How to Make a French Martini Italian
Summer's coming . . .
It may be winter when The Italian Lesson opens, but as summer approaches us, we want you to be ready for hot summer days and warm summer evenings with an easy-to-make cocktail that will make you feel like you jumped into a cool ocean during a heat wave.
Typically made with Chambord, the French Martini becomes much better if we make it with an Italian twist—use Crème de Cassis instead of Chambord and (our favorite part) add extra-dry Prosecco.
INGREDIENTS [Serves 2]
2 oz. vodka
1 oz. Crème de Cassis
1 oz. pineapple juice
Ice
2 oz. Prosecco
INSTRUCTIONS
Pour vodka, Crème de Cassis, and pineapple juice into a cocktail shaker over ice. Shake to get as cold as possible. Strain it into a martini glass.
Add Prosecco.
Or you can pour into an old-fashioned glass over large ice cubes .
For a delicious semi-mocktail, pour equal parts pineapple juice and San Pellegrino over ice and add a Crème de cCassis floater (the liquer has a low alcohol content of only 15%). For a straight-up mocktail, simply replace the Crème de Cassis with the same amount of black currant syrup.
Do you want a cocktail that’s lighter and drier? Just hold the vodka, ice, and pineapple juice and you wind up with an absolute classic: the Kir Royale.
All you have to do is add one ounce of Crème de Cassis to four ounces of Prosecco—fresh raspberries optional—and you have the perfect cocktail to sip while watching the sunset over Tuscan vineyards. Salute!
I just rode my bike to the liquor store in search of Crème de Cassis, the bike ride providing the means and the justification for the drink (if justification be needed). Got home, made it, drank it, enjoyed it.
Just because it has vodka, that doesn't mean it's a martini. This is closer to the French 75 cocktail with pineapple replacing the lemon juice and the Creme de Cassis instead of simple syrup. Can we come up with a more distinctive name? Perhaps EJ's Revenge?