The United Kingdom has a strong claim as the world’s gin capital. The Dutch may have originated the spirit when they created genever, but the English people’s love for the stuff brought the juniper-infused liquor to new levels. But in recent decades, a host of new exciting gin destinations have emerged, including the good old U.S.A. One pivotal player in the spirit’s stateside evolution: Aviation American Gin, a homegrown brand that found celebrity fame.
Founded in 2006 at Portland, Ore.’s House Spirits Distillery, Aviation Gin is the brainchild of distillery co-founder Christian Krogstad and bartender Ryan Magarian. Soon after its launch, the brand garnered a following within the trade for its more diverse, less juniper-dominated botanic profile. But in 2018, the brand truly took off in the national spotlight thanks to involvement from actor Ryan Reynolds.
Now owned by Diageo, Aviation is one of the fastest-growing gin brands in the U.S., growing by over 38 percent in volume from 2020 to 2022. Now that you know the basics, here are seven more things you should know about Aviation American Gin.
The spirit was originally a placeholder for whiskey.
When Krogstad founded House Spirits Distillery with Lee Medoff in 2004, the intention was to produce whiskey. As whiskey needs several years to age before it can be sold, the co-founders knew that they would need a product to sell in the interim. Originally, this product was a 100- percent rye vodka inspired by Medoff’s Russian heritage, but the two
