French 75

Just in time for New Year’s Eve comes a fantastic cocktail that incorporates bubbly, gin, lemon and a hint of sweetness. Tonight I bring you the French 75 – a classic cocktail that is often overlooked or forgotten, but shouldn’t be. In researching this cocktail, I read a story that said it was named after the 75mm artillery piece. This artillery piece devastated German attacks in World War 1, so I suspect the French 75 probably wreaked havoc on soldiers who drank too many of them. But don’t let this cocktail’s reputation scare you. I bet after you try this simple recipe, you will happily enjoy and not overlook or forget the French 75 in 2017 and beyond.

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French 75

Prep time: 5 mins

Total time: 5 mins

Serves: 1

Ingredients

1 part london dry gin
½ part lemon juice
½ part simple syrup
2 parts champagne or sparkling wine
lemon twist

Instructions

Chill the champagne, gin, and champagne flute.
Add gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup into a shaker.
Add ice.
Shake vigorously for 30 seconds.
Strain into a chilled champagne flute.
Top off with champagne or sparkling wine.
Add a lemon twist and enjoy.

Notes

This cocktail is best when served very cold, hence pre-chilling the ingredients and glassware.
If using a sweeter sparkling wine like prosecco and cava, you may want to reduce the amount of simple syrup to avoid the cocktail from becoming cloyingly sweet.

Chill the champagne, gin, and champagne flute. Add gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup into a shaker. Add ice. Shake vigorously for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled champagne flute. Top off with champagne or sparkling wine. Add a lemon twist and enjoy.