This cotton candy cocktail is the most magical two-ingredient drink you will ever serve at a party. Just pour sparkling wine over a cloud of cotton candy and watch it dissolve into the prettiest pink or blue drink right in the glass.
Quick Look
- 📋 Recipe: Cotton Candy Cocktail
- ⏲️ Ready In: 2 minutes
- 👪 Servings: 1 (scales easily for a crowd)
- 🔪 Difficulty: Easy
- 💡 Top Tip: Keep your cotton candy sealed in a container right up until serving. Once exposed to air and humidity, it will start to wilt.
Why You Will Love This Drink
- Only two ingredients and ready in under two minutes.
- The dissolving cotton candy creates a wow moment.
- The color of your cotton candy tints the drink, making it easy to coordinate with any theme or occasion.
- Perfect for setting up as a self-serve station at parties so guests can pour their own.
- Works beautifully as a cocktail or a mocktail for guests who are not drinking.
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The Most Magical Party Drink You Will Ever Serve
I served this cotton candy cocktail at my circus dinner party this year as part of my Year of Gathering series, and it was such a fun moment.
We set out a bowl of pink and blue cotton candy alongside a chilled bottle of sparkling wine and a tray of gold-rimmed champagne flutes, and watching the cotton candy dissolve into that gorgeous blush pink drink was so pretty.
It is one of those party touches that looks impressive and takes almost no effort to pull off.
The concept is beautifully simple. Place a piece of cotton candy in a champagne flute, pour your sparkling wine over top, and watch it dissolve almost instantly, tinting the drink as it goes. No shaker, no fancy techniques. Just two ingredients and a little bit of wonder.
And if you are hosting guests who are not drinking, I also have a non-alcoholic cotton candy party drink that creates the exact same magical dissolving effect without the alcohol. You might also like our Adult Lemonade Stand or Easy Coconut Milkshake Recipe.
Ingredients
- Sparkling Wine: We used Martini Asti for this recipe and love the sweetness it brings paired with the cotton candy. If you prefer a less sweet version, a brut or extra-dry sparkling wine works beautifully too. Whatever you choose, keep it well chilled. Cold wine gives you better bubbles and makes the dissolving effect even more dramatic.
- Cotton Candy: This is where the magic and the color comes from. Pink and blue are the most common and easiest to find, and whichever you choose will tint your finished drink. Just stick to one color per glass as mixing colors results in a muddy grey drink rather than a pretty tinted one. Keep cotton candy sealed in its container until the moment you need it. Once exposed to air and humidity it will wilt quickly.
Variations
- Less sweet version. Swap the Asti for a brut or extra-dry prosecco, Cava, or Champagne. The drier the wine, the more the cotton candy sweetness becomes a complement rather than the star.
- Rosé version. Use a sparkling rosé in place of white sparkling wine for a deeper, richer pink color and a beautiful fruity note.
- Non-alcoholic version. Sprite has the same magical dissolving effect. I have a full cotton candy sparkling mocktail on the blog if you want the complete recipe.
- Play with color. The color of your cotton candy determines the color of your drink, so it is a really easy way to theme your cocktail to any occasion. Pink makes a beautiful blush drink and is perfect for bridal showers, Valentine's Day, or for baby showers choose pink or blue. Try purple , orange, or yellow for other occasions. Look for different colors on-line. Just remember to stick to one color per glass as mixing colors creates a grey drink rather than a pretty tinted one.
Expert Tips
- Do not stir. The cotton candy dissolves on its own and the bubbles incorporate the sweetness naturally. Stirring deflates those beautiful bubbles and that is exactly what you do not want.
- Serve immediately. Add your cotton candy garnish and get the glass to your guest right away. Cotton candy dissolves quickly once poured and the garnish will not last long.
- Keep cotton candy sealed until the last moment. Humidity is cotton candy's enemy. Keep it in the sealed bag until you are ready to serve, and transfer to your bowl only right before pouring.
- Stick to one color per glass. Mixing pink and blue cotton candy in the same glass creates a grey drink, not a pretty purple one. Choose one color and commit.
- Keep the wine well chilled. Colder wine means more active bubbles which means a more dramatic and beautiful dissolve. Keep your bottle in an ice bucket right up until you pour.
How to Make a Cotton Candy Cocktail
- Step 1: Place a generous piece of cotton candy inside a champagne flute or coupe glass. You want enough to fill the glass loosely about halfway up. Pink and blue are the most common colors, and whichever you choose will tint your finished drink.
- Step 2: Pour your chilled sparkling wine slowly over the cotton candy and watch the magic happen. The cotton candy will begin dissolving almost instantly, the bubbles will foam up beautifully, and the drink will take on the color of the cotton candy. There is no need to stir. Let the bubbles do the work and keep that gorgeous effervescence intact.
- Step 3: Garnish the rim with a small extra tuft of cotton candy and serve immediately. Place on the rim above the drink; if it touches the drink, it will begin to dissolve.
How to Set Up a Self-Serve Cotton Candy Cocktail Station for a Party
This is where the recipe really shines as a party drink. The trick is simple: make the very first one in front of your guests. Let everyone watch that cotton candy dissolve into a pretty pink drink and you will not have to make another one yourself for the rest of the evening. They will be lining up to pour their own.
For our circus dinner party, we arranged a tray of gold-rimmed champagne flutes, a bowl of cotton candy set out right before serving, and a bottle of sparkling wine in an ice bucket. Simple, beautiful, and completely self-serve after that first pour. No skewers, no pre-portioning, no fuss.
A few things to keep in mind when you set up your station:
- Keep the wine in an ice bucket so it stays well chilled throughout the party. Cold wine means better bubbles and a more dramatic dissolve.
- Transfer the cotton candy to your serving bowl only when you are ready to start serving. Once it is out of the sealed container and exposed to the air, it will begin to wilt from the humidity. Set it out fresh.
- This setup works beautifully for bridal showers, birthday parties, New Year's Eve, baby showers, and any themed dinner party. It is one of those ideas that looks incredibly considered without requiring any extra effort on your part as the host.
- Add a non-alcholic version by including some Sprite.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, almost instantly. The moment the sparkling wine hits the cotton candy it starts to melt and dissolve, tinting the drink as it goes. This is the magic of the whole recipe and it happens every single time without fail.
It is definitely on the sweeter side, which is part of its charm. We love it that way with Martini Asti. If you prefer less sweetness, choose a brut or extra-dry sparkling wine and the cotton candy adds just a hint of sweetness rather than making the whole drink sugary.
We used Martini Asti and loved it for this recipe. Prosecco, Champagne, Cava, and Crémant all work beautifully too. The key choice is sweet versus dry depending on your preference. Asti or a demi-sec style will give you a sweeter drink, while brut or extra-dry will let the cotton candy provide just a touch of sweetness.
The drinks themselves cannot be made ahead since the cotton candy dissolves on contact and the garnish wilts quickly. The good news is that each drink takes about 30 seconds to make, so set up a self-serve station and let guests pour their own after you make the first one. It becomes part of the fun rather than extra work for you as the host.
Absolutely. Sprite will create the same beautiful dissolving effect and make a gorgeous mocktail. I have a full non-alcoholic cotton candy drink recipe on the blog at lifeisaparty.ca/cotton-candy-drink-2/ which is perfect for serving alongside this cocktail so all of your guests can have a magical glass.
More Drink Inspiration
If you try this cotton candy cocktail or any other ideas on my blog, leave a rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting today!
Recipe
Cotton Candy Cocktail
Ingredients
- 1 generous piece cotton candy
- 5 oz sparkling wine -chilled
Instructions
- Place a generous piece of cotton candy inside a champagne flute or coupe glass. Fill the glass loosely about halfway with cotton candy. Choose one color for the prettiest result.1 generous piece cotton candy
- Pour the chilled sparkling wine slowly over the cotton candy and watch it dissolve. The cotton candy will melt almost instantly, the bubbles will foam up beautifully, and the drink will take on the color of your cotton candy. Do not stir. Let the bubbles do the work.5 oz sparkling wine
- Garnish with another small piece of cotton candy on the rim and serve immediately.
Notes
- Keep sparkling wine chilled in an ice bucket right up until serving for the best bubbles and most dramatic dissolve effect.
- Keep cotton candy sealed in its bag until the moment you are ready to serve. Transfer to your serving bowl only right before pouring as humidity causes it to wilt quickly once exposed to air.
- Do not mix cotton candy colors in one glass. Mixing colors creates a grey drink rather than a pretty tinted one.
- For a non-alcoholic version, substitute Sprite for sparkling wine.
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