MixMarch #4: The Classic Champagne Cocktail

“Three be the things I shall never attain: Envy, content and sufficient champagne”

When Dorothy Parker was not under the host, she was well known for sharp and erudite social comment on the lubricating effect of alcohol. Outside of her love of Martinis, her work on Champagne has surely raised more that the odd smile around the world.

Purists will often look down their noses at the addition of anything to noble Champagne, and while I’d agree that the finer ends and specific vintages are a wonderful experience in their own right, there’s much to be gained from looking for points of balance with other ingredients as well.

This simple recipe softens a dry Champagne…

Classic Champagne Cocktail

• 1 sugar cube
• Generous dashing of Angostura bitters
• Top up with Champagne
• Put sugar cube and bitters in the bottom of a Champagne Flute and add Champagne. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Plenty of recipes out there on the web call for the addition of Cognac to this recipe. I suppose I sit in the part of the camp that says if you’re going down that path, you might as well have a French 75 substituting Cognac for the Gin.