Vodka French 75, postwar US.
| 1½ oz · 45 ml | VODKA | 40 % |
| ½ oz · 15 ml | LEMON JUICE | |
| ½ oz · 15 ml | SIMPLE SYRUP | |
| 3 oz · 90 ml | CHAMPAGNE | 12 % |
1 oz taken as 30 ml in the metric column.
1 oz taken as 30 ml in the metric column.
| Pre-batch | 2.5 oz mixed with ice, 0.6 oz of it pure alcohol |
|---|---|
| Melt | Shaken: +20 % of the pre-batch, +0.5 oz of water |
| Topped | Poured after the melt, kept whole: champagne 3 oz, +0.36 oz of alcohol |
| Served | 2.5 + 0.5 + 3 = 6 oz in the glass, 0.96 oz of it alcohol |
| Strength | 0.96 ÷ 6 = 16.0 % ABV as served |
| Ethanol | 0.96 oz × 29.57 ml × 0.789 g/ml = 22 g · about 157 kcal from the alcohol alone |
FROM LEMON · the lemon aroma
Lemon's defining note: technically a mix of two geometric isomers (geranial and neral) that read as the same aroma to the nose. Lemon peel, lemongrass, lemon verbena, and Indian chai all carry it. In cocktails it's what a lemon twist contributes that lemon juice can't: the volatile expressed from the oil glands, not the acid from the pulp.
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FROM CHAMPAGNE · the dominant grape acid
The dominant acid in grapes and the reason wine tastes sharp instead of flat. Forms crystals ("wine diamonds") when bottled wine gets cold; harmless, sometimes filtered out, sometimes left in as a mark of authenticity. Without acid, wine is sugar water.
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Vodka, lemon, sugar and Champagne. It is the French 75's vodka variant. Dropping the gin's juniper alpha-pinene lets the Champagne's fermentation aromas (diacetyl, ethyl decanoate) read more clearly above the spirit.
Variant of the French 75 (gin-based) that swapped vodka for gin as vodka spread through postwar American bars; no creator or first printing is recorded. The numerical name traces to French artillery: the 75mm field gun of WWI was the original 75; the 76 designation differentiates the vodka recipe. It remains the standard champagne cocktail at vodka-leaning bars.
