Champagne Grapefruit Sorbet - Sorbet

Method

• Remove all the pulp and juice from your grapefruit into a medium, heavy gauge saucepan. Be careful not to allow any of the pith to get in, as it will make the sorbet bitter. Add your bottle of champagne to the saucepan, and reduce until there is 1/4 cup of liquid. This can take over 30 minutes, so be patient. If the reduction over reduces and caramelizes, the flavor will be nothing but burnt sugar, so I recommend turning the burner down to low when you are nearing the end. Likewise, if champagne is not reduced far enough, the sorbet will seperate in the freezer.
• While grapefruit reduces, prepare an ice bath. Place 1 Cup of the water into a 2 quart bowl or measuring cup, and place this in the ice bath. Combine the remaining 1 1/4 Cup water with the 1 3/4 Cups sugar in a medium, heavy gauge saucepan, and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as mixture begins to boil, pour into the measuring cup with cold water resting in your ice bath. The consistency should be just thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
• When champagne is reduced, strain the syrup through a cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer directly into your sorbet base, still in the ice bath. If you have been careful to remove the pith and seeds, you can add the pulp in with the sorbet if you prefer, but sorbet will be smoother if this is omitted. Bring champagne and sorbet base down to a cold temperature, and freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions. Allow to freeze for at least 1 hour before serving.