Toast To The 2026 Oscars With Our "Oscar 89" Cocktail

Ingredients for my Oscars-themed cocktail

(Makes one)

For the blood orange simple syrup:

• 5 ounces freshly squeezed blood-orange juice, strained
• 5 ounces sugar

For the cocktail:

• 3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) gin
• 1 1/2 tablespoons (3/4 ounce) fresh blood-orange juice, strained (use lemon juice if you prefer a tangier cocktail)
• 1 tablespoon (1/2 ounce) blood-orange simple syrup
• 1 tablespoon Campari (optional)
• 1/2 cup ice cubes
• Chilled dry sparkling wine, or Champagne to top up
• Blood orange slices threaded on cocktail sticks to garnish

Instructions for making the Oscar 89 cocktail

1. Juice 2-3 large blood oranges (or more, as needed) to get five ounces fresh blood-orange juice. Strain the juice into a saucepan.

2. Add the sugar and then bring to a simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes over low heat, swirling the saucepan, until the sugar is dissolved. Do not allow it to come to a boil.

3. Strain the juice into a sterilized jar and cool. Keep any leftovers in the fridge — you can use it in a number of cocktails or to drizzle over desserts. Using a ratio of 1:1 sugar and juice, you can make a large batch of this syrup.

4. Squeeze 1/2 tablespoon (3/4 ounce) fresh blood-orange juice into your cocktail shaker.

5. Add the gin, blood-orange simple syrup, Campari (if using) and ice cubes.

6. Shake hard for 30 seconds until the shaker feels cool and frosty.

7. Strain into a chilled Champagne coupe (or flute). You can either chill the glasses in the freezer or fill them with ice cubes.

8. Top up with chilled sparkling wine or Champagne and garnish with blood-orange slices threaded onto cocktail sticks.

You can multiply the base recipe to create a big batch of this cocktail — keep chilled until ready to serve and top up with well-chilled sparkling wine or Champagne. Cheers!