The Roaring 20s, the era of prohibition. What came out of this era are some of the best cocktails ever. Whether it is a sidecar, French 75, Highball, etc. the list goes on. Even when booze was illegal, the number of new drinks that were created are still kicking it today.
The first time that I have ever seen or heard of the Aviation was in The Blacklist (S1E2). Raymond Reddington ordering this drink for Agent Keen in a small bistro in Canada. The coolest part was that he used that order as an intercept to send a coded message to his contact without the FBI knowing. James Spader's performance continues to amaze just like how easy it is to make this drink.
Ingredients:
2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce maraschino liqueur
1/4 ounce creme de violette
3/4 ounce lemon juice, freshly squeezed
Garnish: brandied cherry
Method:
Add the gin, maraschino liqueur, creme de violette and lemon juice to a shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled.
Strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with a brandied cherry.
The Aviation has a nice balance between sweet and tart. Not to mention its supposedly light violet (sorry, mine is a little more red-purple because of the maraschino cherry juice from the jar instead of the liquer). Lastly, I have never used creme de violette until now. It is perplexing and sweet and I can't wait to come up with a couple more cocktails with this ingredient. Go relive the Roaring 20s with this classic! Yamas!