The Aviation and the Blue Moon

Much like the Negroni and the Americano belong to the same family of cocktails, the Aviation and the Blue Moon are kissing cousins. The first documented recipe for the Aviation comes from Hugo Ensslin's seminal cocktail book Recipes for Mixed Drinks. Published in 1916, Ensslin's compendium of cocktails provides an interesting historical perspective on what are now established traditional cocktails. Ensslin's version of the Aviation includes gin, lemon juice, and both maraschino liqueur (such as Luxardo) and Crème de Violette (a liqueur made from violets); however, Crème de Violette, soon after the Aviation's debut, became increasingly difficult to find. As a result of this scarcity, by the time the Savoy Cocktail Book was published, the ingredient had been eliminated entirely. Thanks to Rothman and Winter, however, Crème de Violette is once again in regular production. 

This brings me to the Blue Moon. In Ensslin's book, the recipe calls for another difficult-to-find liqueur, Crème Yvette. Like Crème de Violette, it is also made from violets, but also features other aromatics like vanilla and orange peel. And, unlike Crème de Violette, Crème Yvette will give your cockatil a pinkish hue instead of the more periwinkle color of Crème de Violette. Rumor has it that Crème Yvette is now back in production--I've yet to see it, but I would love to get my hands on some!

On to the most important details--how they taste. The Aviation is a bit stringent for my tastes--we've been making it according to the Savoy recipe and to be honest I think it would benefit from a few dashes of Crème de Violette. The Blue Moon on the other hand is probably my favorite (of all the favorites) cocktail of the vintage cocktails we've been drinking. It's sweet, floral, and citrusy. The Crème de Violette reminds me of the violette pastilles I used to buy during my study abroad in France. I love how the gin is so perfectly complimented by the other elements in the drink. We use a basic London Dry, but I can imagine this is probably also very good with a more floral gin like Hendrick's. 

The Aviation (according to the Savoy Cocktail Book)

• 2 1/2 oz gin (we used Plymouth)
• 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice2-3 dashes maraschino liqueur

Shake in an ice cocktail shaker, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with lemon twist.

The Blue Moon (according to Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails)

• 2 oz gin
• 1/2 oz Crème Yvette (or Crème de Violette)
• 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

Shake in an ice cocktail shaker, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with lemon twist.

**Note: Sometimes we don't have lemons--I suppose there's no good excuse except for the fact that they are not native to Wisconsin, are frequently expensive, and we cannot be bothered with juicing them. So, based on Melinda's recommendation, we've been buying Santa Cruz Organic Lemon Juice and using it when we don't have fresh lemons. To be perfectly honest, I can't generally tell the difference between this bottled juice and fresh lemon juice.