New Years Eve 2011: French 75

Well Christmas is over and we’ve said farewell to Egg Nog for another year (officially anyway). Now it’s time to move on to the next major drinking holiday: New Year’s Eve! For our party this year, we’re moving beyond the traditional to something a bit more exciting. We’ve invited each of our guests to bring the cheapest bottle of champagne or sparkling white wine that they can find, and we’ll use them to mix three different champagne-based cocktails. This is a fantastic way to drink well on New Year’s without breaking the bank on a $50 bottle of bubbly.

We’ll post one cocktail per day leading up to New Year’s Eve, so check back often!

Today’s cocktail is the ever-classic French 75, named after an artillery gun used by the French army in World War One. The traditional recipe calls for lime juice, but we think it works much better with lemon. You can also substitute brandy or cognac for the gin to make this a French 76.

A French 75 can also be served on the rocks in a highball glass

2 oz gin

1 Tbs lemon juice

2 tsp simple syrup

champagne

In a shaker half filled with ice, combine the gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Shake well and strain into a champagne flute or coupe. Top with champagne.

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