I had my first French 75 several years ago. At Epcot, of all places. Attempting to drink around the world, I was about halfway through when I arrived in France. I'd vowed to stick to beer to give myself a fighting chance at completing the entire trek. But that pledge didn't stand a chance against the French 75, whose name intrigued me enough to try it — even from a Disney kiosk.
I never did finish my global adventure, but I went home with a new drink that I loved. And how could I not? The French 75 incorporates gin, lemon juice, sugar and Champagne, though the original is said to have featured cognac. I'm sure the cognac version is good, but the now-classic recipe's use of gin seems too perfect to change.
However, we are making one tweak to the winning combo for this week's cocktail, inspired by my family's Easter Sunday brunch. The idea hit me after my companion ordered a frosé, which I'd never heard of but is basically what would happen if 7-Eleven started serving rosé out of its Slurpee machines. Apparently, this thing is all the rage, so why not create something similar?
A simple dollop of sorbet, turns out, adds a little punch to a traditional French 75, transforming it into another easy-to-drink cocktail that's just as refreshing as frozen rosé — and requires half the work. I might not've accomplished my quest to drink around the world, but I did finish this cocktail. And I guarantee you will, too.
Raspberry Sorbet French 75
Makes 1
1 ounces gin (I used Bombay Sapphire)
1/2 ounce fresh squeezed lemon juice
3 ounces Champagne, chilled
1 scoop raspberry sorbet
Fill a coupe glass with ice and water, then set aside and allow to chill. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add gin and lemon juice. Shake until well-chilled. Discard ice water from coupe glass and strain in cocktail. Top with Champagne and sorbet. Garnish with a mint sprig.
Follow CL contributor Chris Fasick (@cfasick) on Twitter, or email him at cdfasick@gmail.com if there's a cocktail or recipe you'd like featured.
This article appears in Apr 20-27, 2017.
