Aviation

About the Aviation

Floral, tart, and delicately balanced, the Aviation is a classic gin sour built on Timber Creek Florida Gin, fresh lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, and a small measure of creme de violette that gives the drink its signature pale lavender hue. The creme de violette is doing careful, precise work in this recipe. Too much and the drink tips into perfume territory; too little and you lose the floral lift that makes an Aviation an Aviation.

Timber Creek Florida Gin is well suited to this balancing act because its botanicals are distilled with restraint as part of the distillery’s grain to glass approach, leaving room for the violette and maraschino to register clearly rather than competing with an overly assertive gin. The lemon juice, meanwhile, keeps the whole thing from tipping too sweet, cutting through the floral and cherry notes with real acidity. To build it, shake the gin, lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, and creme de violette hard with ice until well chilled, then strain into a chilled coupe glass.

No garnish is typically needed, since the drink’s color is its own visual statement, though a cherry can be added if you’d like a nod to the maraschino. This is a cocktail with real history behind its name and formula [VERIFY: exact date and originating bar of the classic Aviation recipe], and it remains a good choice for an evening that calls for something a little more refined. The suggested pairings of dark chocolate, blue cheese, and roasted almonds all bring out different sides of the drink’s floral and tart character, and a duck breast entree gives the drink a rich, savory foil earlier in the meal.

It’s a well balanced drink, which can make it easy to underestimate its strength, so pace your rounds, eat something alongside it, and make sure you have a safe way to get home. Its delicate presentation is part of the appeal, so give yourself time to actually enjoy it rather than drinking it quickly.

Floral, tart, and delicately balanced, the Aviation is a classic gin sour built on Timber Creek Florida Gin, fresh lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, and a small measure of creme de violette that gives the drink its signature pale lavender hue. The creme de violette is doing careful, precise work in this recipe. Too much and the drink tips into perfume territory; too little and you lose the floral lift that makes an Aviation an Aviation.

Timber Creek Florida Gin is well suited to this balancing act because its botanicals are distilled with restraint as part of the distillery’s grain to glass approach, leaving room for the violette and maraschino to register clearly rather than competing with an overly assertive gin. The lemon juice, meanwhile, keeps the whole thing from tipping too sweet, cutting through the floral and cherry notes with real acidity. To build it, shake the gin, lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, and creme de violette hard with ice until well chilled, then strain into a chilled coupe glass.

No garnish is typically needed, since the drink’s color is its own visual statement, though a cherry can be added if you’d like a nod to the maraschino. This is a cocktail with real history behind its name and formula [VERIFY: exact date and originating bar of the classic Aviation recipe], and it remains a good choice for an evening that calls for something a little more refined. The suggested pairings of dark chocolate, blue cheese, and roasted almonds all bring out different sides of the drink’s floral and tart character, and a duck breast entree gives the drink a rich, savory foil earlier in the meal.

It’s a well balanced drink, which can make it easy to underestimate its strength, so pace your rounds, eat something alongside it, and make sure you have a safe way to get home. Its delicate presentation is part of the appeal, so give yourself time to actually enjoy it rather than drinking it quickly.