Easy
3 minutes
Champagne Glass
Ingredients
How to Make a French 66
Bar tools you’ll need
Jigger
How to Mix
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Add Lemon Juice and Orange Bitters to a Cocktail Shaker.
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Fill the shaker with ice and shake well.
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Strain the mix into a chilled Coupe Glass.
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Top with Champagne.
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Garnish with a Lemon twist.
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Sip and enjoy!
All about the French 66
The French 66 cocktail is a fresh twist on sparkling citrus cocktails. It’s notable for the lively mix of Lemon Juice, Orange Bitters, and Champagne.
You shake Lemon Juice and Orange Bitters over ice, strain into a chilled Coupe Glass, top with Champagne, and finish with a Lemon Twist. It’s light, celebratory and easy to enjoy.
Expect lively lemon and subtle orange balancing with the crisp, dry taste of Champagne. Each sip brings a bright citrus burst followed by silky bubbles and a clean finish.
- Ingredient Upgrades for Deeper Flavor Swap fresh Lemon Juice for an oleo-saccharum syrup for rich oils and aroma, use extra dashes of high-quality Orange Bitters, and pick a dry brut or pét-nat Champagne for mineral depth that stays crisp.
- Technique Hacks for Pro Polish Pre-freeze your Coupe Glass and use pebble ice in the shaker for colder, sharper taste. Double-strain through both a Hawthorne and Fine Strainer for texture, and shake hard for ten seconds to aerate the mix just right.
- Garnish and Serve Secrets Express a Lemon Twist twice-before and after topping with Champagne-for bold aroma, or rim the glass with a frozen Lemon Wedge if the glass warms up. For parties, pre-mix and chill the Lemon-Bitters base for speedy service without sacrificing quality.
- Double Citrus Pop Garnish with both a Lemon Twist and an Orange Zest strip to pull out the full depth of citrus in your French 66 cocktail.
- Chilled Coupe Upgrade Serve in a pre-frozen Coupe Glass to keep the drink crisp and every bubble lively.
- Herb Accent Top with a sprig of fresh Thyme or Basil if you want a subtle herbal note-great for warmer weather sipping.
French 66 FAQ
The French 66 cocktail stands out thanks to its distinct use of Lemon Juice and Orange Bitters, which bring lively citrus complexity, enhanced by the dry, crisp bubbles of Champagne.
You can premix the Lemon Juice and Orange Bitters base for the French 66 cocktail in a bottle, chill it, and shake individual servings to order before topping with Champagne.
While the French 66 cocktail doesn’t include vodka, Absolut Citron works if you want to experiment with a citrus vodka twist alongside Lemon Juice and Orange Bitters.
Use a chilled Coupe Glass and fine-strain your mix before topping with Champagne to keep the bubbles crisp in your French 66 cocktail.
