French75

The French 75 is one of the most elegant sparkling classics: bright, sharp, and deceptively powerful. Its name is tied to the French 75 mm field gun and the drink developed through the 1920s from earlier Champagne-based recipes before settling into the familiar gin, lemon, sugar, and Champagne combination. Usually served in a flute, it tastes crisp, citrusy, and lightly floral, with the bubbles lifting the gin botanicals. Bartenders only need solid shaking, straining, and sparkling-wine handling skills to make it well, so it suits confident beginners and professionals alike. It is especially well suited to celebrations, aperitif service, brunches, and refined evening receptions.

Shake gin, lemon, and sugar, and doublestrain in a frozen champagne flute, top up with champagne, garnish with a lemontwist inside the glass.

Ingredients

25ml Gin

15ml Lemon Juice

10ml sugar syrup

Champagne

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Course: Aperitif

Cuisine: French canapés, Light brunch dishes, Oysters, Shellfish

Keyword: Champagne, Lemon Juice, London Dry Gin, Sugar syrup

Prep Time: 4

Cook Time: 1

Total Time: 5

Servings: Champagne flute

Calories: 145kcal

Cost: £2.31

Equipment

1 Champagne Flute

Ingredients

30 ml Gin
15 ml Lemon Juice
15 ml Sugar Syrup
60 ml Chilled Champagne
1 Twist Lemon

Instructions

Chill a flute with ice water.
Add gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup to a shaker with cubed ice
Shake hard for 10–12 seconds until well chilled.
Empty the flute and fine strain the shaken base into the glass.
Slowly top with chilled Champagne to preserve bubbles.
Give one gentle stir to integrate.
Garnish with a thin lemon twist if desired and serve immediately.

Notes

Best when all ingredients are well chilled before mixing. Over-shaking or rough stirring after topping can flatten the sparkling wine. Traditionally seen as an aperitif with a sharp, elegant finish.

Citrus Zest: Fresh lemon juice gives the drink a bright, mouth-puckering bite.
Botanical Gin: The spirit (usually gin) provides a structural backbone, offering earthy, juniper, or floral undertones depending on the brand.
Dry & Bubbly: Champagne (or dry sparkling wine) delivers tiny, festive bubbles and a dry, crisp finish.
Subtle Sweetness: Simple syrup rounds out the edges, preventing the lemon and dry wine from becoming overwhelmingly tart.

Nutrition