Apple Cider Mimosa

The apple cider mimosa is the perfect winter or fall brunch cocktail! Combine cider with champagne for a festive treat.

Looking for a cozy fall cocktail for a brunch or a lazy afternoon? Try an apple cider mimosa! This spin on the traditional mimosa is all fall: crisp, bubbly and apple forward. The best part? The cinnamon sugar rim on the glass gives a hint of spice and sweetness to each sip. These drinks are great for fall parties of all kinds or just sipping with a few friends. After making apple cider mules and apple cider bourbon cocktails…we can’t get enough of cider drinks! Here’s what to know.

Ingredients in an apple cider mimosa

This apple cider mimosa is one of the easiest mixed drinks there is! It has just a handful of ingredients and the entire drink is mixed in the glass. That means there’s no dirtying cocktail shakers or citrus juicers! Simply pour into the glass and go. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Apple cider: a few notes are below on the type to buy
• Sparkling wine: use champagne, Prosecco, or your favorite sparkling wine
• Cointreau: this orange liqueur is optional, but recommended. It adds a nice complexity to the otherwise straightforward flavor. (Use it for these Cointreau drinks afterwards.)

One thing to note! An apple cider mimosa doesn’t have the creamy body of a standard mimosa. It’s crisp and clear, with a texture much like champagne.

A cinnamon sugar rim makes the drink!

The best part of this apple cider mimosa? The glass rim! Coating the rim of your champagne flutes in cinnamon and sugar makes just the right spiced sweetness to each sip. Don’t even think about omitting this part! Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• The quantity for the rim makes enough for 6 drinks. Coincidentally, that’s the same amount of drinks you can get from 1 bottle of champagne or Prosecco.
• Wet the rim with a lemon wedge or water. The easiest way to wet a glass rim? Cut a notch into a lemon wedge, then run it around the glass! Of course, you can use water and your finger…but that’s much less elegant.
• Tilt the glass to coat the outer edge only. Typical glass rims only coat the outside: so that it doesn’t fall into the drink.

What type of apple cider to buy?

There are a few types of apple cider you might find at the store when you’re shopping for this apple cider mimosa. Here’s what to know:

• Unfiltered vs filtered: Apple cider is sold unfiltered, which has the pulp and sediment, and filtered, which is basically like apple juice. For the most authentic apple cider flavor, choose unfiltered! If you can find local apple cider: even better.
• Pasteurized vs unpasteurized: Pasteurizing apple cider makes it more shelf stable. If it’s unpasteurized, it can turn into hard cider or apple cider vinegar over time, so you should drink it within 2 weeks. Unpasteurized cider has more risk of bacteria, so we recommend pasteurized.

Champagne vs Prosecco, & more sparkling wines

You can use any type of sparkling wine in this apple cider mimosa. The most popular of course are champagne and Prosecco. Cava is another great choice. What’s the difference of Prosecco vs Champagne?

• Champagne is a French sparkling wine. It tastes bubbly and fruity, with undertones of almond and orange. It’s typically the most expensive sparkling wine.
• Prosecco is an Italian sparkling wine. It’s a little sweeter than champagne and has lighter bubbles. It’s fruity and flowery, with notes of apple, pear and lemon.
• Cava is a Spanish sparkling wine. It has more citrus notes, and is a little more savory and less fruity.

What type of sparkling wine should I buy?

With most alcohol, the higher the quality, the better the flavor. Buy a bottle in the medium price range, and you’re usually safe. That is: don’t buy the cheapest bottle, but don’t go overboard on the most pricey one either! Usually middle of the road in price is a good quality bottle. Also, make sure to buy “Brut”, which means dry. For more, see 5 Things to Know About Buying Champagne.

More apple cider drinks

Cider is fantastic in cocktails and in other non-alcoholic fall drinks! Here are some more beverages starring tangy apple cider:

• Apple Cider Bourbon Cocktail Sweet cider, bourbon and lemon! It’s full flavored and easy to make.
• Apple Cider Sangria or Apple Sangria This cozy drink pairs cider with red wine and cinnamon.
• Apple Cider Mule A seasonal spin on the Moscow mule with cider and ginger beer.
• Mulled Cider, Hot Apple Cider or Spiked Apple Cider The coziest spiced hot cider, three ways!

Love mimosas? Also try this Strawberry Mimosa, Pineapple Mimosa, Mango Mimosa, Cranberry Mimosa, Pomegranate Mimosa, or Non Alcoholic Mimosa.

When to serve this apple cider mimosa

This apple cider mimosa is fall-forward and bubbly! It’s great for serving as a:

• Brunch drink
• Fall cocktail
• Christmas or holiday drink
• Bridal shower drink or bachelorette party drink

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