Aviation
45 ml Gin, 15 ml Maraschino liqueur, 15 ml Lemon juice, 7.5 ml Crème de violette, 1 Maraschino cherry
Photo: French 75 by garyjwood on Flickr · CC BY-SA 2.0 · All credits
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 180 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 180 ml line. Gin
- 90 ml Jigger One large side (50 ml) and one small side (25 ml) of a standard jigger, plus a tablespoon. Lemon juice
- 90 ml Jigger One large side (50 ml) and one small side (25 ml) of a standard jigger, plus a tablespoon. Simple syrup
- 360 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 360 ml line. Champagne - Brut, or any dry sparkling wine
- 6 twists Lemon twist (optional)
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- Shake the gin, lemon and syrup, then strain into a flute.
- Top with sparkling wine and twist a lemon peel over the top.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 720 ml of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Shake the gin, lemon juice and simple syrup hard with ice.
- Strain into a champagne flute.
- Top slowly with chilled champagne or dry sparkling wine.
- Express a lemon twist over the drink and drop it in.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
French 75
Named after a French field gun from the First World War, for the way it lands. It was poured at Harry's New York Bar in Paris while the guns were still going, and a century later it is still the most elegant way to open a bottle of fizz: festive enough for a celebration, sharp enough to keep you honest.
Getting it right
Chill everything - the glass, the gin, the lemon, the wine. Shake the gin, lemon and syrup with ice, strain it into the cold glass, and then add the sparkling wine last and gently, so you keep as much of the sparkle as you can. There is no point spending champagne money here: a dry crémant or cava is better in the drink than a famous label, because the lemon and the gin are busy right in front of it.
Tasting notes
Crisp citrus and fine bubbles, dry and grown-up, with the wine arriving at the very end of the sip. Deceptively light, which is rather the point of the name.
More Gin cocktails
Bee's Knees
50 ml Gin, 20 ml Lemon juice, 20 ml Honey syrup, 1 Lemon twist
Bramble
50 ml Gin, 25 ml Lemon juice, 12.5 ml Simple syrup, 15 ml Crème de mûre, 2 berries Blackberry