Sparkling cocktails · Gin · IBA official
A gin sour lifted by a crown of champagne. The first sip is all bubbles and lemon zest, then the juniper arrives, clean and dry. Serve it in a cold flute and it disappears quickly.
1 oz
London dry gine.g. Tanqueray · Gordon's · Beefeater · Bombay Sapphire · Sipsmith
½ oz
lemon juice freshly squeezed
½ oz
simple syrup
2 oz
champagne brut, well chillede.g. Moët & Chandon · Veuve Clicquot · Taittinger · Laurent-Perrier · Pommery
Garnish: Lemon twist · Ice: Served up, no ice
French 75
Bright lemon, dry juniper and fine, persistent bubbles with a subtle sweetness. Refreshing but quite strong.
The drink is named after the French 75 millimetre field gun of the First World War, a nod to the kick it delivers. Around the end of the war, a cocktail called simply the 75 appeared in print, but it was a quite different mix of gin, calvados, grenadine and absinthe.
The version we know today, gin, lemon juice, sugar and champagne, was printed as the French 75 in Harry Craddock's Savoy Cocktail Book in 1930 and became a staple of classic bars. Some bartenders, especially in New Orleans, make it with cognac instead of gin. The IBA lists the gin version among its Contemporary Classics.
It is named after the French 75 mm field gun of the First World War, a reference to its strength.
The IBA and the Savoy Cocktail Book use gin. Cognac is a well-known alternative, especially in New Orleans.
Yes, it works well, though the drink will be a little sweeter and fruitier than with brut champagne.
The perfect sound
Champagne bubbles and brass in a smoky Paris cabaret.
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