Great tutorial on Italian Buttercream! I learned how to make both Swiss and Italian in culinary school and love them both. I have a question about adding champagne to either of these. We tried out a strawberry champagne cupcake parfait at work to use in a bridal show and it used American Buttercream which was way too sweet. Do you think adding a small bit of champagne to the buttercream for flavor would cause it to break down. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Wow, what a cool thought! Two very sexy foods in one at that. I think it's certainly worth a try. I'd take a cup of buttercream and try mixing in a tablespoon of the bubbly; if there are no ill effects, go for the rest of the batch. Another way to get more of that flavor into the frosting would be to reduce the champagne and add it as a gastrique. Thanks for the idea; I'll be trying that one myself! Susan

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