These days Kir (Royal) is one of the most common cocktails in France. Making and drinking Kir cocktails is an old burgundic tradition that mixes the white aligoté wine with crème de cassis (black berry liqueur), which later first spread to the rest France and from there on to the rest of the world. There are many varieties available. By using other wines, other kinds of grapes and other fruit liqueurs (strawberry, raspberry, blue berry, etc.) new combinations were invented which were welcomed with much appreciation by the general public. Even red wines are being mixed now. Still it is strange to see wine being used in cocktails in a country like France, where people take great interest in a wine's origin and vinification. Mixing the result of so much effort and hard work with other ingredients is an act of heresy.

Obviously there are limits to this type of elite thinking: one has to admit that not all wines are of inviolable quality. Furthermore, it would be a shame, if not a waste, if a cocktail inventor would not be allowed to use this widely know drink. The British, whom may have a bit less scruple than the French, but are connoisseurs in their own right, have many recipes based on (reinforced) wines.

Many wines are close to being a cocktail themselves, like for instance the Bordelais, which is made from at least 3 kinds of grapes, each of which adds a specific character to the wine. Château-neuf-du-pape is even made of at least 12 kinds of wine grapes!

It's the task of a maître de chai (cellar master) to make the right combination, the right melange. The wine traders from their side offer their own brand wines, in which different grapes, different districts, yes: even different vintages of the same appellation are mixed. And what to say about the wines 'from different countries of the European Union', which might just as well be called cocktails ready for consumption.

Light or Strong, fruity or stale, all types of wine, white or red, are suitable cocktails material. Wine combines well with liqueurs, but also with certain fruit juices. Combining with spirits derived from wine, especially cognac, is fine, but it's advised to refrain from mixing wine with grain based alcohol.