The French 75 Cocktail is a old-school gin cocktail with fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, and champagne. It is refreshing, bubbly, and citrusy. The reliable drink to enjoy for the holidays, celebrations, special brunches or simply a hot summer day!

Are you familiar with a French 75? If not, you’re in for a REAL treat! Recently, I had one for the first time and it became an instant go-to. I knew I had to share it with you as soon as possible because this website is basically my way of telling the world “you need this in your life!”.

Cocktails made with champagne are some of the go-to, especially in the summertime. My 3 Bellini options, Aperol Spritz Slushie and Familiar Aperol Spritz are some of my personal favorites. But, this French 75 cocktail might have simply replaced all of those as my go-to cocktail. It’s seriously Worth the pot. Particularly summery and fresh!

What is a French 75?

A French 75 is a familiar cocktail that dates back to the early 1900s and was named after the French 75-mm field gun, which was commonly used in World War I. It’s made with only 4 simple ingredients – gin, simple syrup, lemon juice, and champagne. This French 75 cocktail recipe is similar to a Tom Collins, but made with champagne instead of the usual club soda.

French 75 Cocktail Ingredients:

The French 75 is a simple cocktail and that means you want to make sure you use fresh, quality ingredients because you’ll be able to taste them all. Here’s what you need:

Gin. the base of this drink and the main flavor component. In my Gin and Tonic recipe post, I shared a list of my regular gins.
Simple syrup. to balance out the gin and the tart lemon juice. You can most certainly buy simple syrup, but it’s so straightforward to make kitchen-made simple syrup.
Lemon juice. I highly recommend fresh lemon juice for the dependable flavor. And don’t forget the lemon peel for a fun garnish!
Champagne. to add fizz and bubbles to the cocktail. Traditionally, the cocktail was made with a Brut Champagne, but you can use whatever sparkling wine you like go-to.

How for this old-school cocktail:

Serving suggestions:

You can pour your drink into a coupe glass or champagne flute. You can serve these up in either disposable flutes or long-used glass ones, depending on the setting. Then, garnish with a twist of lemon.

To make a lemon twist: Use a vegetable peeler to remove a long piece of lemon peel from a whole lemon. Twist it up and it should hold a curl shape. For a thinner lemon twist, you can use this method.

Variations to the old-school French 75 cocktail recipe:

Champagne. Feel free to substitute the champagne with Prosecco or Cava. You simply want to add some bubbly!
Gin. Replace the gin with cognac, brandy or bourbon.
Simple syrup. Don’t want to make simple syrup? Agave nectar or honey is a decent substitute in a pinch!
Lemon juice. Fresh out of lemons or want to mix things up? Try replacing lemon juice with something a bit more tart such fresh grapefruit or lime juice.

Any way you serve it, the French 75 Cocktail is as close to cocktail perfection as you’re going to get. It’s a Worth making! Cheers!

As usual, if you end up making this cocktail, please come back and let me know how you like it. Or tag me on Instagram @! I always love to see what y’all are cooking from the blog.