The French 75 is hands down my favorite cocktail, and this lavender version is just so lovely for spring. I snipped these little lavender flowers from my garden and simmered them down into a simple syrup, which sounds sort of romantic except that this lavender plant was swarmed with bees. I held a pair of scissors at arms length and carefully tried to clip a few without getting too close (oh the things I do for these recipes!) The lavender is subtle, but it adds an unexpected herbal flavor to this crisp cocktail…
Lavender French 75
*cocktail recipe, serves 1 / simple syrup recipe, serves at least 4
Ingredients:
- 2-4 teaspoons lavender syrup, to taste (recipe below, or buy it readymade here or here)
- 4 tablespoons gin (or vodka, but that will make this a French 76)
- squeeze of lemon, to taste
- 4 tablespoons champagne
- ice, if you’re ingredients aren’t already chilled
optional: sub sparkling water for champagne for a lighter cocktail
lavender simple syrup:
- about 5-7 little fresh lavender flowers
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions:
- In a small saucepan, bring the ingredients for the lavender syrup to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes or until the sugar dissolves. Stir as needed to keep the sugar from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Transfer to a glass jar and let chill in the fridge. Strain out the lavender after 30-60 minutes and continue to let it chill. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Mix all cocktail ingredients together & stir. Taste and adjust to your liking.
note: since the concentration of your lavender syrup may vary, I found that the best way to “measure” this was to pour just enough syrup until I could taste the floral note (about 2 splashes).
*photos by Love & Lemons, recipe adapted from Serious Eats
Jeanine! I always look forward to your posts. Lovely layout. I’ll have to try this cocktail soon!
thanks Jennifer! Those lavender sprigs just called for swirl-ey type 🙂
this sound very interesting.never tried anything with lavender syrup before but i definitely will now.
me either (before this), it was surprisingly super easy and delicious!
I fell in love with French 75’s on a recent trip to New Orleans!! For a bit of a shortcut, I have been making them with limoncello and champagne (which I guess would make it a French 76). Excited to try your recipe this weekend!
sounds delicious, I love limoncello 🙂
I need one of these now… no better cure for a too-long workday! I am loving all things lavender right now, and this concoction is so lovely.
Where is that lovely bowl from??? I need it.
Hi Megan, I found it at a thrift store. I felt that way too when I found it… completes my life 🙂
I have some french lavender on our porch – I have it right by the door so I can smell it on my way to work to start the day. This recipe looks amazing. Can’t wait to try it!
This cocktail sounds like it would be lovely. On a whim, I bought a lavender plant for my garden, without really having a clear idea in mind for how I’d use it. I think I’ll be starting with this cocktail. Thanks for sharing it!!
Looks delish! Can’t wait to try it 🙂 And I know this is a silly question, but I LOVE the script font you used for the word “lavender” in the first photo. Would you mind sharing what that is? I’ve been searching for something just like that. Thanks!
cant wait to try this!www.thevenerabletable.blogspot.com
This is just gorgeous – such a beautiful post! I’ll be trying these this weekend with the girls x