Aviation Cocktail

[Phog Allen]

The very name of this cocktail is quite intriguing, a bit upbeat, and to me, conjures images of double breasted suits and pleasnt early spring evenings. I had heard of this cocktail a few different times but never really tried making it. I still haven't but after looking over the formula, I realised it used one of the wetshaving community's favoured essenses. Violets. Creme de violette and more precisely, Creme Yvette. Sad to say, Creme Yvette dissapeared in the 1960's so what to do? Finding a creme de violette of any kind is a tricky business. It is almost excluvisely made in France. I think only one is actually imported to America and it is hard to find. I have seen high praise for a brand called Benoit Selles. This may be a possibiliy for me. I am working with a French college student for the summer and he is going to see if his parents can arrange a bottle or two to be brought over for me. Lucky me, eh?

I just wondered what your take on the Avaiation was and how you would describe it in its violette-less incarnation? It sounds good as is but I am really letting myself daydream about a bottle of violette. BTW, Creme Yvette was produced by the same company that own Chambord. I emailed them today, tellling them I would really love to be able to try this liqueur.

Regards, Todd

 

[Darjeeling Express]

Had a sip of a very high end one last night. Amazing.

Here is an excellent recipe. http://www.smallscreennetwork.com/video/102

Use Luxardo Maraschino and here is your secret violet ingredient

http://www.astorwines.com/SearchRes...h=18483&searchtype=Contains&term=violette&p=2

Enjoy!

 

[Phog Allen]

Excellent. And a new development in my own region. My lead with the French lad did not work out. His parents are unfamiliar with the product. So this is not the only place where it is a bit of an oddity. However, a recent visit to our local spirits store revealed a clerk who knew what it was and couple of brands at that. Unfortunately it is not distributed in Kansas but may be in Missouri which is only thirty odd miles away. So it may be a reality for me yet.

Regards, Todd

 

[clubman]

An aviation without Creme de Violette ain't bad if you can't get your hands on a bottle - keep in mind that the CdV component of the drink is as much for color (a pretty purplish sky-blue) as anything, I only add 1/4 oz if that - the stuff is pretty sweet and with the maraschino liqueur in there as well you gotta watch the sickliness level. I have a bottle of Rothman & Winter that I'll probably bequeath to my heirs at the rate I'm going through it. Most bars that specialize in classic cocktails (note these are not necessarily classic old bars but generally newer places with "mixologists" on staff - the drink was more or less lost for decades until it was unearthed by cocktail hipsters a few years back) will whip up one of these. If anyone's in the DFW area, both the Usual in Fort Worth and Bolsa in Dallas make nice Aviations. Kansas, I got nothing, though...

 

[GarageBoy]

I don't care about the cocktail hipster culture, but those bars are usually AWESOME
This and the Sunflower are my 2 current favorite summer drinks

 

[Sparafucile]

I make mine with Luxardo Maraschino, and the CdeV is not that hard to find here in NYC. There are more than one or two brands available, but every state will have it's own distributors, and hence not easily available. As said, it lends a nice purple color, and a rather nice, but hard-to-describe taste. I prefer Citadelle Gin - I find the London dry gins too in-your-face juniper.... I like and use Gary Regan's Joy of Mixology recipes for most everything, including the Aviation.

 

[Phog Allen]

Thank you to all the gentlemen who have responded to this thread. B&B is always a go to for obscure and useful information. I most certainly sense an Aviation in my future.

Regards, Todd

 

[Sparafucile]

Thank you to all the gentlemen who have responded to this thread. B&B is always a go to for obscure and useful information. I most certainly sense an Aviation in my future.

Regards, Todd

Enjoy it! When Gary Regan's Joy of Mixology came out in 2002 I was overcome with joy - it was THE book on classic cocktail making that I had been waiting for! It's a great book, and you will, I'm sure, find many other classic cocktails that you will love!

 

[cthip]

i'm willing to bet you could make a pretty nice violet liqueur using the same method people use to make limoncello. steep the metals in a neutral alcohol. strain. dilute with sugar syrup and/or other flavorings. wikipedia says that creme yvette may have also had some vanilla or citrus in it. i dislike using everclear for this method, but i've found a similar product from poland called "spirytus" that works VERY well. if you can't find it any decent vodka will work, just add less water to the finished product. i like titos, but in a pinch smirnoff, absolut, or even svedka would work.

if you can't find violets locally (or at least none that you would consider edible), you could probably start with something like this

http://www.amazon.com/India-Tree-Candied-Violet-Petals/dp/B0006GSXS4

they have sugar, food coloring, and gum arabic in them, which you might not want in your finished product. you could make a nice (non-alcoholic) version the same way rosewater is made. place the petals in a wide pot and cover with water. place a small bowl or pie plate in the center. place the lid upside-down over the pot to make a simple still. the violet water will evaporate, condense on the inverted lid, and drip down to your bowl or pie plate. most of the nasty additives will be left in the pot.

i guess the question is--how badly do you want violet in your aviation? i don't think i've ever had one with violet, but you've got me curious now since i love them even without the it.

 

[Hugo_Shavez]

This recipe of Samuel Kinsey's is outstanding. I make one alteration: instead of drizzling in the Creme de Violette at the end, I add it to the shaker with the other ingredients. I found that drizzling causes the CdV to settle at the bottom, leaving a less uniform color, and perhaps more importantly, flavor.

I would argue that the CdV is an essential ingredient, after all, the aesthetic quality of a drink is as important as any other factor.

 

[gmrv4]

Excellent. And a new development in my own region. My lead with the French lad did not work out. His parents are unfamiliar with the product. So this is not the only place where it is a bit of an oddity. However, a recent visit to our local spirits store revealed a clerk who knew what it was and couple of brands at that. Unfortunately it is not distributed in Kansas but may be in Missouri which is only thirty odd miles away. So it may be a reality for me yet.

Regards, Todd

Gomer's at 99th and Holmes has Creme de Violette on the shelf. $22 for a bottle, don't recall the brand. HTH

 

[GarageBoy]

What's a good Creme de Violette available here in NYC?

 

[Sparafucile]

Rothman and Winter is a single-note one, not particularly sweet and is the most popular.. There is also Coopers, which I have not tried and of course, the original Creme Yvette has been revived, and is at Astor for $40. I plan on buying it for my next bottle.

 

[benvh]

The link Darjeeling Express posted is for Astor Wines...4th and Lafayette. That place has everything, including Hum Botanical Spirit (a shameless plug for my good friend who has his name on the bottle ).

Ben

 

[LuckyR]

The very name of this cocktail is quite intriguing, a bit upbeat, and to me, conjures images of double breasted suits and pleasnt early spring evenings. I had heard of this cocktail a few different times but never really tried making it. I still haven't but after looking over the formula, I realised it used one of the wetshaving community's favoured essenses. Violets. Creme de violette and more precisely, Creme Yvette. Sad to say, Creme Yvette dissapeared in the 1960's so what to do? Finding a creme de violette of any kind is a tricky business. It is almost excluvisely made in France. I think only one is actually imported to America and it is hard to find. I have seen high praise for a brand called Benoit Selles. This may be a possibiliy for me. I am working with a French college student for the summer and he is going to see if his parents can arrange a bottle or two to be brought over for me. Lucky me, eh?

I just wondered what your take on the Avaiation was and how you would describe it in its violette-less incarnation? It sounds good as is but I am really letting myself daydream about a bottle of violette. BTW, Creme Yvette was produced by the same company that own Chambord. I emailed them today, tellling them I would really love to be able to try this liqueur.

Regards, Todd

Really? I was heavily into mixology a few years back and the Aviation is well known and appreciated in those circles and I never ran across a recipe with CdV. So I guess I never missed it since I didn't know it was an option. Personally I did not care for the standard ingredient proportions. So I would stress two points: first don't use any other Maraschino liquor other than Luxardo, second I would cut the lemon juice and up the Maraschino proportions to your taste.

 

[Phog Allen]

Gomer's at 99th and Holmes has Creme de Violette on the shelf. $22 for a bottle, don't recall the brand. HTH

Sorry for the late response. Thank you. Gomer's was recommended to me as a place to look for it. Looks like good advise. Thanks.

Regards, Todd

 

[gmrv4]

Had some friends over a couple of evenings ago and enjoyed the Aviation Cocktail. Good times with a tasty new drink addition.

 

[Sparafucile]

I went to buy the recently re-released Creme Yvette and had some sticker shock: a bit over $60 for a 750... I opted for the Drillaud Creme de Violette at $20.

Drillaud is stocked by Total Wines, a spirit and wine superstore, and I've found Drillaud creme de cacao and creme de menthe to be excellent. I'll report after I mix an Aviation later this week. (Tonight's cocktail is an Orange Manhattan).

BTW, GMRV, I like your photo in the post above!