Setting up a Mimosa bar is a great idea because it allows the hostess to set up once, then relax and mingle. Guests can help themselves as they wish, and the hostess can occasionally check to see if juices or garnishes need to be topped up. It’s a win-win for everyone.

But a mimosa bar is not just great for ease and practicality. It’s popular! It’s perfect for baby showers, bridal showers, brunch, or any celebration. It’s also an easy bet because most people love mimosas. In some circles, it’s expected at brunch because…

A brunch without mimosas is just a sad, late breakfast.

In fact, they’re so popular at mother’s day celebrations and baby showers, that they’re also commonly referred to as momosas.

The Ultimate Mimosa Bar

Where Should I Set Up The Mimosa Bar?

The goal is for your guests to have easy access to the mimosa bar, without any bottlenecks forming or wait time. Therefore, it’s always a great idea to designate a table or a countertop away from the food. By doing this, you are avoiding crowds forming in specific areas.

Find a spot where your guests can easily move around.  There should be enough room on the table or countertop for them to put down their glass, add garnishes and mix their drinks.

Everything You Need To Set Up The Mimosa Bar

• Champagne/sparkling wine and champagne flutes;
• Mimosa bar juices and 1-liter carafes;
• Garnishes with ramekins to serve them in.
• Helpful printables to label everything. This is optional.

Champagne/ Sparkling Wine: How Many Bottles Will I Need?

For every 750 ml bottle of champagne / sparkling wine, you will get 6-8 momosas. Therefore, if you are inviting 20 people, and each will have 2-3 momosas, you will need 8 bottles of champagne/ sparkling wine.

Most people like their momosas with half sparkling wine/ champagne, half juice. However, some people prefer it a little stronger and will, therefore, need less juice. This is why you may have 6 momosas out of one bottle, and 8 out of another.

Now you may be asking, “what is the best cheap champagne for mimosas?”

Unfortunately, there is no such thing as cheap champagne. Real “champagne” is imported from the Champagne region in France, so it’s truly expensive.  If you are on a budget, forget “champagne.”  Instead of champagne, get sparkling wine. Unless your guests truly know wines, they will not know the difference.

However, don’t go for the cheapest sparkling wine you can find either, because that may make people sick if they have too many. See Note From The Author below regarding cheap but decent sparkling wine.

Of course, you would want to keep everything chilled. No one likes warm momosas.  However, ice in a momosa is not a great idea! Ice will dilute it, and your drinks will taste watered down.

Use a wine bucket or a beverage tub to keep your champagne/ sparkling wine chilled. Do check on it occasionally and replenish the ice if necessary.

Mimosa Bar Juices That Go Well With Champagne / Sparkling Wine

The most popular and common mimosa juice ideas are:

• Orange juice – this is the traditional juice for mimosas, so plan to have 2-3 times more orange juice than other juices.
• Pomegranate juice
• Cranberry juice
• Mango juice
• Peach nectar/ juice
• Pineapple juice
• Strawberry purée
• Lemonade
• Grapefruit juice

You could use any kinds of pitchers for your juice, but carafes are a great idea for a mimosa bar because they are easy to hold, so no accidents! With carafes, guests will easily see what juices are being served because carafes are transparent. PRO TIP:  Mimosa bar signs are really useful to help label your juices. Sure, carafes are transparent but some juices look very similar and guests may not be able to distinguish them by looking at it.

Make sure you have enough carafes to accommodate all your juices. For example, if you’re serving 4 juices, have 4 carafes. PRO TIP: Do not waste your time on little carafes. Get 1-liter carafes instead. As the host, you want to mingle with the guests and enjoy yourself. By getting bigger carafes, you won’t need to refill them continuously.

Keep the juices chilled and pour them into your carafes just before the first guest arrives.

Mimosa Bar Fruit And Garnishes To Serve

Along with little serving spoons or toothpicks, place your garnishes in little ramekins. To keep things visually appealing, try to use ramekins or little bowls that are similar in size.

Traditionally, you would serve fruit and herbs. Here are the most popular garnishes that go well with mimosas.

• Orange slices;
• Pineapple wedges;
• Pomegranate arils;
• Raspberries;
• Cut up strawberries;
• Blueberries;
• Blackberries;
• Mint;
• Basil;
• Rosemary sprigs

Easy Mimosa Recipes Your Guests Will Love

1. Pomegranate Mimosa

3 ounces pomegranate juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
pomegranate arils for garnish

1. Raspberry Peach Mimosa

3 ounces peach juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
raspberries for garnish

1. Grapefruit Mimosa

3 ounces grapefruit juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne

Pink sanding sugar for the rims (You could also make your own sanding sugar. Easy instructions here.) If you’d rather not do the sanding sugar on the rims, you could also cut grapefruit slices into quarters for a nice garnish on the rims.

To get the sanding sugar onto the rims of your champagne flutes, pour a little sanding sugar into a shallow bowl. Moisten the top of the glasses with a little water. Dip your moistened glass into the sanding sugar. Once that is done, you can pour the juice and champagne / sparkling wine.

1. Orange & Maraschino Cherry Mimosa

3 ounces orange juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
1-2 maraschino cherries for garnish

Start by putting 1-2 maraschino cherries into the bottom of the champagne flutes. Be sure to add a little bit of the syrup because it ads great color to your mimosas. In equal parts, pour the orange juice and sparkling wine/ champagne over the cherries. Enjoy!

1. Pineapple Strawberry Mimosa

3 ounces pineapple juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
cut strawberries for garnish

1. Lemonade Mimosa

3 ounces lemonade
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
Lemond slices on the rim for garnish

1. Apple Cider Mimosa

3 ounces apple cider
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne

Sliced apples and cinnamon sugar on the rims. (Cinnamon sugar is easy to make – mix half a cup of sugar with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon.)

To get the cinnamon sugar onto the rims of your champagne flutes, pour a little cinnamon sugar into a shallow bowl. Moisten the top of the champagne glasses with a little water. Dip your moistened glass into the cinnamon sugar. Next, pour the apple cider and champagne / sparkling wine.

1. Cranberry Mimosa

3 ounces cranberry juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
cranberries for garnish

Cranberry mimosas are particularly great for baby showers held around Christmas because it lends itself to that theme.

1. Peach Mimosa

3 ounces peach juice or peach nectar
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
peach slices for garnish

1. Raspberry Lemonade Mimosa

3 ounces raspberry lemonade
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
raspberries for garnish

1. Traditional Orange Juice Mimosa

3 ounces orange juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
Sliced oranges for garnish

1. Cherry Mimosa

3 ounces tart cherry juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
cherries for garnish

1. Mango Raspberry Mimosa

3 ounces mango juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
raspberries for garnish

1. Blushing Mimosa

A splash of grenadine
2 ounces orange juice
1 ounce pineapple juice
3 ounces sparkling wine or champagne
marachino cherries for garnish

Note From The Author

On a budget?

Everyone loves mimosas, and a mimosa bar is super easy to set up. However, the mimosa bar can quickly take a wrong turn if you are on a budget, and you buy the wrong sparkling wines.

There are certain “cheap” sparkling wines that will make you sick if you drink too much… or even just a little. They’re the equivalent of cheap box wines. The last thing you want to do is ruin your beautiful mimosa bar with a few bottles of bad sparkling wine.

Your best bet is to go cheap but decent!

I personally buy the $6.99 bottle of Prosecco at Costco. They are insanely cheap, but surprisingly very good! We have these at parties regularly and no one has ever complained. In fact, they keep drinking it at every party we throw. This is my go-to but if you don’t have access to a Costco, go to a big liquor store like Total Wine. Ask a representative for help. Explain you need quality, but inexpensive sparkling wines.

Good luck!