pour, stir, strain, imbibe

I don’t write enough about cocktails. Not that I need to write about every classic but the story behind each libation is fun and every drink tastes better with a story.

For years, the Aviation was relegated to a sad, sad drink made of gin, lemon and maraschino liqueur. Because of the lack of crème de violette in the American market the complexity of the cocktail was sorely wanting. However, Eric Seed has recently revived the cocktail with his introduction of Rothman & Winter Crème de Violette to our Hawaii market last month. This has local cocktail geeks flipping out a bit. Adding the creme liqueur to the three prior ingredients pushes the cocktail into another level, a place reserved for Zeus and Hera.

I’ve seen varying recipes for this lofty classic, but the one that I found to be my favorite is below. I hope you enjoy it.

Aviation:

Soaring

1 3/4 oz gin (I like Plymouth in this instance)

1/2 oz fresh pressed lemon juice

1/2 oz maraschino liqueur (just a tad under)

1/4 oz Rothman and Winter Crème de Violette (just a tad more)

Shake hard over ice for 20 seconds

Strain into a chilled cocktail glass

Below I am going to attach a list of products that are only recently available in the Aloha state. All are brought in by Southern Wine and Spirits in conjunction with Haus Alpenz.

1. Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur of the Alps
2. Rothman & Winter Orchard Apricot Liqueur
3. Rothman & Winter Crème de Violette
4. Cocchi Americano
5. Dolin Dry, Blanc and Sweet Vermouths
6. Hayman’s Old Tom Gin
7. Pear Williams Purkhart Alto Adige Eau-de-Vie
8. Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum

9. John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum