Mimosa
Fresh orange juice and dry sparkling wine in equal parts. Light, fruity and the standard brunch drink.
- MethodBuilt
- GlassChampagne flute
- IceNone (served up)
- Strengthabout 6.0% ABV
- BaseWine & aperitivo
- Tastefruity, refreshing
Recipe
| 75 ml 2½ oz | Fresh orange juice |
| 75 ml 2½ oz | Dry sparkling wine (champagne-method or similar) |
Garnish. None needed; a strip of orange peel is a pleasant extra.
Method
- Chill the flute, the orange juice and the sparkling wine.
- Pour the sparkling wine into the flute first, tilting the glass to save the bubbles.
- Top slowly with the orange juice and stir once, gently.
About the Mimosa
A Mimosa is cold orange juice and sparkling wine, usually in equal measure. It is light, fruity and low in alcohol, and its quality depends almost entirely on the juice: freshly squeezed oranges make a bright, lively drink, while carton juice makes a flat one.
History
Documented
Its close relative the Buck's Fizz, with more wine and less juice, is credited to Buck's Club in London around 1921. The Mimosa, named after the yellow flower, is associated with Frank Meier, head bartender of the Ritz in Paris from the early 1920s, and appears in his cocktail book of the 1930s; it was also printed in a French bar book by the mid-1920s. It became the standard American brunch drink in the second half of the 20th century.
Legend and lore
Meier is usually named as the inventor, around 1925. He marked the drinks he claimed as his own in his book, and the Mimosa does not carry that mark, so the credit is uncertain.
Disputed or unclear: The year and the inventor are both disputed; dates between 1921 and 1925 are given.
Variations
- Buck's Fizz. Two parts sparkling wine to one of orange juice, a little stronger and drier.
- Bellini. White peach purée and prosecco.
- Grapefruit Mimosa. Fresh grapefruit juice in place of orange, sharper and less sweet.
Bartender's notes
- Use a dry sparkling wine; a sweet one plus orange juice tips into cloying.
- Strain pulp out of fresh juice; it makes the wine foam over.
