Some cocktails age poorly. The French 75 is not one of them. Named after a WWI artillery gun - supposedly because it hits just as hard - it’s been on menus since the 1920s and still orders well in every kind of bar from dive to Michelin-starred. Gin, lemon, sugar, champagne: just four ingredients, nothing hidden, nothing to fix. The kind of drink that sounds simple until you taste a good one and realize how much it depends on getting those four things right.
We make it at Devil’s Grin with our gin front and center. The botanicals - juniper, mesquite, cardamom, citrus peel - do something interesting when they hit the lemon and champagne. Worth trying if you haven’t.
What Is in a French 75?
What is in a French 75 is one of those questions with a short answer and a longer one. Short answer: gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, and champagne.
Longer answer: it’s a sour - gin, citrus, sweetener, shaken - topped with sparkling wine instead of soda. That swap is what makes it special. Champagne adds effervescence, obviously, but it also adds a yeasty, slightly mineral quality that soda water never could. The bubbles lift the gin’s botanicals, making it feel lighter than its alcohol content suggests.
The French 75 cocktail sits in a category of its own because of that combination - it’s bright and acidic from the lemon, aromatic from the gin, slightly sweet. Then the champagne stretches the whole thing out and makes it elegant without making it complicated.
Essential French 75 Ingredients
French 75 ingredients, in order of importance:
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Gin. 45ml. This is the backbone - the champagne will amplify whatever is in the gin, not cover it. Use something with real character. Devil’s Grin works well here because the mesquite and cardamom notes come through even against the acidity of the lemon and the effervescence of the wine.
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Fresh lemon juice. 22ml. Fresh only. Bottled lemon juice is flat and slightly off in a way that’s hard to pinpoint but immediately noticeable. You need about half a lemon per drink. Squeeze it to order.
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Simple syrup. 15ml. Equal parts sugar and water, dissolved. Nothing fancy. The ratio here is a starting point - if your lemons are particularly tart, add a little more. If they’re mild, pull back slightly.
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Champagne or dry sparkling wine. About 60ml to the top. It doesn’t have to be expensive. A dry Prosecco or Cava works perfectly well and saves the good champagne for drinking on its own. Cold, always cold.
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Garnish. Lemon twist. Express the oil over the surface before dropping it in - that step matters more than most people think.
How to Make a French 75: Step-by-Step
How to make a French 75 the right way takes about three minutes:
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Chill your flute first. Either keep it in the freezer or fill it with ice water while you build the drink. A warm glass kills the bubbles faster and warms the drink almost immediately.
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Add gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup to a shaker with ice. Shake hard - 10 to 12 seconds. You want it properly cold and slightly diluted from the ice, which softens the lemon’s edge.
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Strain into the chilled flute. Leave room at the top - you need space for the champagne without it overflowing.
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Pour the champagne slowly down the side of the glass. Not straight down the middle, which disturbs the drink. Down the side, gently, so the bubbles stay intact.
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Express a lemon twist over the surface. Hold the peel skin-side down about six inches above the glass, bend it sharply so the oils spray across the surface, then run the outside edge around the rim and drop it in.
That’s the French 75 recipe. Serve immediately and enjoy the delightful flavor with its unique aftertaste.
Tips for the Perfect French 75
Fresh lemon juice is the thing people skip and then wonder why the drink tastes flat. Don’t skip it.
On sweetness: the 15ml of simple syrup in this French 75 recipe is a baseline. Taste the shaken mixture before you top it - if it’s too sharp, add 5ml more syrup. If it’s too sweet, add a little more lemon. Champagne won’t fix an imbalanced base; it’ll just dilute it.
On the sparkling wine: dry works, sweet doesn’t. A sweet Prosecco makes the French 75 cocktail cloying. Brut or Extra Brut is what you want - the dryness plays against the lemon and lets the gin’s botanicals stay legible.
On the French 75 as a serving choice: it’s the right drink when you want something that feels celebratory without being heavy. Brunch, pre-dinner, between courses if you’re doing a long meal. It doesn’t sit well - the bubbles go flat after ten minutes, so make it fresh and drink it while it’s cold.
