It’s weird how many drinks we consider classics were first mixed in France — a country that doesn’t really do cocktails. Admittedly, many of them were concocted largely for American expats at the storied Harry’s Bar in Paris. So, one might ask, does that make the Boulevardier, the Sidecar, and my beloved French 75 American cocktails-in-exile?
From Josephine Baker to Gertrude Stein and from Man Ray to Ta-Nehisi Coates, Americans have long moved to France in hope of finding some kind of freedom they couldn’t find at home. The success of these relocations has been mixed, and yet the pull remains. I like to imagine Harry MacElhone at his eponymous bar on Rue Daunou standing at the ready to serve those who got thirsty searching to escape racism, suffocating gender norms, and creative constraints. Vive la France!
I don’t know about you, but midway between the Fourth of July and Bastille Day I’m feeling the pull of relocation like I’ve never felt it before. As America continues its downward spiral toward something like the society described in The Handmaid’s Tale, I know I am not alone in experiencing fear and thinking seriously about what it would mean to be an expat, whether in France or somewhere else. We’ve even looked into a European exit, based on Christopher’s Italian heritage. But truth be told, I don’t want to leave my family and friends, my garden, or my yoga class. I don’t want to leave the little town that I’ve come to love. I don’t want to leave my country.
To calm my nerves and celebrate Bastille Day this year, we’ll be mixing up French 75s, the drink first poured by Harry to folks who also may well have been afraid. It’s a libation that packs a powerful punch, which is the reason it’s named after a 75-millimeter field gun used by the French army in World War I.
Some recipes call for gin and others for cognac. I like them both, but I make mine with cognac in the colder months and gin in the summer, as I think it works best with the flavors of the season. This year, I’m making a Bastille Day variation with thyme and black raspberries, both of which I have in abundance right now. Blackberries would surely work just as well. I don’t know if Harry MacElhone would have approved, but I can assure you this version is delicious.
I know life’s not a cabaret right now. We won’t quit worrying about the direction of our country. But we will, for a little while, in honor of the French Revolution and later, the French resistance, relax in the shade while sipping this cocktail.
THE BLACKBERRY THYME FRENCH 75
For the black raspberry-thyme simple syrup:
Makes about 1 cup
½ cup fresh black raspberries
2 sprigs fresh-cut thyme
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
Combine berries, thyme, sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Lower the heat and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes or until the sugar is dissolved and the berries are soft.
Remove from heat and allow to cool a few minutes, then strain the syrup through a fine mesh sieve into a measuring cup and chill, mashing the juice from the berries.
The syrup may be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
For each cocktail:
1 oz. black raspberry-thyme syrup
½ oz. fresh lemon juice
1 oz. gin
3 oz. champagne or other dry sparkling wine
Lemon twist, black raspberries, or a sprig of thyme for garnish
Pour the thyme-berry syrup, lemon juice, and gin into a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously for about 30 seconds or until it’s frosty. Strain into a chilled coupe or flute. Add enough champagne or sparkling wine to fill the glass and garnish the drink with a lemon twist, a few berries, or a sprig of thyme. Sip while praying that democracy survives.
