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The French Blonde has surged in popularity since Taylor Swift called it her favorite cocktail — but that’s not why you should make it. It’s a lovely, beautifully-balanced, and versatile drink.
Why you’ll love this recipe
If you’re a fan of easy-drinking, well-balanced gin cocktails like I am, you’ll love the French Blonde. It’s:
- Bright and citrusy
- Floral, but in a good way (I’m not a huge fan of floral flavors in general, but elderflower is easy to love)
- Soft but not too sweet
- A little bit herbal and a little bit astringent
It’s a just-right Goldilocks situation, now that I think of it, which makes perfect sense for a drink with “blonde” right there in its name.
What you’ll need
Here’s a glance at the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe.
- Lillet blanc is a French aperitif wine. It’s made from Bordeaux grapes, aromatized with herbs, spices, and citrus, and fortified (to 17% ABV — stronger than wine, but gentle for a cocktail ingredient) with macerated fruit liqueurs. Not too sweet, not too bitter, Lillet blanc is great on its own over ice, and it also makes an amenable cocktail ingredient.
- Use a good London dry gin. In this post I’ve pictured Bombay Sapphire. I also tend to have a bottle of either Hendricks or Tanqueray on hand at all times. Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin, Plymouth, The Botanist, and Aviation would make great choices, too. Each has a different flavor profile, but they all work nicely, as will your favorite brand.
- Use freshly squeezed ruby red or pink grapefruit juice for the best drinks. If you’re batching this drink for a party and if you’d rather not squeeze your own grapefruits, I’ve also had great success with cold-pressed bottled grapefruit juice like Evolution Fresh.
- St-Germain is my elderflower liqueur of choice. You can also use Giffard Wild Elderflower Liqueur (Fleur de Sureau sauvage) or any other brand that you like.
- For the final ingredient, you’ve got options. The more traditional choice is lemon bitters, but if you don’t have any on hand (and I typically don’t), you can use some freshly squeezed lemon juice and a segment of peel instead.
How to make it
Here’s an overview of what you’ll do to make a French Blonde. You can see the steps in action in the video that accompanies this post, and get all the details in the recipe card below.
- Remove a long piece of peel from the grapefruit and then juice it.
- Pour all the ingredients except the grapefruit peel into a cocktail shaker filled halfway with ice.
- Shake until very cold.
- Strain into a glass, garnish, and serve. That’s it!
Expert tips and FAQs
It kinda surprises me that you ended up here if you hate gin, but you’re in luck. This cocktail would also work beautifully with vodka. No other changes required.
Sure thing. Follow these steps to make eight drinks. Up to three hours before serving time, stir together in a pitcher: two cups strained freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, two cups Lilet Blanc, one cup gin, 1/2 cup elderflower liqueur, 1/2 cup cold water, and 1/2 cup strained freshly squeezed lemon juice plus eight strips of lemon zest OR 24 dashes lemon bitters. Cover and refrigerate until serving time, then pour into garnished glasses to serve.
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French Blonde Cocktail
Ingredients
- 2 ounces (60 ml) freshly squeezed pink or red grapefruit juice
- 2 ounces (60 ml) Lilet Blanc
- 1 ounce (30 ml) London dry gin
- ½ ounce (15 ml) elderflower liqueur (such as St-Germain)
- ½ ounce (15 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice plus 1 inch lemon peel OR 3 dashes lemon bitters
- Long grapefruit twist, to garnish
Instructions
- Using a vegetable peeler, remove a long strip of peel from the grapefruit.
- Cut the grapefruit in half and juice it. (You will probably only need to juice half to make one drink.)
- Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice.
- Strain in the grapefruit juice.
- Pour in the Lilet Blanc, gin, and elderflower liqueur.
- Strain in the lemon juice and add the peel, or dash in the bitters.
- Shake until very cold, then strain into a coupe or Nick and Nora glass.
- Thread the grapefruit peel onto a cocktail pick, garnish the drink, and serve.
Notes
- If you like, you can batch this cocktail for a party. Follow these steps to make eight drinks. Up to three hours before serving time, stir together in a pitcher: two cups strained freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, two cups Lilet Blanc, one cup gin, 1/2 cup elderflower liqueur, 1/2 cup cold water, and 1/2 cup strained freshly squeezed lemon juice plus eight strips of lemon zest OR 24 dashes lemon bitters. Cover and refrigerate until serving time, then pour into garnished glasses to serve.
- Not a gin fan? This cocktail would also work beautifully with vodka. No other changes required.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I will definitely make this big batch version next weekend for a dinner party. Why am I adding water?
Cheers!
Lisa
Hi, Lisa, good question! When you shake a single cocktail, the ice in the shaker dilutes it a bit, which is part of the recipe. When you batch it instead, you’re skipping that step, so you need to add some water. It’s standard practice.