Aviation Cocktail

2 oz Gin (London Dry)
1 oz Lemon juice
2 ds Maraschino Liqueur
2 ds Crème de Violette
Instructions

Shake. strain, up.

Notes

Ensslin's recipe is 2 parts London Dry gin, 1 part lemon juice, 2 dashes each Maraschino and Creme de Violette, with no garnish. Ted Haigh, in Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails has this as 2 1/2 oz gin, 3/4 oz lemon juice, and 2 or 3 dashes of Maraschino - it omits the creme de violette, which is a transcription error from Ensslin to the Savoy Cocktail Book. This can be made more floral with more violette and sweeter by reducing the lemon juice.

Cocktail summary
Aviation Cocktail
Wikipedia public domain
Posted by Dan on
Created by
Hugo Ensslin, Hotel Wallick, New York, NY
Year
1916
Is an
authentic recipe
Reference

Recipes for Mixed Drinks, Hugo Ensslin, pg. 7

Curator
4 stars
Average
4 stars
(104 ratings)
YieldsDrink
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From other users
  • I am ok with more violette
  • 2 oz gin, 0.75 oz lemon juice, 0.5 oz Luxardo (0.3 for piquancy), 0.25 oz Crème de Violette
  • Preferred proportions: 2 oz. gin, 3/4 oz. lemon juice, 1/2 oz. maraschino liqueur and 1/4 creme de violette (or 1/3 oz. if I'm in the mood for something a little bluer and more floral).
  • Used jmmrad's proportions
  • 2 oz gin 3/4 oz lemon juic 1/4 oz each maraschino and Creme de violet
  • Prefer 1/2oz cdv 1/4oz maraschino 1/2oz lemon and yes I like grandma florals
  • 1 1/2 ounces gin 1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice 3/4 ounces maraschino liqueur 1/4 ounce crème de violette (optional) Maraschino cherry, for garnish
  • 2oz gin , preferably dry ¼oz creme de violette ¼oz maraschino liqueur ½oz simple syrup ½oz lemon juice cherry — ★★★★
  • OK this was pretty awful. My only thought is I borked on the lemon juice. This drink was completely overly sour. I'll assume it was user error and will try again soon.
  • I like to go slightly heavier on the Maraschino and a bit lighter on the creme de violette.
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Comments
A G commented on 6/16/2020:

After experimentation, happy with 2oz Sipsmith, 1/2oz each of lemon juice and Luxardo Maraschino, and 1/4oz  Tempus Fugit Liqueur De Violettes.  Only downside to last ingredient is the pink rather than blue tint.

While not strictly canonical, I've settled on using 2 oz gin, .75 oz lemon & .25 each maraschino, creme de violette & parfait amour (Marie Brizard).  The parfait amour gives it the nice purple color everyone seems to want from the drink, but without the overwhelming violet floral taste that using .5 oz CdV yields.

I prefer the D & C version of this. Their specs are 2 oz gin, 3/4 oz lemon juice, 1/2 oz Maraschino, 1/2 tsp crème de Violette, 1/4 simple syrup. I prefer to up the Violette to a full 1/4 oz.

Definitely recommend ignoring this ratio; way too lemon dominant. 7:2:2:1 Gin:Lemon Juice:Maraschino Liqueur:Crème de Violette worked well for me.