The Champagne Cocktail

Perhaps the Grande Dame of cocktails, the Champagne Cocktail is one of the oldest cocktail recipes, dating back to the mid-1800’s. One of the first published recipes for the Champagne Cocktail appeared in the First Edition of The Bon Vivant’s Companion or How to Mix Drinks by Professor Jerry Thomas, the Principal Bartender at the Metropolitan House in New York and at the Planter’s House in St. Louis. While reading about the history of this bubbly beverage, I decided to take a peek into my grandmother’s cookbook collection, just to see if any books on bartending might be hiding among the spiral bound community cookbooks and The Joy of Cooking. I spotted a yellowed hard back with the words Mix Drinks, in navy text, and there it was The Bon Vivant’s Companion! I grabbed it off the shelf and dove right in.

As the legend goes, Thomas, an orphan, was deposited by an anonymous stork on the doorstep of Mr. and Mrs. William Daniel Thomas, who named him Jeremiah and had dreams of him becoming a distinguished student of Yale University and eventually a Preacher or a Professor. Alas, young Jeremiah did not live up to his parents expectations in the church, but his adept knowledge and prowess behind the bar earned him the title of Professor.  

Concerning the cocktail, Thomas famously wrote, “The cocktail, is a modern invention and is generally used on fishing and other sporting parties, although some patients insist that it is good in the morning as a tonic.”  The first edition of The Bon Vivant’s Companion contained recipes for 10 different cocktails, including The Champagne Cocktail, and all shared the use of Bitters in the recipe. Over the years, the cocktail recipe collection grew, and the drink eventually became preferred as a before dinner drink.  When it comes to The Champagne Cocktail, we think it still is fabulous today served in the morning, with Brunch. 

 The key ingredient to the first modern cocktails was Bitters.   Thomas, unhappy with the selection and quality of bitters in his day, set out and created his own to mix in his cocktails.   For our reinterpretation of The Champagne Cocktail we consulted master mixologist Jane Fischel of Savoy Society.  (If you find yourself in Savannah, make sure a stop at Savoy Society for a cocktail and bite to eat is at the top of your must-do list.) Using oranges harvested from our backyard citrus trees, she created an Orange and Vanilla bitters for our cocktail.  The orange flavors hints at that popular brunch drink, the Mimosa, without perverting the champagne by drowning it in sea of orange juices.  We hope Professor Jerry Thomas would approve.

Champagne Cocktail 

(As printed in The Bon Vivant’s Companion or How to Mix Drinks)

Per Glass

One-half teaspoonful of sugar

One or two dashes of bitters

One-piece lemon peel

Fill tumbler one-third full of broken ice, and fill balance with wine.  Shake well and serve.  Use one bottle of champagne to every six large glasses.

Orange Vanilla Champagne Cocktail

One sugar cube

2-3 drops of Savoy Society Orange Vanilla Bitters

One-piece Orange Peel 

In a champagne flute, place the sugar cube and add the Orange Vanilla Bitters.  Fill the glass with Champagne and garnish with a twist of orange zest.