Blackberry Kir Royale is stunning cocktail that has the perfect balance of sweet and dry. This two ingredient cocktail is perfect for any celebration! Our Blackberry Kir Royale recipe has alcoholic and mocktail versions.

What are your New Year’s plans? When the kids were younger, a friend of mine used to throw a New Year’s Eve dinner and game night. It was her birthday as well so we celebrated that and toasted in the New Year.

My friend moved away and the kids are now adults. They tend to celebrate with their friends so usually I just stay in. Those Facebook memes of a woman in her jammies with a good book and some hot cocoa – that’s me these days. Becks and Caelum are here so I thought we’d be going out but they want to stay in too.

We still need to celebrate. The kids are only here for two weeks and they leave on January 2. Since they don’t want to go out, we’ve planned a low key celebration, blackberry kir royale cocktails, cheese, crackers, and the left over Christmas cookies. We’ll watch the fireworks from my apartment balcony.

So why blackberry kir royale? Why not just have plain champagne? I find champagne is generally too dry for my tastes. We could get some prosecco or muscato but something about New Year’s Eve screams champagne.

There’s a French restaurant near our place that serves wonderful food at reasonable prices. It has a lovely outdoor garden seating area so we eat there fairly regularly. Kir is one of their many cocktails. It is a simple cocktail of Créme de Cassis and white wine. I’m not a white wine fan so it took me a while to try the Kir. It was love at first sip. I now see why Kir is a popular aperitif in France.

The problem is finding Créme de Cassis. The liquor stores around here don’t seem to carry it. Blackberries have similar flavor to black currants so I decided to make my own blackberry liqueur. That liqueur is so tasty that we’ve already used or given away over half of it.

I love the flavor and color of the Blackberry Kir Royale. The whole thing just says festive. And, I love how easy it is to make. You don’t need to designate a bar tender to fix drinks while everyone socializes. If you’re having a crowd over, just put the blackberry liqueur and backberries in the glasses before the party. Add the champagne when it’s time to serve.

The mocktail is just as simple. Use blackberry syrup and either dry gingerale or sparkling apple juice. Don’t have blackberry syrup in your store? Heat up a little blackberry jam and add about an equal amount of water to thin it into a syrup.

The mocktail also looks just like the cocktail so designated drivers and kids can feel part of the party. I hope you all have a wonderful, safe New Year!