This classic cocktail can be adapted for those who are drinking, want something lighter, or who are fully abstaining from alcohol.
The French 75 is a yummy cocktail that has gin, Champagne, lemon juice, and sugar in it. It’s famous for its fizzy and delicious taste and is enjoyed by many people. You can make it by mixing sugar and lemon juice in a shaker, adding gin and shaking it with ice. After straining it into a glass, you top it with Champagne and a lemon twist. If you want to make more of it, simply increase the ingredients and make it in a pitcher. It’s perfect for events like weddings or anniversaries. So, try it out and impress your friends with your fancy drink-making skills!
The French 75 is a classic cocktail that has been enjoyed for decades by cocktail enthusiasts around the world. The drink is favored for its refreshing taste and elegant presentation, making it a great choice for any special occasion.
To make a French 75, you’ll need a few simple ingredients, including gin, Champagne, lemon juice, and sugar. Many recipes call for sparkling wine instead of Champagne, but either one works well.
To start, mix sugar and lemon juice in aaker until the sugar is dissolved. Then, add gin and ice to the mix and shake it well. Strain the mixture into a glass and top it off with Champagne. Garnish it with a lemon twist, and your French 75 is ready to serve!
One of the best things about the French 75 is that you can easily make it in large batches for parties and special events. Simply multiply the ingredients based on the number of guests’ll be serving and make cocktail in a pitcher. Your guests will be impressed with your mixology skills and love the refreshing taste of this classic cocktail.
Overall, the French 75 is an easy-to-make and refreshing cocktail that is perfect for any occasion. Whether you’re celebrating a special occasion or just want to impress your friends with your drink-making skills, the French 75 is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
The French 75 cocktail is named after the French 75mm field gun, which was used in World War I. It was created in France during the war years and quickly became popular among the troops and the locals. The drink combines gin, Champagne, lemon juice, and sugar to create a fizzy and delightful cocktail that is perfect for celebrations and special occasions.
To make a French 75, you’ll need some basic ingredients and equipment. You will need a cocktail shaker, a strainer, and a shot glass measuring tool. Start by combining the sugar and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker and stirring until the sugar dissolves. Then add gin and ice and shake vigorously.
Next, strain the mixture into a Champagne flute and top it off with a dry Champagne or sparkling wine. Garnish the drink with a lemon twist for a sophisticated presentation. The result is a refreshing, sweet, and tart cocktail that is perfect for any celebration.
One of the best things about the French 75 cocktail is its versatility. You can use other spirits besides gin and still create a delicious cocktail. For example, you can use cognac instead of gin to create a French 95, or you can use vodka to make a French 76.
Another great thing about the French 75 cocktail is that you can make it in large batches for parties and events. Simply multiply the recipe to accommodate the number of guests. Alternatively, you can also serve it in a punch bowl to create a stunning centerpiece for your party.
In conclusion, the French 75 is a timeless classic cocktail that is easy to make and perfect for special occasions. Its refreshing taste and elegant presentation make it a crowd-pleaser, and its versatility allows you to experiment and create new variations. So, go ahead and try making a French 75 for your next celebration and impress your guests with your mixology skills!
A drink doesn’t have to be booze-forward or make you tipsy after just one, to be cocktail-hour appropriate.
At even the smallest gatherings, it’s common for one or more guests to be abstaining, or to simply want to drink less that night, month or year. And, in those cases, what’s important is not the reason for guests’ abstention but their comfort and inclusion. With that in mind, a versatile drinking option that works at different alcohol contents (low, none or full) can be unifying, as it lets everyone confidently raise a glass.
“A good host is prepared,” said Julia Bainbridge, the author of “Good Drinks,” a book of alcohol-free drink recipes, and a newsletter of the same name. “Even if you do know that all your friends coming over a drink, it’s still nice to have a nonalcoholic option. They might have a drink and then switch to the nonalcoholic one.”
Jessica Baesler, an owner of Someday, a bar in Portland, Oregon, said including nonalcoholic options on the menu, “the same way you would offer the two reds on the list, makes people feel taken care of and thought of.”
Just as some abstain from alcohol entirely, others may just want a less-potent drink. For them, low-proof spirits and liqueurs take centre stage, providing enough spirited kick to usher the drink into the cocktail territory, while keeping it light in impact.
While you could make something unique for each person, serving drinks with similar flavour profiles plays to the home bartender’s advantage. A simple way of doing this is to make a nonalcoholic base and build similar-enough drinks across a range of alcohol contents. Start, for example, with a shrub.
Shrubs are often called drinking vinegars for their vinegar base, but, in the early 18th century, shrubs were lemon-based, the juice mixed with sugar, then combined with brandy or rum. Because fresh citrus was expensive to import and difficult to attain, vinegar became a ready replacement, eventually surpassing the citrus-based antecedent to fashion the tangy, sweetly concentrated fruit (and, nowadays, vegetable) syrups we know today. While the vinegar base is the more commonly known shrub, the citrus-based iteration provides a brightly tart, deeply flavorful base layer that is tops for drinks across the spectrum of ABV, or alcohol by volume.
Prepare the shrub the morning of or night before, then consider your options. A no-ABV French 75 can be sweetly sour and decidedly adult when made with sweet bay-peppercorn shrub, lemon, soda water and dry tonic. An acidic, bubbly low-ABV French 75 combines blanc vermouth, shrub, lemon and Champagne. A classic French 75, full-proof and fizzy, can be made with cognac or gin. Each has a distinctive vibe, but many ingredients overlap, including that richly flavoured citrus shrub (which can be served, too, on its own with a splash of soda water or tonic).
Choose two or all three, and offer them as equal-opportunity, equal-attention options — a veritable choose-your-own-adventure for the happy hour set.
Recipe: Sweet Bay-Peppercorn Shrub
Total time: 15 minutes, plus at least 6 hours’ resting
Yield: 2 cups
- 5 medium lemons, peeled and fruit reserved
- 1 small grapefruit, peeled and fruit reserved
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns, crushed
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 cloves, crushed
- 2 bay leaves
1. Place the citrus peels in a medium bowl or a large jar. Add the sugar, peppercorns, salt, thyme, cloves and bay leaves.
2. Use a muddler or the end of a rolling pin to muddle the mixture together, working the sugar mixture into the peels until the peels begin to express their oils and start to turn slightly translucent. Set aside at room temperature for at least 6 hours or overnight. Much of the sugar should be dissolved, and the citrus peels will be mostly translucent.
3. Juice the reserved lemons and grapefruit. (You should have about 1¼ cups juice.) Add the juice to the mixture and stir (or cover and shake the jar) until the sugar and salt dissolve. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer, pressing on the solids and transfer to an airtight container. The shrub can be stored, in the refrigerator, for up to 1 month.
Recipe: No-ABV French 75
Yield: 1 cocktail
Ice
- 1 ounce Sweet Bay-Peppercorn Shrub
- 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
- 3 dashes orange bitters (optional; see Tip)
- 2 ounces soda water
- 1 ounce dry tonic water
- Lemon twist
1. In an ice-filled cocktail shaker, combine the Sweet Bay-Peppercorn Shrub, lemon juice and bitters, if using. Cover and shake until well chilled. Strain into a Nick and Nora or coupe glass, and top with soda water and tonic. Finish with the lemon twist.
Tips: Most bitters have a small amount of alcohol and, while very diluted, make sure whomever you’re making a drink for is OK with this addition, or skip entirely.
Recipe: Low-A.B.V. French 75
Yield: 1 cocktail
Ice (optional)
- 1 ounce blanc vermouth, such as Dolan or Noilly Prat
- 1 ounce Sweet Bay-Peppercorn Shrub
- 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
- 3 to 4 ounces Champagne or dry sparkling wine
- Lemon twist
1. In an ice-filled shaker, combine the vermouth, shrub and lemon juice. Cover and shake vigorously until well chilled. If serving over ice, fill a Collins glass with ice and strain the cocktail into the glass. If forgoing the ice, strain into a Nick and Nora or coupe glass. Top with Champagne and finish with the lemon twist.
Recipe: Classic French 75
Yield: 1 cocktail
Ice
- 1 ounce gin or cognac
- 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 ounce simple syrup or 1/2 ounce Sweet Bay-Peppercorn Shrub
- 3 ounces Champagne or dry sparkling wine
- Lemon twist
1. In an ice-filled shaker, combine the gin or cognac, lemon juice and simple syrup or shrub. Cover and shake vigorously until well chilled. Strain into a Champagne or coupe glass and top with Champagne. Finish with a lemon twist.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.