Recipe Comparison - The Aviation Cocktail
Every single cocktail book I have in my house has a different recipe for the Aviation Cocktail. Trader Vic’s version, oddly enough, contains equal portions of Dubonnet and sweet sherry, but all of the others have the same three ingredients in various quantities: gin, lemon juice, and maraschino liqueur. Gary Regan, in The Joy of Mixology states quite firmly that the whole of the cocktail and its ratios depend on the dryness of the maraschino liqueur.
From what I have been able to glean from the Aviation post on eGullet, the cream of the crop when it comes to maraschino includes Luxardo and Maraska. Assuming that they vary in funkiness, I still have 4 distinctly different recipes to work with. Obviously these slight variants account for the taste of the author, so let’s put the tasting team to the test. For all of the cocktails we’ll be using Luxardo maraschino.
David Wondrich
- 2oz gin
- 2t maraschino liqueur
- 3/4oz lemon juice
From: Killer Cocktails
There was a very strong lemon taste and aroma that took over this cocktail entirely. Although perceptable, the marachino lost all of its funkiness as it struggled to be seen in the back of the auditorium. It leaves much to be desired.
Dale DeGroff
- 2oz gin
- 1oz maraschino liqueur
- 3/4oz lemon juice (the amount was printed as 2/4, but I’m assuming that was a misprint)
From: The Craft of the Cocktail
Dale’s version is completely different, with the maraschino really playing a major role in the taste. The funkiness definitely came through, but the taste of lemon seemed just a touch off.
Dr. Cocktail
- 2 1/2oz gin
- 2 or 3 dashes maraschino liqueur
- 3/4oz lemon juice
From: Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails
Very similiar to the first, this was my least favorite of the batch. It was by no means untasty, but you may be able to achieve the same taste by sipping gin by itself and licking a lemon as you go. The maraschino didn’t even make it to the show in this one.
Gary Regan
- 2oz gin
- 1/2oz maraschino liqueur
- 1/2oz lemon juice
Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
From: The Joy of Mixology
I was getting worried that I may just have to give up on my quest and settle for a less than perfect version of the Aviation, but Gary Regan has saved the day. The balance of lemon juice in this version was perfect with just the right amount of tartness. The marachino helped balance out the whole ordeal, and even the juniper taste from the gin made an appearance. This recipe is clearly the winner.
Please feel free to do some comparisons on your own and put your comments in here. I’d be very happy to hear from others that I’m completely wrong and that I should dive right back in.
9 Responses to “Recipe Comparison - The Aviation Cocktail”
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Eric
Said this on March 13th, 2006 at 1:18am:YES! I enjoy the taste tests muchly! How about a test of different Gins next?
Maria
Said this on April 8th, 2006 at 8:44pm:Greetings from an Aviation addict! It’s my favorite cocktail by a mile, and my husband loves it as well — it’s our house cocktail. I’ve tried various other maraschino-containing cocktails, and not liked any others nearly as much, with the exception of El Floridita, a daiquiri with a bit of maraschino. I started with Maraska, the only brand available here in Mpls-St. Paul, and then read so much about Luxardo I actually went on a one-person campaign to get it stocked here! I started with the larger liquor stores, who by that time had run out of Maraska and told me it was “no longer available.” I called a couple of larger distributors here, to no avail. Finally, I found the importer (Preiss) online, and sent a plea, which got me the info for the small distributor who *could* get it, and then I had to poke and prod him and his clients to persuade them to consider buying a case! (In case anyone reading this is in the Twin Cities region, it’s now at Surdyk’s.)
Anyhow, I DO prefer Luxardo to Maraska– it’s drier and sort of spicy, whereas Maraska has a grappa-like quality, while being sweeter– not unbearable, just not as delectable to my taste. A friend living in Munich got interested in it all, and is mad about a brand he gets in Germany– can’t recall the name, but it’s REALLY different, sort of floral. They drink it in the Yale cocktail (I can’t find the recipe anymore– there are a couple of very different “Yale” concoctions, but this one is gin, Maraschino and maybe orange bitters). They reported that they didn’t care for the Aviation, but when I tried one with their brand, I wasn’t crazy about it either. Then I served them one with Luxardo, and they were amazed at the excellence of it!
As for proportions, your preferred recipe is exactly the way I like mine: 2:.5:.5.
And BTW– as a reward for my persistence on Maraschino’s behalf, Henry Preiss (the Luxardo importer) sent me an apron with a huge Maraschino label printed on it!
Rick
Said this on April 8th, 2006 at 9:12pm:Thanks for the comment! It’s great to hear about other’s spirit quests. Luxardo was actually easy for me to get here in Pennsylvania (I know, a shock); I had to place a special liquor order (SLO), but I was able to order just one bottle.
I’m currently on a mission to find Lemon Hart Demerara Rums - both the 80 and 151 proofs. Jeff Berry’s Grog Log calls for lots of it, and the best PA can do for me is by a case. As much as I’d enjoy two cases of this fine rum, that’s a pretty price to pay. I’m seeing what other methods I can use to obtain it, but so far it looks like I’ll have to rely on friends in other states to “offer gifts” when they visit.
I wonder if I could get in touch with the importer and see if they’d be willing to ship the state less than a case. I’m guessing not too many people order it, so maybe it’s a possibility. How did you go about finding the importer for Luxardo?
Maria
Said this on May 4th, 2006 at 8:13pm:Hello again! Sorry not to have checked back sooner– I could have gotten your quest under way last month.
I found Preiss Imports through idle Googling, the kind of researching I do when I have all kinds of important work to do.;-) The fellow you’ll reach when you email info@preissimports.com is the owner, Henry Preiss. He strikes me as a very sympatico fellow– even cordial, if you can bear the pun!
I would be very surprised if he’d ship less than a case, but you never know. What’s 12 bottles, anyhow? Won’t you buy at least a couple? And haven’t you addicted your friends to the Aviation? I’ve been doing my best to give the impression of popular demand here in Minneapolis by buying extra bottles for gifts to friends, and for storage at home in case of the Rapture, in which event my husband and I will luxuriate in Aviations with all the rest of our ne-er-do-well pals left behind here on the glorious Earth!
I’d like to see some bars get hold of Maraschino. I never see it anywhere. Then again, I have no confidence in modern bartenders, who can’t be bothered to measure anything. That makes most of the vintage cocktails not worth bothering with, unless I get to make them myself. If they stare blankly when you try to get bitters in your Manhattan, you can be sure that a beer would be a better bet.
Maybe you’ll get your own Luxardo Maraschino apron out of Henry Preiss!
PREISS IMPORTS
PO Box 829
Ramona, Ca 92065
Office (760) 789-6010
Fax (760) 789-5461
http://www.preissimports.com
George Sinclair
Said this on May 19th, 2006 at 3:34am:“Recipes for Mixed Drinks”, by Hugo Ensslin (1916)
* 2 oz Gin
* 1/2 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
* 1 tsp Maraschino Liqueur
* 1 tsp Violet Liqueur (Parfait Amour)
Shake with ice.
Rick
Said this on May 30th, 2006 at 1:08pm:After reading Paul’s post on Parfait Amour and seeing this recipe, I may just have to put in a special order for a bottle of Marie Brizard’s version.
Johannes
Said this on August 3rd, 2006 at 2:30pm:This one is not an Aviation, but also very nice and interesting:
* 4cl Gin (Tanqueray if available)
* 2cl Maraschino
* 2cl Fresh Lemon Juice
* 2cl Cream of Coconut
Shake well on ice, serve with cherry. Enjoy! :-)
Erica
Said this on June 29th, 2007 at 8:08pm:I just happened to happen upon this website and read Maria’s story. I just purchased Luxardo Maraschino at Surdyk’s yesterday and I realize I have her to thank for its availability, so…thank you, Maria!
The Aviation Cocktail : Drink Dogma
Said this on April 28th, 2008 at 6:28am:[...] over at Kaiser Penguin did a superb job of combining several recipes from the bartending dream team. If confronted in [...]