The Kir is a French cocktail made with a measure of

crème de cassis Crème de cassis () (also known as Cassis liqueur) is a sweet, dark red liqueur made from blackcurrants. Several cocktails are made with crème de cassis, including the popular wine cocktail, kir. It may also be served as an after-dinner liq ...

(blackcurrant liqueur) topped up with white

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

. In

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

it is usually drunk as an apéritif before a meal or snack. It was originally made with

Bourgogne Aligoté Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

, a

white wine White wine is a wine that is fermented without skin contact. The colour can be straw-yellow, yellow-green, or yellow-gold. It is produced by the alcoholic fermentation of the non-coloured pulp of grapes, which may have a skin of any colour. ...

of Burgundy, but today various white wines are used throughout France, according to the region and the barkeeper. Many prefer a white Chardonnay-based Burgundy, such as

Chablis Chablis () is a town and commune in the Yonne department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in north-central France. It lies in the valley of the River Serein. Wine The village of Chablis gives its name to one of the most famous French white wines ...

. It used to be called blanc-cassis, but it is now named after Félix Kir (1876–1968), mayor of

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

in Burgundy. Kir was a pioneer of the twinning movement in the aftermath of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and popularized the drink by offering it at receptions to visiting delegations. Besides treating his international guests well, he was also promoting two economic products of the region. Kir allowed one of Dijon's producers of crème de cassis to use his name, then extended the right to their competitors as well. According to Rolland (2004), the reinvention of blanc-cassis (post 1945) was necessitated by the German Army's confiscation of all the local red Burgundy during the war. Faced with an excess of white wine, Kir renovated a drink that used to be made primarily with the red. Another explanation that has been offered is that Mayor Kir revived it during a year in which the ordinary white wine of the region was inferior and the crème de cassis helped to disguise the fact. Following the commercial development of crème de cassis in 1841, the cocktail became a popular regional café drink, but has since become inextricably linked internationally with the name of Mayor Kir. When ordering a Kir, waiters in France sometimes ask whether the customer wants it made with crème de cassis (blackcurrant), de mûre (blackberry), de pêche (peach), or framboise (raspberry). The

International Bartenders Association The International Bartenders Association (IBA), founded on 24 February 1951 in the saloon of the Grand Hotel in Torquay, England, is an international organisation established in order to represent the best bartenders in the world. An annual e ...

gives a recipe using 1/10 crème de cassis, but French sources typically specify more; 19th-century recipes for blanc-cassis recommended 1/3 crème de cassis, which modern tastes find cloyingly sweet, and modern sources typically about 1/5. Replacing the crème de cassis with blackcurrant syrup is discouraged.e.g
Cuisine Collection
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Variations

Besides the basic Kir, a number of variations exist: * Cidre royal – made with cider instead of wine, with a measure of

calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Nor ...

added * Communard, or cardinal – made with red wine instead of white * Hibiscus royal – made with sparkling wine, peach liqueur, raspberry liqueur, and an edible hibiscus flower * Kir Berrichon – from the Berry region of France. Made with red wine and blackberry liqueur (crème de mûre) * Kir bianco – made with sweet white

Vermouth Vermouth (, ) is an aromatized fortified wine, flavoured with various botanicals (roots, barks, flowers, seeds, herbs, and spices) and sometimes colored. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced in the mid- to late 18th centur ...

instead of wine. * Kir Breton – made with

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

cider instead of wine. * Kir impérial – made with

raspberry The raspberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the rose family, most of which are in the subgenus '' Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Raspberries are perennial with w ...

liqueur (such as

Chambord Chambord can refer to: * Chambord (liqueur), a brand of raspberry-flavored liqueur * Château de Chambord, a French ''château'' built in the 16th century * Chambord, Loir-et-Cher, the French commune where the ''château'' is located * Chambord, ...

) instead of cassis, and champagne * Kir Normand – made with

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and the Republic of Ireland. The UK has the world's highest per capita consumption, ...

instead of wine. * Kir pamplemousse – made with red grapefruit liqueur and sparkling white wine * Kir pêche – made with peach liqueur * Kir pétillant – made with sparkling wine *

Kir royal The Kir royal is a French cocktail, a variation on the Kir. It consists of crème de cassis topped with champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the ...

– made with

Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

* Pink Russian – made with milk instead of wine * Tarantino – made with lager or light ale ("kir-beer")

References

{{Portal bar, Drink Cocktails with wine Cocktails with liqueur