CLASSIC COCKTAIL · 1850–1889
Champagne Cocktail
Champagne, a bitters-soaked sugar cube and a lemon twist: the original sparkling cocktail.
1855Historical classicResearched
One of the oldest cocktails, the Champagne Cocktail dates to at least the mid-1800s. Its first written mention is in Robert Tomes’s 1855 Panama in 1855, where a sugar cube, bitters and champagne were served over crushed ice; Jerry Thomas published a recipe in 1862. The modern version adds a measure of cognac and is built in a flute, with the sugar cube generating bubbles as it dissolves.
THE RECIPEDry, effervescent and gently bitter
Ingredients
- Champagne120 ml
- Sugar cube1
- Angostura bitters3 dashes
- Lemon peelto garnish
Method
Drop the sugar cube into a flute, soak it with the bitters and slowly top with cold champagne. Express a lemon peel over the surface and drop it in.
Flute · sugar cube · lemon twist