, switch to Opera Prima Brut. It is a Brut sparkling wine made with Macabeo and Airén, with pear and citrus aromas, fresh bubbles, and lychee flavors. At 11% alcohol by volume and 10 g/L sugar, it gives you a much drier starting point than the Rosé Moscato.

That makes it a good match for fresh citrus.

What You’ll Need

• 4 oz. Opera Prima Brut
• ¾ oz. fresh orange juice
• ½ oz. fresh lemon juice
• ¼ oz. simple syrup
• 1 dash orange bitters, optional
• Orange peel
• Ice

How to Make It

1. Add the orange juice, lemon juice, simple syrup, and bitters to a shaker with ice.
2. Shake for a few seconds.
3. Strain into a coupe or wine glass.
4. Slowly top with Opera Prima Brut.
5. Twist an orange peel over the glass and drop it in.

The fresh orange and lemon add brightness without covering up the pear and citrus character of the Brut. Serve it before dinner with a cheese plate, nuts, or light appetizers.

Which Opera Prima Bottle Should You Use?

The easiest way to choose your base is to start with the flavor you want in the finished drink.

Want berries? Go with Rosé Moscato. Its strawberry, raspberry, and wild red fruit notes work especially well with fresh berries and citrus.

Want peach? Choose Bellini. It already combines a sparkling wine base with flavored juice and brings peach and grapefruit notes to the glass.

Want something drier? Reach for Brut. Its pear, citrus, and lychee profile gives you a cleaner base for cocktails where fresh citrus is doing most of the flavor work.

And if orange is your thing, Opera Prima Mimosa is another easy option for brunch. It combines sparkling wine with clarified orange juice and is designed to be served chilled without needing to mix a separate juice and wine combination.

A Few Easy Hosting Tips

Making sparkling wine drinks for a group does not have to mean standing behind the counter all afternoon.

Chill the bottles before guests arrive. Slice your fruit ahead of time. Keep your juices in the refrigerator until you are ready to use them. Then set everything out on a tray so guests can see their options.

For a brunch table, keep the Rosé Moscato, strawberries, and lemon together. For a later happy hour, put the Brut beside orange and lemon juice, fresh citrus, and a bowl of ice.

If you want even more ideas for using bubbles at home, browse Opera Prima’s collection of sparkling wine recipes.

From Brunch to Happy Hour

You do not need a full home bar to make a good sparkling wine drink. A chilled bottle, fresh fruit, citrus, and a glass are enough to give a regular weekend gathering a little more personality.

Start with Rosé Moscato for something fruity, Bellini when peach is calling, or Brut when you want a drier citrus drink. Pick the bottle that fits the moment, keep the ingredients simple, and pour while everything is cold and fresh.

Sometimes that is all happy hour needs.