Lavender French 75 Cocktail

Lavender French 75 Cocktail

In my search to find a celebratory drink to serve at my Mother’s Day garden themed party, my mind immediately went to the idea of champagne! I found the French 75 cocktail, typically it is a refreshing blend of champagne, gin, fresh lemon juice, and simple syrup. Lavender was added to give it a “fresh from the garden” twist and that’s how my version of the Lavender French 75 was born.  This addition made it fit in nicely into my garden theme and added a layer of extra deliciousness to this cocktail.

Items Similar to those pictured above:

Martini Glass for similar ones click here

Blue and White Ginger Jar

The Origins of the French 75 cocktail

Can you believe that the original French 75 got its origins from the name of a French Canon in WWI! In France, cocktails were named after people and events highlighting the news at that time. The Canon de 75, a military weapon,  was a beacon hope in their war against Germany. The original version of this drink consisted of gin, apple brandy, grenadine, and lemon juice it was dubbed “the most powerful drink in the world”. It was thought that the cocktail packed such a punch it was like you were shot by the Canon de 75 itself. The cocktail has remained popular and many different versions are available, but one thing that most of the recipes have in common is gin, lemon juice, and champagne.

Botanical Cocktail Making

I love the way fresh herbs can be added to a cocktail to add depth to their flavor and enhance ingredients in spirits like gin that already have floral properties. I made a homemade simple syrup to add the lavender to this drink and it blended well with the other ingredients. Of course, you can always find and order a myriad of lavender syrups already premade on Amazon.  Due to my love of this gin and the beautiful purple color it lends to my drink, I used Empress 1908 gin in this cocktail. The addition of the lemon juice causes the Empress Gin to start turning to a lovely shade of deep pink, and this adds to its magic.   This drink was garnished with added flowers and a slice of lemon to add a feminine touch. **Please note that those pictured are not edible and were only used for decorative purposes. **

I decided to serve my Lavender French 75  in a martini glass but serving it in a champagne flute with a wider mouth would make a wonderful presentation too. For  similar martini glasses click here⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Ivory and Noire Tip for Easy serving: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

You can shake up a batch with ice by doubling or tripling all the ingredients except the sparkling wine and refrigerating it before your party. When your guests arrive you pour the cocktail mix in their glasses and then top it off with the sparkling wine. Serve lemon slices and edible flowers on the side and let your guests have fun garnishing their drinks. ⠀⠀

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