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Kir Royale (French)

french-kirroyale2You'll find this champagne cocktail as a pre-dinner drink on the menu of bistros and restaurants all across France. It's a terrific celebratory way to kick off a meal - fizzy, sparkling, sweet, and who can resist the colour. If you like berry-flavoured cocktails then this classic is a great choice. The Kir is a perfect wine cocktail to serve at an open house, business reception, or casual cocktail party because it is very simple. Depending on the wine, it can also be inexpensive to mix up. The Kir is one of the few cocktails to use crème de cassis. The blackcurrant liqueur acts as a dark fruit sweetener that dresses up any wine wonderfully. Kir Royale swaps out wine for Champagne, taking it up a notch.

The Kir is named after its jovial French creator, Lejay connoisseur Canon Felix Kir (who was also the mayor of Dijon) invented the first cassis cocktail, the Kir, made with white wine, and the Kir Royale, made with champagne.

5 oz Champagne
1 Tbsp. crème de cassis liqueur

First, add the crème de cassis to a fluted glass, then slowly top with Champagne (best to pour down the side of the glass for less intense foam).

Makes 1 drink.

Cook's Notes:

  • DRINKWARE: The IBA site states that a white wine glass be used for Kir Royale, but a flute glass is used more commonly for this cocktail.
  • GARNISH: Although a Kir Royale does not have any garnish, some recipes call for the addition of a couple of berries, which act as decoration.