Classic cocktail · Guided recipe
Poinsettia
Start makingCranberry and orange liqueur under a long pour of champagne, red as the plant it borrows its name from. Tart rather than sweet, which is what makes it work before a meal instead of after one.
In the glassTriple sec / Cointreau · Cranberry juice · Champagne
See exact amounts
What goes in
Ingredients
Set up before you pour
Use a champagne flute.
The narrow bowl slows the loss of bubbles and keeps sparkling cocktails bright for longer.
- Standard size
- 180 ml6 oz
- Ice & serve
- Chill it first; serve without ice.
- If you don’t own one
- Use a small white-wine glass if a flute is unavailable.
- jigger or measuring spoon
- Triple sec / Cointreau15 ml
- Champagne90 ml
- Cranberry juice30 ml
From bottle to glass
Method
- 01
Measure and pour Pour 15 ml triple sec / cointreau
Triple sec / Cointreau
- 02
Measure and pour Add 30 ml cranberry juice
Cranberry juice
- 03
Top gently Top with 90 ml champagne
Champagne
- 04
Finish the drink Finish it — add an orange slice
Know your drink
About the Poinsettia
Don’t open the good bottle
Cranberry juice will bury a fine champagne without apology. A non-vintage brut, a crémant from the Loire or Burgundy, or a decent cava all do this job better, because what the drink needs is acidity and fine bubbles rather than the complexity you paid for. Save the vintage bottle for a glass on its own, later in the evening.
Its name comes from the plant, and the plant from Joel Roberts Poinsett, an American minister to Mexico who sent cuttings home in the 1820s. Whoever assembled the drink was clearly working backwards from the color: red juice, gold wine, a slice of orange on the rim. Christmas in a flute, with no pretense otherwise.
Common questions
Poinsettia FAQ
Prosecco or cava in place of champagne?
Both work. Choose a brut; extra-dry prosecco is sweeter than the name suggests and the cranberry already brings sugar. Cava’s slightly toasted edge sits well against the fruit, and at this ratio the wine is doing volume work, not solo work.
Cranberry cocktail or unsweetened juice?
Read the label. Cranberry juice cocktail is mostly sugar and water and makes the drink cloying. Hundred-percent cranberry is punishing on its own but exactly right here. If sweetened juice is all you have, cut the triple sec back to 10 ml.
How do I pour these for twelve people?
Mix the cranberry and triple sec in a jug the night before and keep it cold. Pour 45 ml into each chilled flute, then top with wine at the table. Never combine the sparkling wine ahead of time; it’s flat within the hour.
Nothing but Cointreau in the house?
That’s an upgrade. Cointreau is drier and cleaner than most triple sec, so the drink comes out sharper. Grand Marnier works as well and pushes it warmer, toward orange marmalade, though it starts crowding the cranberry, so drop to 10 ml.
What ingredients are in a Poinsettia?
A classic Poinsettia calls for 15 ml (0.5 oz) Triple sec / Cointreau, 30 ml (1 oz) Cranberry juice, 90 ml (3 oz) Champagne. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.
How strong is a Poinsettia?
A standard Poinsettia is roughly 12% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it about as strong as a glass of wine.
Is a Poinsettia shaken or stirred?
A Poinsettia is built directly in the glass over ice — no shaker required. Add the ingredients in order and give it a brief, gentle stir.
Sharpen the technique
