Champs Élysées
COCKTAIL INGREDIENTS:
- 45 ml Cognac
- 22,5 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
- 15 ml Simple Syrup
- 7,5 ml Green Chartreuse
- 2 dashes Angostura Bitters
GARNISH:
- Lemon Twist
INSTRUCTIONS:
• Combine all of the ingredients in a cocktail shaker.
• Add ice and shake until chilled.
• Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
• Garnish with a twist of lemon.
Cocktail author: Champs Élysées has been mentioned for the first time in 1925 book Drinks - Long and Short and five years later in Harry Craddock's The Savoy Cocktail Book. This particular recipe has been adapted by Tommy Stearns.
Champs Élysées is a clear riff on another 1920s classic cocktail The Sidecar.
Main ingredients of these two cocktails are identical: cognac and lemon juice. Sweetener is where the things start to differ. While Sidecar gets its sweetness from Triple Sec, here it is provided by a combination of simple syrup and, of course, green chartreuse. The latter also brings a lot of additional complexity and herbaceousness to the mix. While seemingly a miniscule amount, just a quarter of an ounce, this strong liqueur goes a long way. Finally, a couple of dashes of angostura bitters to bring it all together and a tasty classic from the roaring twenties will come to life.
While Sidecar is often compared to a daiquiri, Champs Élysées is much more a cocktail in its own right and really worth trying.