Thursday 10 December 2015

Low carb French 75 cocktail with the East London Liquor Company

We're inching closer to Christmas by the day and as I'm feeling both generous and festive, I thought I'd treat you with another low carb cocktail idea.



The French 75 is one of my favourite cocktails, and though it's not a permanent fixture on most cocktail menus, when I see it I always order it. I love sparkling cocktails, and I love gin based drinks, so any drink which combines both is worthy of further investigation. Happily, it's a very simple cocktail which means it's very easy to recreate at home. Even better is the fact that it's made with ingredients I almost always have in: gin (an essential that  I never allow myself to run out, in the same way people don't allow themselves to run out of bread or milk), champagne (there's usually some of this knocking around at this time of year, or at least some prosecco or cava), lemon (again a staple as I cover nearly all salads with a combination of lemon juice and olive oil), and finally sugar syrup/ sugar- well this is where we change things up just slightly, but more of this in a moment...




I've created this one with the Premium Gin: Batch No, 1 by the East London Liquor Company. Hand crafted in small batches at the achingly cool former glue factory in Bow, East London, at 45% this gin packs a punch, without managing to taste like it; a potentially dangerous combination as the rich flavours mean you don't notice the higher alcohol content. Drinking a cocktail has to be a multi sensory experience in my book, and this gin certainly enables that; bold juniper notes, layered on a refreshing citrus note hit you as soon as the glass reaches your nose, closely followed by a dry, almost peppery finish. The aroma, combined with the feeling of the bubbles in your mouth and the layers of flavour, surely make this cocktail one of your essentials this Christmas. It's the right combination of simple, elegant, refreshing and punchy! The lemon in the cocktail perfectly complements the grapefruit botanical in the gin, and the sweetener/ sugar brings out the cassia flavour perfectly.


Let's get to it then, to make one you will need:
  • One measure of gin
  • 10ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/2 a teaspoon of sweetener, if you're only having the one or you're not too strict about your carbs you could even indulge in 1 teaspoon of fine sugar
  • A dash of fizz- any fizz will do, I have used soda water here as it brings the carbs and calories down even further which is useful if you're planning on indulging in more than one! If you used a cheaper gin you would probably want the champagne to lift it's flavour 
  • A cocktail shaker
  • A strainer


To make it:
  • Add your gin, sweetener and lemon juice to your cocktail shaker, along with a tumbler worth of ice, and shake well.
  • Strain into a champagne flute, top up with your fizz and garnish with a lemon twist and a crispy sage leaf
  • Enjoy in moderation (easier said than done), as these are potent and delicious little numbers!


*Contains PR samples
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5 comments

  1. This is one of my favourite cocktails, we actually tried to go to the bar where they make this gin for drinks a few months ago but couldn't find it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's really hidden! We went a while ago but took us ages to find as we kept walking past it! Well worth a visit though! Try again!

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  2. This looks amazing!! I love a good cocktail! ❤️

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow, these look amazing! You have totally inspired me to make these for Xmas! Thank you! Do you have to go to the distillery to buy the gin?

    ReplyDelete

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