The Kir Cocktail Recipe

Posted in Liquers on March 3, 2014

The Kir cocktail originated in France and it eventually became popular worldwide. It is a combination of crème de cassis and white wine and French people usually serve it before meals or snacks. It is the perfect choice for those who like berry flavored liqueurs.

The original name of the drink was blanc-cassis, but it was renamed in the honor of Felix Kir. He was the mayor of Dijon and he had a great contribution in reviving this cocktail and in making it known worldwide. The popularity of the cocktail increased because the mayor was serving it to foreign visitors who took it to their home countries. More than that, after the Second World War it was necessary for the drink to be re-considered because the Germans have confiscated the original red Burgundy wine which was used for its preparation. The mayor managed to make the cocktail popular again by replacing red wine with white one. He achieved this performance in a year during which the quality of the white wine was pretty poor. However, this drawback was masked with the help of crème de cassis.

Nowadays the Kir is made with dry white wine or with Chablis. The International Bartenders Association recommends a part of crème de cassis and nine parts of wine. Some other recipes recommend one fifth or even one third crème de cassis. It is not at all a good idea to replace the crème de cassis with blackcurrant syrup. On the other hand, in France it is popular to choose between crème de cassis, crème de blackberry and crème de peach.

How to Prepare the Kir Cocktail

Making a cocktail can’t get simpler than this. The drink is usually served in wine glasses.

You need the following ingredients:

  • ¼ oz. of crème de cassis.
  • 2 ¼ oz. of white wine.

Pour the crème de cassis on the bottom of the wine glass and add the wine slowly.

Kir Variations

Since this cocktail is so easy to make, a lot of variations have appeared in time. The most famous one is Kir Royal which replaces the wine with champagne. Cider Royal uses cider instead of wine and the Cardinal is made with red wine instead of white one. Other variations you can try include:

  • Kir Berrichon – it is made with red wine and crème de mure.
  • Kir Breton – uses Breton cider instead of wine.
  • Kir Peche – it is made with peach liqueur instead of crème de cassis.
  • Kir Petillant – it is made with sparkling wine.
  • Kir Imperial – it uses raspberry liqueur instead of crème de cassis and champagne instead of wine.
  • Kir Pamplemousse -it uses sparkling wine and grapefruit liqueur.
  • Pink Russian – it replaces the wine with milk.

All the variations are equally easy to make, so you can try them at home and see which one you like best.

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