Aviation Cocktail Recipe

The Aviation's not the most popular drink now, but in your grandfather's day, from London to New York, this gin-based cocktail was quite the hit. 

In those times, gin was the upper-class alcohol of choice, paired with the exotic maraschino liqueur and crème de violette, made it a veritable who's who drink of the pre-prohibition era(?). The mystique of the ingredients contributed to the popularity of the drink, and even today, and even today, it's a rare liquor store that stocks crème de violette. The addition of the crème de violette gives this classic drink the shade of the evening sky. For the longest time, following the lead of most modern adaptations, I'd omitted the crème de violette, which resulted in an cloudy cocktail with a nonetheless appealingly floral taste. 

Given the floral nature of the cocktail, I thought I could take a leaf (well, a flower) out of my heritage book and use butterfly pea flowers to develop the original violet shade. My family's was cultivating these flowers for the annual 端午节 festival, where we mark the occasion with traditional rice dumplings wrapped in large flat leaves. Butterfly pea flowers are a traditional food dye in Southeast Asia, and responsible for the blue rice found in Peranakan cuisine. Serendipitously, butterfly pea changes color with pH, and with lemon juice, turns it to just the right shade of violet. 

Though, away from the romantic smoky ambiance of a 1920s bar of sturdy oak wood and people doing the Charleston (I'm on a Twenties Girl reread, can you tell?), I prefer my Aviation without the blue pea flower coloring. It's worth doing once for the experience, just to see if it works, and perhaps just once more for impressing visitors. 

Aviation Cocktail
Adapted from the Tipsy Bartender
If you're not able to get the fresh flowers, dried blue pea flowers are available in Phoon Huat (Boon Lay). If you're from another country, check your local baking store or a well-stocked Asian store. 

INGREDIENTS
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1.5 oz gin
.5 oz lemon juice
.5 oz maraschino liqueur
.5 oz crème de violette, if available

STEPS
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1. Add all ingredients into cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. 

Variations
Using blue pea flowers, steep a teaspoon's worth in 75ml (about a quarter cup) of just-boiled water. Let cool, discard the flowers and then freeze the liquid in an ice tray. When making the cocktail, replace 1-2 normal ice cubes with the blue pea ice. Shake well.