How to Make an Aviation Cocktail

(upbeat music)

Hi, this is Eben Freeman at Tailor Restaurant

in New York City.

We're gonna make a gin sour

with a slight modification.

Sour is a very old drink that usually just involve

a spirit, lemon juice, and simple syrup.

And in essence, that is what this drink is,

with just one small change.

It's actually a very old change,

and this is a classic cocktail

that a lot of cocktail geeks like to order.

This is an aviation cocktail.

It starts out with a sour base.

One ounce of lemon juice,

two ounces of gin.

What I call a scant half ounce of maraschino.

There's a few different maraschino liquors on the market.

Two of the most popular are made by Luxardo and Maraska.

In this drink, I really think the Maraska,

which is a little bit cleaner,

a little less funkier than the Luxardo,

is the right one to choose, but you can decide.

Try them both.

And I put in the what I call the scant half ounce

of Maraschino,

which means that I don't fill the jigger

all the way to the tope.

I leave it just a little bit below.

And then I'm gonna add just the slightest dash

of simple syrup,

which is really just sugar water.

And the idea here is really taking a sour

and sort of a base,

and then just adding a slight little modification to it.

This cherry isn't easily identifiable

as cherry flavor that we all remember.

It's a little bit off,

but there is something there that is cherry.

So again, there's something interesting

and mysterious about this drink

when you're really just adding

three different ingredients.

Just go and add some ice to our shaker,

and give that a strong shake.

(shaker rattles)

I like to serve this drink

in a little bit different style of drink.

Since there is a little bit of cordial in there,

I like to put it in one of these fluted cordials.

And for a garnish, since there is cherry,

I like to use some of my homemade maraschino cherries,

just dropped right in the drink.

Just like the drink itself,

cherry is somewhat identifiable,

and somewhat mysterious at the same time

down in the bottom.

So that is a gin sour with a slight twist,

the aviation.