Start Your Year With a Pop

Photo: © Bettmann/CORBIS

The Third Man’s Vienna Morning
The name of the drink is a nod to the bar’s inspiration: the famed Loos Bar in Vienna, a spot the co-owners used to frequent during culinary school.

1 1/2 oz. gin
1 1/2 oz. fresh grapefruit juice
1/2 oz. St. Germain
Champagne
Shake gin, juice, and St. Germain. Strain into flute. Top with Champagne. Garnish with grapefruit peel.

Gramercy Tavern’s Orange Blossom
The lycheelike floral aroma and flavor of the St. Germain in combination with the orange bitters and twist add up to the fragrance of an actual orange blossom.

1 white sugar cube
3 generous dashes of orange bitters
1/2 oz. St. Germain
5 oz. Champagne
Orange twist
Drop sugar cube in bottom of a Champagne flute. Soak it with orange bitters. Add St. Germain. Slowly top with Champagne. Place the orange twist over the glass, rub skin-side down around the rim of the glass, and drop into the drink as garnish.

Asiate’s Bella Pesca
This drink was inspired by the aromas of the St. Germain elderflower liqueur and Croatian elderflower fields.

¾ oz. St. Germain
1/2 oz. lychee juice
1 oz. grapefruit juice
Splash of Chambord
Champagne

Pour grapefruit and lychee juices into a flute. Add St. Germain and fill with Champagne. Top with Chambord and garnish with a lemon twist.

The Modern’s All That Glitters
The Modern bartender Erin Jameson created this drink (which isn’t currently on the restaurant’s menu) and recommends using Lallier, Millésime Brut 2005 (or other fuller bodied, toasty Champagnes) to make it.

1 small white sugar cube
1 dash Angostura bitters
1/4 oz. Paul Beau VSOP Cognac
Champagne
Edible-quality gold leaf (optional)
In a classic coupe, make a thin line of gold leaf from the lip of the glass to the base of the bowl. Place a small sugar cube in the glass. Add one dash of Angostura bitters. Add cognac and top with Champagne.

Battery Harris’s Cascade
A recent mixup with a purveyor left the bar with more ginger than they knew how to use—so they candied it and added it to a cocktail.

1/2 oz. St. Germaine
1 oz. Domaine de Canton
3/4 oz. lemon juice
3/4 oz. Champagne
Combine, and garnish with candied ginger.

Toro’s Sangria Royale
Beverage director Caitlin Doonan thinks this drink tastes like summer, even in the cold winter months.

3 1/2 oz. Champagne or cava
1/2 oz. Combier pamplemousse grapefruit cordial
1/2 oz. elderflower syrup
1/2 oz. lemon juice
Combine all ingredients in a flute, coupe, or wine glass.

Monument Lane’s St. Phillip
The restaurant has been recognized for its commitment to sourcing locally: Their ideal choice for sparkling wine is Sparkling Pointe on the North Fork of Long Island.

1 1/2 oz. London dry gin
1 oz. oleo saccharum
1/2 oz. Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur
1 oz. sparkling wine
Rinse a coupe glass with rosemary bitters, combine all ingredients in a glass, and garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

Koi Soho’s New Years Resolution
The bartenders at Koi Soho favor Veuve Cliquot Yellow Label for this cocktail; it has fragrant fruit with a creamy texture and the perfect balance of acidity.

1 oz. cinnamon whiskey
1 tsp. fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. molasses
Brut Champagne
Muddle ginger and molasses, add cinnamon whiskey and ice, and shake vigorously for 30 seconds. Double strain into a coupe glass, top with Champagne and garnish with a cinnamon stick.

The Sea Fire Grill’s Tiger Lily Spritzer
The drink’s ingredients were curated to mimic the color of its namesake, the tiger lily.
1/2 oz. of passion fruit juice

3 oz. Champagne
Dash of Chambord
Combine in a highball glass, and garnish with a sliced strawberry.

Rosa Mexicano’s Un Beso del Año Nuevo (New Year’s Kiss)
The bartender loves the kick of the tequila in this festive cocktail.

1/4 oz. fresh squeezed lemon
1/4 oz. blood-orange purée
1/2 oz. simple syrup
1/2 oz. Cointreau
1 oz. Herradura silver tequila
2 oz. Cava
Lemon twist
Add all of the ingredients except the cava in a shaker. Add ice and shake vigorously. Strain in a Champagne glass and slowly top with the cava. Peel a lemon twist and spray the oils from the outside skin over the cocktail, rub the outside skin around the rim of the glass, and twist it into the glass.

Start Your Year With a Pop