French 75
- 1.5 oz gin (Plymouth)
- 1/2 oz simple syrup
- 3/4 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
- about 2 oz Dry Champagne
Shake ingredients (except champagne) with ice and double strain into a chilled flute. Fill flute half way, top with champagne and garnish with a lemon twist.
While drinks featuring gin and champagne have been around for a long time we first see the name French 75 being associated with a champagne cocktail in about 1915. The French 75 refers to the highly respected field gun of World War I which had a reputation for accuracy and high rate of fire. In like manner, many of the early references to the drink emphasize its potency, "Hits with remarkable precision," The Savoy Cocktail Book. The drink was brought back from Europe by an American war correspondant and everything about it has morphed over the years save its potency. Simon Difford offers a well researched history of the drink in its various forms.
The French 75 is a half glass of gin sour topped up with champagne and it is wonderful. It is fresh, it is zesty, it is hard to describe and like its namesake, given a chance it will knock you flat. We took our recipe from Death & Co and make it in a champagne flute that holds 4 oz. The recipe above will make two 4 oz glasses (the recommended therapeutic dose). Just fill the flute half way with the gin sour mix and top up with champagne, rinse and repeat. A 375 ml bottle of champagne is enough for six glasses.
So the next time you fancy a little Entente Cordiale try this explosive mix of French champagne and English gin and see where the mood takes you.