About Vanessa Muri
Montreal City Editor Vanessa Muri has lived in London and Tokyo, but finds the charms of her hometown irresistible. From the latest scoops to the best deals in Montreal and everything in between, don't miss her weekly take on life in the fair city.
Flaming Bubbles
Montreal Musings: Charles Heidsieck Champagne canada, Montreal
(Dec.14.11)
Time truly flies. It feels like yesterday, but it’s already been two years since I took part in an entertaining cocktail-making workshop at Atelier et Saveurs. (Too long for my taste buds.)
So it was a lovely surprise to bump into Fanny Gauthier again while champagne tasting a few weeks ago. We were invited to sample several styles of wine in the Piper Heidsieck family, including the Brut, the Rosé and a $253 bottle of Cuvé Rare Millésime 1999. (In a word, wow.)
I was thinking of ways to integrate champagne into the holiday season, and asked Fanny – one of Montreal's best mixologists – if she could concoct two special cocktails for Sweetspot readers, one for the ladies and one for the gents.
Bubble Guys (no explanation needed) is made with Charles Heidsieck Brut Réserve Champagne, a beautiful complex bubbly with almond, peach and tropical fruit notes. It's not sweet, but it's so yummy, ladies will also find it a great aperitif. And it's a kicker – one is all you need...
One straw
Zest of an orange
2–3 basil leaves
1 ounce of white cranberry juice
½ ounce of lemon juice
½ ounce of Rémy Martin cognac
½ ounce of Cointreau
1 bottle of Charles Heidsieck Brut
A lighter
Mini clothes peg (from the dollar store)
Peel the skin of half an orange in one long strip. Wrap it around the straw as if it were a curling iron and set aside.
Rip the basil leaves in half (to release the oils), and drop in the shaker glass. Pour the cranberry and lemon juices, the cognac and Cointreau over the leaves. Add ice and shake.
Using an ice filter, pour everything into the flute and fill to the top with champagne. Tip: you need to stir the cocktail at the end or the champagne will merely rest on top.
For the pièce de résistance, slice off a larger wedge of orange peel with a knife and pick up the lighter. Spark it as you squeeze the wedge to release the oils – this will caramelize them on their way down (and looks pretty darn impressive).
Garnish with basil leaves and the long orange curl held on by the mini clothes peg. Voila: a fresh, flavourful cocktail with a nice, long aftertaste.
Ladies, look for your singular cocktail in next week’s blog. Santé!
Photo credit: Marc Muri Photography