Hosting a Superbowl party this weekend? Let us make cocktail planning easy for you. With just a little effort and a few extra minutes in the kitchen, you too can bring out your inner mixologist (formal clothing and bowtie optional) the next time you’re in charge of drinks for a party with good friends, or mixing together a pitcher of something delicious to go with a homemade dinner, or just making something for yourself as you relax on the couch with an episode of Game of Thrones.

We’ve got a great recipe each for red wine, white wine, and rosé wine using ingredients you may already have on hand, or which you can easily pick up from the grocery store. Here are three of our favourite and easy wine cocktail recipes anyone can make:

Kalimotxo

[Photo courtesy of @happyfoodstube on Instagram]

We’re starting off simple with a drink made popular in Spain: Kalimotxo (pronounced cali-mo-cho). Kalimotxo is made with equal parts red wine and Coca-cola… and that’s it! Add some ice, and it’s as refreshingly delicious as it is simple. No wonder Kalimotxo is so well-loved in Spain and picking up in popularity around other parts of the world.

What You’ll Need

• 1 750 ml bottle of Corkbeard Cabernet Sauvignon
• 1 litre bottle of Coca-Cola (any cola, or diet cola to lighten it up)
• Lemon or lime slices

Preparation

1. Fill a glass halfway with ice cubes.
2. Add equal parts Corkbeard Cabernet Sauvignon and cola and stir to combine.
3. Garnish with a slice of lemon or lime.

Recipe adapted with some changes from Supercall's Kalimotxo Recipe.

Rosé Spritzer

[Photo courtesy of The Sweetest Occasion]

Spritzers are a popular go-to cold drink, perfect for hot days and as a light alcoholic drink for summer parties. But really, anytime’s a good time for a spritzer. A spritzer generally requires your wine of choice (usually any white, red, or rosé) chilled and topped with club soda. But before you call it a day with your simple spritzer, consider upgrading to the following scrumptious concoction for your next shindig:

What You’ll Need

• 1 750 ml bottle of Corkbeard Rosé
• 1 litre bottle of club soda or sparkling water
• Fresh strawberries, cut into chunks*
• Fresh mint leaves
• Lemon slices
• Ice

Preparation

1. Place 1-2 tablespoons of fresh strawberries and 2-3 lemon slices in the bottom of a glass.
2. Use the end of a wooden spoon to gently muddle (crush) the fruit until juicy.
3. Fill the glass with ice.
4. Add Corkbeard Rosé (two-thirds of the way) and fill the rest of glass with club soda or sparkling water.
5. Garnish with fresh mint and a slice of lemon.

*Tip: Although this recipe calls for strawberries only, another option would be to add raspberries—that way, you can bring out the taste of both strawberries and raspberries in this particular rosé!

Image and recipe adapted with some changes from author Cyd Converse at The Sweetest Occasion.

White Strawberry-Lemon Sangria

[Photo courtesy of Kitchen Treaty]

We’ve covered red wine and rosé, slowing upping the “difficulty” level on the recipes. This next recipe, a white strawberry-lemon sangria, is a little more involved than the previous ones and requires a lot more patience, since much of the time preparing the sangria is really in waiting for it to chill in the refrigerator—but the end result is totally worth the wait. Try making this the night before or the morning of a party.

Sangria, which is another popular Spanish drink, is usually made with red wine and fruit, but sangria blanca (sangria made with white wine) is a recent innovation of the traditional recipe. A dry white wine, like Chardonnay, works best. Our recipe pick is this highly-rated white strawberry-lemon sangria from Kitchen Treaty:

What You’ll Need

• 1 750 ml bottle Corkbeard Chardonnay
• 1/2 cup light rum
• 4 cups lemon-lime soda
• 2 lemons, thinly sliced
• 1 apple, cored and sliced (any kind)
• 1 cup strawberries, hulled and sliced in half

Preparation

1. Slice lemons, apples, and strawberries and add them to a large pitcher.
2. Pour Corkbeard Chardonnay and rum over the top and stir.
3. Cover the pitcher and place in refrigerator. Let stand to chill for 4-5 hours.
4. After the 4-5 hours are up, take out the sangria from the refrigerator and add the lemon-lime soda.
5. Fill a glass one-third with ice and extra pieces of fruit. Pour sangria on top and serve.

Note: This recipe serves six.

Image and recipe adapted with some changes from author Kare and Kitchen Treaty.

So next time you want to up your wine cocktail game for yourself or for your friends and family, you’re ready to impress with these recipes. Remember to bookmark this page for future reference, and take a look at Corkbeard’s great wine selections (all under $20 CAD) so you’ll know what to pick up for a cocktail the next time you’re in the wine aisle.

P.S. If you don’t have the right glasses for these wine cocktails, pop over to the Corkbeard Shop and pick up a couple pairs of these unbreakable, stemless wine glasses: