Aviation

The Aviation cocktail looks and feels modern, but it's actually a classic from the early 1900's. That being said, you'll recognising quite a few of these ingredients that frequently appear in other classic cocktails including Gin and Maraschino Liqueur. Things get a little more unusual with the Creme de Violette (more on this later), but other than that, while this is a great and creative cocktail, there'a not a lot unusual about it!

The Creme de Violette creates the interesting purple colour of this cocktail which is both slightly unusual but pleasing at the same time. However, watch out here. While it gives great colour, Creme de Violette also has a lot of flavour. Don't get too heavy handed otherwise it will quickly take over the drink.

Total Time 3

Servings 1 cocktail

Ingredients

60 mL Gin
15 mL Maraschino Liqueur
10 mL Creme de Violette
20 mL Lemon Juice
Garnish with a cherry

Instructions

Add Gin, Maraschino Liqueur, Creme de Violette, and Lemon Juice to a cocktail shaker with plenty of ice. Shake everything until it's well chilled.
Strain into a Coupe glass.
Garnish, serve, and enjoy.

Notes

While this cocktail was popular in the first half of the 20th Century, it pretty much disapeared when Crème de Violette couldn't be found in the United States after the 1960's. The good news is that in the early 2000's, this spirit has come back, leading to a resurgence in the Aviation Cocktail going forward.

As mentioned Crème de Violette has a lot of flavour to it, so it's not really an ingredient you can skip here. Some have tried, but it's far from the same.

Our Review of the Aviation Cocktail

The flavour of the Aviation Cocktail is quite distinct thanks to the creme de violette. If you’re not sure what creme de violette tastes like, just think about what violet tastes like. Yes, I know that’s not a flavour, but we all know what red tastes like, what blue tastes like, etc. Creme de violette is sweet and flowery, it’s like candy. There’s almost a Pez-like quality to it. And it’s quite a robust flavour!

Seriously, a bit of creme de violette goes a long way! It’s easy for the Aviation Cocktail to go overboard in this recipe. Sure, gin can have a pretty robust flavour, as can maraschino liqueur, but trust me, the creme de violette will come through more. That’s why the recipe only calls for 10 mL of it!

But if you follow the recipe properly, the Aviation Cocktail turns out quite tasty. Since creme de violette isn’t used much these days (because it wasn’t available for so long), it’s likely a flavour you haven’t come across too much. It’s just this single ingredient that makes the Aviation pretty unique in terms of cocktails. And that’s why the Aviation will surprise you.

The biggest problem with the Aviation is that if you’re making cocktails at home, you’re not going to have a lot of opportunity to use your creme de violette in other cocktails. Of course you’ll find plenty of opportunities to use gin. Getting a bottle of maraschino liqueur is very worthwhile, especially for pre-Prohibition cocktails, but creme de violette? I’m not saying that you should get a bottle of creme de violette just to make Aviations, but it’s kind of worth it…

Try the Aviation as a great throwback to some forgotten classics, then find excuses to use it elsewhere. You won’t be disappointed.

7/19

Review by Chas

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