Strawberry Prosecco Smash

We are SQUEALING with delight over here becausee Thanksgiving is officially OVER which means everyone is finally on the Christmas train! No more controversy on if it’s too soon to celebrate or not — and we are in full swing here in the Corks and Cheers community!

Once again this year we have teamed up with our incredibly talented and creative friend, Lena from @lenaskitchenblog to give you delicious and gorgeous seasonal cocktails to serve at your holiday parties! Each of the recipes features our FAVORITE bubbly, Ogio Prosecco, and everyone’s favorite lemon-lime soda, 7Up!

First up in our holiday cocktail lineup is our Strawberry Prosecco Smash. Super simple, easy on the eyes, and absolutely delicious!

Here’s what you’ll need:
*makes 4 cocktails

8 large fresh strawberries, smashed
1 tsp sugar
1⁄2 cup 7UP lemon lime soda
1⁄2 large lemon, juiced
Ogio Prosecco to top off each glass
Ice
GARNISH
4 thin lemon slices
Fresh mint leaves
High ball style glass

And here’s how you make it:

Cut and then smash strawberries in a jar with sugar and lemon. Add the Diet 7UP lemon lime soda, mix well together.
Add ice in glasses. Add 2 spoonfuls of strawberry mix into each glass. Garnish with lemon and mint leaves.
Top off with prosecco in each glass.

If you’re looking for something for your guests to munch on while they enjoy this drink, we suggest the following cheese pairings, all available at your local Kroger:
-Soft triple cream brie (or any kind of brie)
-Aged manchego cheese

And there you have it — easy peasy, per usual! Come find us on instagram @corksandcheers and let us know who you’re enjoying your cocktails with! And don’t forget to give Lena a follow as well!

Happy Holidays, friends! We hope you’re enjoying all the beauty this season brings!

Dip It & Gift It: Holiday Edition

Why fix something that ain’t broken, right!? Right! Which is why we’re back with another classic Dip It & Gift It option for you to use this holiday season!

Look, we aren’t trying to induce panic here, but the holidays are literally happening, like…right now. NOW. Translation: If you haven’t already, START SHOPPING. And if you need help gifting, keep reading!

Despite the amount of gifts you’re probably responsible for giving, we have at least a few gifts covered for you with this easy and adorable little guy! *Cue the superhero-save-the-day-music* It’s so easy — grab a bottle of your person’s favorite wine (we used, and highly recommend, Storyteller Pinot Noir). Once you’ve picked out your wine, you’ll need to grab some melting chocolate, press n’ seal, a basting brush, and a pot to melt your chocolate. A stove or an electric burner will also be necessary.

And here’s how you make the magic happen: Set your burner to med-high heat. Pour your melting chocolate into your pot and stir every minute or so until smooth. While your chocolate is melting, take your plastic wrap and wrap your bottle, leaving the top open. In this particular case, we used our delicious Rue de Pearl Rosé. Ensure that the plastic goes all the way to the bottom and wrap it underneath, so as to keep the chocolate from touching the actual bottle. Now, you’re ready to dip (or in our case, paint!) We used a silicone basting brush to essentially “paint” on the chocolate which made the process SO easy, but you can use whatever you’d like. At this point, take the basting brush in the chocolate and paint your bottle and again, leave the top clean. We went around the bottle a few times to get the chocolate nice and thick, but this is a total preference thing. You can’t really mess this up, we promise! Lastly, while the chocolate is still melted, add your sprinkles for the perfect finishing touch! After this, let your chocolate dry (about 5-10 minutes in the freezer will do the trick!) Once dry, wrap your adorable bottle in a plastic bag, tie a ribbon around the top, add one of our DARLING gift tags, and boom! You’re ready to gift it.

Not only does this make your life much easier, we’re pretty sure chocolate and wine is gonna make the lucky wine recipient’s life easier, too! We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again — you cannot go wrong with the gift of wine!

For our cute gift tags, download & print here:

And as if you need help showing the lucky recipient how to put this gift to use, it’s literally as simple as this: grab a plate or bowl and place the covered bottle in the center, then begin peeling the the press n’ seal off and letting the chocolate crack off and fall. Toss your wrap in the trash, grab the corkscrew, and get to pouring! Wham Bam — chocolate and wine right at your fingertips!

Here’s to making your holiday gift-giving a little easier, and a lot sweeter!

Happy Holidays, friends! Cheers to life, love, family, and friends this season!

It’s National Zinfandel Day!

What would we be good for around here if not to give you every excuse in the book to enjoy a glass of wine as part of a national holiday!? Another national holiday to celebrate another wine, you ask!? YES and YES. And you’re welcome. Again.

This time, we’re celebrating Zinfandel Day! And instead of just suggesting a glass of Zin for you to enjoy, we’ve included one of our timeless recipes to help you spice it up a little bit! Don’t get us wrong — just a normal glass of Zinfandel is a great option, but sometimes it’s just fun to make it a mixer!

So — allow us to introduce you to our Cranberry-Lime Zinfandel Mixer. It’s DELISH and honestly would be a fantastic drink to serve at all the holiday parties you have coming up! Nothing says holiday cocktail quite like cranberries, right!?

Here’s what you’ll need:
-1 bottle Zinopolis Zinfandel
-2 cups Cranberry Juice
-2-3 tbsp Lime Juice (to taste)
-2/3 cup Sparkling Water
-Lime, sliced for garnish
-Fresh Cranberries

Here’s how you make it:
Disclaimer: as per usual with our recipes, this is about as easy as it comes.
Start by combining your wine, cranberry juice, lime juice, and cranberries in a pitcher, then chill in the refrigerator. Once chilled and right before serving, add your sparkling water. Garnish with lime and enjoy!

Easy peasy!

Not a mixer kind’a gal? No worries! Our Zinopolis Zinfandel is amazing by itself! It’s a full bodied wine with dark berry flavors, and it is incredibly smooth and velvety. We can’t say enough good things about this bottle! Grab yours at your local Kroger!

Come hang with us on social media and let us know how you’re celebrating Zinfandel Day! We’re @corksandcheers on Instagram and Corks + Cheers on Facebook!

Cheers!

It’s National Merlot Day!

Um….YEAH. You had us at MERLOT! (Ha!! We know, it’s cheesy…but it would have been wrong to pass that opportunity up!) BUT YOU GUYS! National Merlot Day! Hello! Another holiday we never knew we needed — and this time, it’s in the middle of fall! If this isn’t God proving He loves us then we don’t know what is!

While we have a few different Merlot’s we love, we decided to feature our gorgeous Storyteller Merlot for today’s post. This wine is sure to please your palate with its hints of berries and milk chocolate (yes, please!). It’s the perfect wine to pair with a hearty meat dish or a delicious pasta. AKA — it’s no coincidence that Merlot Day falls during autumn, the king-of-heart-meals-season!

Take some time for yourself today and celebrate with us! Invite a friend over or grab your spouse for a little night in, and share a bottle together….not that you need a reason to celebrate with Merlot on a random Thursday, but you’re welcome for giving you one!

Happy Merlot Day, C+C fam! Cheers!

It’s Cabernet Day!

Yes, friends. YES. You absolutely DID read that title right. It’s NATIONAL CABERNET SAUVIGNON DAY! Don’t worry, our eyes are welling up with happy tears, too. It’s the holiday we never knew we needed, but the holiday we’ve always deserved. HALLELUJAH.

So, to celebrate we’re treating ourselves to our favorite Storyteller Cab, paired with these delicious Private Selection mixed nuts and chocolates, and the always necessary prosciutto and mozzarella roll-ups also by Private Selection. And because it’s a holiday, why not splurge a little bit, right?! So we even got ourselves some flowers for the occasion. Y’ALL, YOU. DESERVE. THIS.

Seriously, though…can we brag on our Storyteller Cabernet Sauv real quick? It is amazingly smooth, with the richest taste. It pairs well with SO many foods and it is a fan-favorite when you are hosting friends or family. Run —don’t walk — to your nearest Kroger to grab yourself a bottle or two!

HAPPY CAB DAY!

Storyteller Wine-a-rita

We’re not entirely sure how, but summer is in it’s final weeks before all the fall things begin to creep in and while we’re not ready for the long, sunshine-y days and warm weather to leave, there’s something about that transition into fall that makes our hearts beat a little bit faster! And what good are we if we don’t hook you up with the perfect summer-to-fall transition drink?!

Enter: our Storyteller Wine-a-rita! It’s literally a margarita topped with red wine and as you wipe the happy tears from your eyes, let us tell you how unbelievably easy this drink is to make. Like, it might be our easiest one ever — and that’s saying something!

So here’s what you’ll need:
-1 bottle remade Margaritas (or you can make your margs from scratch if that’s more your style)
-1 bottle Storyteller Red Blend
….that’s literally it. You’re welcome.

And here’s how you make it:
Fill your glass about 3/4 full with margarita, on the rocks, and then top with Storyteller Red Blend and serve. Badabing badaboom. We weren’t kidding here — it is the EASIEST. EVER.

And listen — don’t go spouting off about how you shouldn’t mix margaritas and wine or how you shouldn’t ruin a good thing. Have we ever steered you wrong?! No. And this is definitely not ruining a good thing. This is making 2 good things even better. We promise. It’s like the summer-y vibes of a margarita meet the warm notes of a red blend for fall. Also known, simply, as “perfection.”

Cheers to a few more weeks of late nights and memories made before the structure of fall settles in for good!

Frosé

Hey, y’all! We know it’s been a minute since we brought you something delicious to mix up, but we promise the wait on all of our amazing summer drinks is worth it! Today we’re featuring what is sure to be your GO-TO refresher for the remainder of the summer. It’s our Frozen Chalkboard Rosé, and unlike every other Frosé, this one does not need to be made ahead of time! HELLO! You can make this yumminess ON THE SPOT. And you can make it over and over and over again so nobody’s cup has to be empty!

Here’s what you’ll need:
– 1 bottle Chalkboard Rosé
– 7 up
– Chopped strawberries
– Ice
– Hand mixer/blender

And here’s how you do it:

LIKE, WHAT!? It’s that easy!? YES. IT IS THAT EASY! And you guys — trust us when we say it tastes amazing. We think it might be one of our favorite recipes we’ve ever made! It’s the perfect mix of refreshing and delish…and can we just say, for whatever reason, it tastes just a little bit better on a patio with friends or poolside with a good playlist!

Wherever you decide to enjoy it and whoever you decide to enjoy it with, we are 100% sure you will be BERRY pleased with this one!

A Perfect Pairing for Mom

Mother’s Day is this weekend and, as mentioned in our previous post, we think moms deserve all the celebration in the world. And while we will never be able to adequately repay the amazing moms in our lives for all they do, we definitely CAN treat them to a nice little wine and chocolate pairing.

We are so excited to have partnered with our friends at Lindt Chocolate to bring you the perfect pairing to treat your mama this weekend and we think you will love it, too. All you need to do is head to Kroger and grab a bottle of our amazing Myles & Moore Cabernet Sauvignon and a box of Lindt Chocolate truffles. Then make sure mama’s got her feet up as you serve her a glass or two (or the whole bottle? I mean, we’re for sure not judging). And be sure to do the right thing with the chocolates — hand her the entire box and let her live, ok?

No matter what you’re doing to celebrate the moms in your life this weekend, we are positive that adding a bottle of Myles & Moore and some Lindt will only add to the celebration!

Dip It & Gift It: Mother’s Day Edition

Mother’s Day is right around the corner, y’all, and since you guys LOVED our Easter Dip It & Gift It so much, we figured we’d show you how to do it up real nice for the mama’s in your life, too!

Around here, we think moms are the real MVPs of the universe. They are truly the oil that runs this big ol’ machine called life and we are SO darn thankful for them! While we all know they’re the most hard working and incredible humans on the planet, we are also painfully aware of the fact that they are also the most overworked and underpaid workforce of the modern day — can we get an amen!? And while we could never give them what they truly deserve for their ridiculous dedication to each of us, we CAN give them wine. And chocolate. Together. And that’s not a bad place to start.

Here’s what you’ll need to get started: First, a bottle of your favorite C+C wine! We went with Myles + Moore Rosé, but any bottle will do! Once you’ve picked out your wine, you’ll need to grab some melting chocolate, press n’ seal, a basting brush, and a pot to melt your chocolate. A stove or an electric burner will also be necessary.

As you can see, the process is super simple! In a little more detail, here’s what you’ll need to do: Set your burner to med-high heat. Pour your melting chocolate into your pot and stir every minute or so until smooth. While your chocolate is melting, take your plastic wrap and wrap your bottle, leaving the top open. In this particular case, we used our delicious Rue de Pearl Rosé. Ensure that the plastic goes all the way to the bottom and wrap it underneath, so as to keep the chocolate from touching the actual bottle. Now, you’re ready to dip (or in our case, paint!) We used a silicone basting brush to essentially “paint” on the chocolate which made the process SO easy, but you can use whatever you’d like. At this point, take the basting brush in the chocolate and paint your bottle and again, leave the top clean. We went around the bottle a few times to get the chocolate nice and thick, but this is a total preference thing. You can’t really mess this up, we promise! Lastly, while the chocolate is still melted, add your sprinkles for the perfect finishing touch! After this, let your chocolate dry (about 5-10 minutes in the freezer will do the trick!) Once dry, wrap your adorable bottle in a plastic bag, tie a ribbon around the top, and RUN to your mom with it. Or your mom friends. You get the jist. Regardless — it is SO. DANG. SIMPLE! Check out the video at the end of this post to see for yourself!

However you decide to celebrate the mama’s in your life this year — can we just encourage you to make it special? Maybe that looks like bringing a second bottle of wine over for the two of you to share together. Tell her what she means to you. Remind her why there is only one amazing version of her. Show her all the ways she is nailing motherhood. But just make it special. Our moms deserve it. Our friends who are moms deserve it. And you deserve it, too, mama.

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the INCREDIBLE moms around this Corks + Cheers community. Cheers to who you are and who you’re raising. We are so thankful!

Dip It + Gift It: Easter Edition

Hey, friends! Happy EASTER WEEK! We are gearing up for all things bunnies and eggs and baskets around here, and if you’re anything like us, you’ll take any excuse to celebrate an occasion with gifts! Which is why we know you’re going to L O V E today’s post!

We are dipping and gifting wine bottles for an adorable, double-y delish little present for your favorite friend, family member, teacher, nail tech, or honestly maybe just for yourself! We won’t judge! No matter who the lucky recipient is — we all know the Easter Bunnies of the world wouldn’t mind a glass of vino and a little chocolate after scrambling to fill & hide all the baskets before the Easter Sunday sunshine rises, right?!

So here’s what you’ll need to get started: First, a bottle of your favorite C+C wine! We went with Rue de Pearl Rosé, but any bottle will do! Once you’ve picked out your wine, you’ll need to grab some melting chocolate, press n’ seal, a basting brush, and a pot to melt your chocolate. A stove or an electric burner will also be necessary.

As you can see, the process is super simple! In a little more detail, here’s what you’ll need to do: Set your burner to med-high heat. Pour your melting chocolate into your pot and stir every minute or so until smooth. While your chocolate is melting, take your plastic wrap and wrap your bottle, leaving the top open. In this particular case, we used our delicious Rue de Pearl Rosé. Ensure that the plastic goes all the way to the bottom and wrap it underneath, so as to keep the chocolate from touching the actual bottle. Now, you’re ready to dip (or in our case, paint!) We used a silicone basting brush to essentially “paint” on the chocolate which made the process SO easy, but you can use whatever you’d like. At this point, take the basting brush in the chocolate and paint your bottle and again, leave the top clean. We went around the bottle a few times to get the chocolate nice and thick, but again, this is a total preference thing. You can’t really mess this up, we promise! Lastly, while the chocolate is still melted, add your sprinkles for the perfect finishing touch! After this, let your chocolate dry (about 5-10 minutes in the freezer will do the trick!) Once dry, wrap your adorable bottle in a plastic bag, tie a ribbon around the top, and gift it! SO. DANG. SIMPLE! Check out the video at the end of this post to see for yourself!

This really is such a cute gift to give and, y’all, who doesn’t love receiving a bottle of wine from a friend!? And when said bottle of wine is covered in chocolate?! YES PLEASE.

However you are celebrating Easter this weekend, we think a Dip It + Gift It bottle of your favorite C+C wine will add the perfect touch to your holiday!

Happy Easter, friends!