Cocktail hour à la français
Credit to Author: Tracey Tufnail| Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2020 19:00:13 +0000
Think of France, especially on the heels of the Vancouver International Wine Festival, and we tend to think of wine. But France is also a land of spirits, liqueurs, aperitifs, digestifs and, of course, cocktails.
The French have been enjoying mixed drinks for at least 2,000 years, ever since the ancient Romans brought grape vines to what was then Gaul and introduced the practice of stirring honey and spice into their wine.
Over time, the French started creating blended beverages in the form of, say, vermouth or herbal liqueur. It was only in the 1920s, when Prohibition drove America’s top bartenders to Europe, that the alchemy of French drinking changed forever — and for the better — with the introduction of the cocktail.
Enjoy l’heure du cocktail with these three renowned French drinks.
Perhaps the most influential of the barkeeps to flee the desert of dry America was Harry MacElhone, late of New York City’s Plaza Hotel. He landed in Paris, where he found himself working in a saloon on the rue Daunou; in 1923, he bought the place, named it Harry’s New York Bar and (maybe) invented the classic cocktail called the Sidecar.
The way the story goes, one day an army captain roared up to the doors of the bar, chilled from his ride in the sidecar of a motorcycle, and demanded something to warm him up. MacElhone combined brandy, curaçao and lemon juice in a glass with a sugared rim, and history was made.
However, the Paris Ritz also claims to have created the Sidecar (and serves a version made with pre-phylloxera Cognac for a mere 1,500 euros or so). London’s Buck’s Club has also been credited with the drink.
To confuse things even further, aside from the absence of bitters, the Sidecar is also awfully similar to the Brandy Crusta, which originated in New Orleans in the 1850s.
In any case, when made properly (which, fair warning, is rarely the case), the Sidecar is still one of the greatest of classic cocktails.
Traditionally, this was one of the classic 1:1:1 drinks, but those proportions taste strangely unbalanced today. Modern Sidecars use more brandy, and often skip the traditional sugar rim and cocktail cherry garnish, though of course you can always add them if you wish.
2 oz (60 mL) Cognac (or other fine brandy)
1 oz (30 mL) Cointreau
1 oz (30 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice
Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well and fine-strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Serves 1.
The French 75 is a swish sort of Tom Collins made from gin, Champagne, lemon juice and sugar, although some rebels will replace the gin with brandy. It dates back to the First World War, or maybe the 1920s, or maybe the 19th century, when a citrusy punch known as a Champagne Cup was all the rage.
MacElhone is often credited with creating the cocktail and, sure, a “75” cocktail makes its first appearance in his book, Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails. However, it was made, a little gruesomely, with Calvados, gin, grenadine and absinthe. MacElhone himself credited Buck’s Club, though the drink became truly famous when the French 75 recipe was published in 1930’s The Savoy Cocktail Book.
What is certain is that it was named for a piece of First World War French artillery, a 75mm Howitzer field gun called the Canon de 75 modèle 1897, which was exceptionally fast and accurate — just like the kick of this bright brunch favourite.
Essentially a Tom Collins made with sparkling wine instead of soda water, this is a bright, refreshing and elegant cocktail. If you like, you can also replace the gin with cognac for a drink that is deeper and richer in flavour.
1 to 2 oz (30 to 60 mL) London dry gin
1 tsp (5 mL) simple syrup, or to taste (see note)
0.5 oz (15 mL) fresh lemon juice
4 oz (125 mL) brut Champagne or other sparkling wine
Place gin, sugar, and lemon juice into a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake well. Fine-strain into a flute, top with bubble and garnish with slice of lemon zest. Alternative, pour base drink over cracked ice in a collins glass, then add the sparkling wine and garnish.
Serves 1.
Note: To make simple syrup, heat equal amounts of sugar and water together until the sugar fully dissolves.
The Kir, or Kir Royale, has a very different sort of backstory. It was, in fact, the cocktail of the French resistance.
In 1940, the Nazis marched into Dijon and confiscated Burgundy’s famous red wine to enjoy at their own tables. Not unreasonably, this annoyed Canon Felix Kir, a Catholic priest who had dedicated himself to the resistance through activities such as aiding the escape of 4,000 prisoners of war from a nearby camp, and was variously arrested, condemned to death, and seriously wounded for his efforts.
One of his acts of resistance was to reclaim Burgundian “wine” by combining crème de cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) with a bone-dry local white wine called Aligoté de Bourgogne and proclaiming it the official beverage of Dijon’s city hall. It was proudly consumed at all state occasions and became known, to one and all, as Kir.
After the war ended in 1945, Kir was elected Dijon’s mayor, a post he held until he died in 1968 at the age of 92. He never stopped promoting the Kir and, somewhere along the way, someone brilliantly decided to create a version with Champagne, known as the Kir Royale.
So raise a glass à votre santé and enjoy France’s great contributions to the cocktail canon.
Crème de cassis is a blackcurrant liqueur originally from Burgundy, but there’s an excellent version made right here in B.C. by Vancouver’s Odd Society Spirits. It’s based on the secret recipe of Hervé Martin, formerly the personal chef to the Late King Leopold III of Belgium.
0.25 to 0.5 oz (7 to 15 mL) crème de cassis
4 oz (125 mL) brut Champagne or other dry sparkling wine
Place liqueur in the bottom of a flute and top with sparkling wine. If you like, garnish with a slice of lemon zest.
Serves 1
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