Champagne Cock-Tail

The Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain, 1869

1 sugar cube

Juice of 1 lemon wedge

1 part Angostura Bitters

2 parts Champagne

1 lemon twist, for garnish

Place the sugar cube in a Champagne flute and squeeze the juice from the lemon wedge over it.

Add the bitters and top with the Champagne.

Garnish with the lemon twist and enjoy.

Our general said, “We will take a whiskey straight.”

[A stare from the Frenchman.]

Well, if you don’t know what that is, give us a champagne cock-tail.”

[A stare and a shrug.]

Twain, along with a group of travelers, are frustrated to discover that when in Paris, an establishment that proclaims “All manner of American drinks artistically prepared here” doesn't have to follow through on that promise. As you’ll see, Twain & Co. list a whole selection of popular mixed drinks of the day while trying to find common ground with the inept barkeep.

Of course, “champagne cock-tail” is a very generic term for just about anything mixed with Champagne, so their request was admittedly rather vague. Still, a classic version of the recipe is simply Champagne, Angostura Bitters, a sugar cube, and a lemon or orange twist, a version that has been around since the 1850s, and might well have been what Twain and the others were expecting.