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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
(105 ratings)
Yields Drink
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From other users
  • I preferred this as 1.5-2 oz gin, 0.5 oz everything else
  • 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.
  • Needs more violet. — ★★★
  • Testing 3 alternate recipes found online: 2 gin, 3/4 lemon, 1/2 luxardo, 1/4 violette - it's okay but violette lost and citrus forward. Next was 2 gin, 1/4 maraschino, 1/4 violette, 1/2 lemon - much better but still needs more violette in my opinion. Last is best so far but I had to up the gin from a paltry 1 1/2 to 2 gin, 1/2 maraschino, 3/4 violette, 1/2 lemon - Great color, violet forward but maybe lemon could also be cut back. My personal version which I obviously like best but is not for everyone is 2 gin, 1 violette, 1/2 lemon, 1/4 luxardo and 1 dash lavender bitters on top. Honestly, I like them all in one form or another. — ★★★★★
  • My preferences mirror one other person's: 2 gin, 3/4 lemon, 1/2 maraschino, 1/4 violette. Cherry garnish
  • Use 2 oz gin, 3/4 lemon, 1/2 maraschino, 1/2 violette
  • 2 oz Gin (Sapphire); 0.5 lemon juice, 0.25 each Maraschino and Violette from https://www.thespruceeats.com/aviation-cocktail-recipe-760055 — ★★★★★
  • 2oz Aria gin, 3/4 oz lemon, 1/2 oz Luxardo, 1/3 is Elderflower (didn't have CdV), barspoon Toschi juice + cherry, finish w 2 dashes Peychauds & 1 dash orange flower water — ★★★★
  • This is good, I prefer the Death & Company ratios: 2 oz Plymouth Gin 1/2 oz Luxardo 1/2 teaspoon creme de violette (they use yvette) 3/4 oz lemon juice 1/4 oz simple
  • The version I make is: 2 oz Bombay Sapphire gin 1/2 oz lemon juice 1/2 oz Maraschino liqueur 1/4 oz Creme de Violette Shake ingredients with ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a brandied cherry.
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Comments
famico commented on 11/02/2012:

Gary Regan's Joy of Mixology book does a simpler, less lemon, more cherry, no violette, version: 2oz gin, 1/2oz maraschino, 1/2 lemon. If I like Regan's version, I'll get Creme de Violette later.

Dan commented on 11/02/2012:

I suspect that Gary, like Ted Haigh, omits the Violette or Yvette because at the time of the writing, it wasn't available. I think it's pretty clear that the original had either Yvette or possibly Violette in order to give it the characteristic light blue color. Today, Cooper's Yvette isn't blue, so I think most people are using Violette. That said, the Violette is very strong, so I personally recommend starting with only 1/2 tsp and increasing if you like that perfume-like floral flavor. I do think that the cocktail is much more interesting with Violette. The funkiness of the Maraschino somehow offsets the yuckiness of grandma's Violette -- in a counter-intuitive sort of synergy. I hate to say it, but since Violette is artificially colored, you could add a drop of diluted blue food coloring to achieve the color if you don't have (or don't want) Violette.

Zachary Pearson commented on 2/14/2013:

I'm going to clean up this cocktail and its five variations tonight. If you think one of them is worth saving - other than the Aviation Cocktail #1, which I think we should rename Aviation (Jacques Straub), please let me know.

Thanks,

Zachary

DPlum commented on 3/21/2013:

I've tried to like this cocktail with similar proportions, but the lemon needs far more sweetener to make a comfortable balance on my tongue. I do find that the Creme de Violette does a wonderful job of toning down the harsher edge of the Maraschino and I really like the pairing in equal proportions. My current favorite proportions are 1.5 oz Gin, and .5 oz across the board for the Creme de Violette, Maraschino and Lemon Juice. The drink loses the famous sky-blue color, but still is quite a beauty with a cherry resting at the base.

82Jetta commented on 1/05/2014:

I tried this cocktail last night for the first time using the proportions listed in the Haus Alpenz recipe which differs slightly from your recipe. Both, if I'm not mistaken, differ from Hugo Ensslin's recipe which I liked the best. I've started on a classic cocktail kick and didn't realize what I was missing.

jaba commented on 1/26/2014:

Are you sure it's only 2 dashes of Violette? I used the Rothman and Winter CdV for this recipe and I tasted no creme de violette and it wasn't at all blue.

Zachary Pearson commented on 1/26/2014:

Jaba,

I'm sure it's 2 dashes. You could try setting a "part" at 3/4 oz (which will make a small drink), or increasing the Violette until you like it.

Thanks,

Zachary

Dan commented on 1/26/2014:

I use 1/4 tsp per dash, so about 1/2 tsp for this, which I find gives a nice background floral aspect and a slight greyish color. There is always uncertainty in what a dash is, especially for an ingredient that doesn't come in a dasher bottle.

Some use up to a 1/2 oz of Violette. There's no reason you shouldn't adjust this to your taste. You may have to adjust the lemon too.

jaba commented on 5/27/2014:

Liked:
2 oz gin
1 oz lemon
1/2 oz maraschino
1 tsp CdV

Jmmrad commented on 5/29/2016:

It's hard to measure dash of CdV and Maraschino liqueur. I prefer the 1/4 oz CdV, 1/3-1/2 oz Maraschino along w 1/2-3/4 oz lemon juice and 2 oz gin.