LONDON CITY AIRPORT CREATES ITS OWN COCKTAIL TO CELEBRATE 30TH BIRTHDAY

London City Airport has created its own cocktail, The East End Flyer, as part of its 30th birthday celebrations.

The gateway, the only airport actually located in the city of London, will be serving the new drink at its City Bar for the next two weeks.

Created for the airport by Peter Dorelli, the former head bartender of the American Bar at the famous Savoy Hotel in London’s West End, the new cocktail is said to be inspited by aviation, East London, and the 1980s palate.

A measure of London’s Beefeater gin, a famous London brand and a spirit associated with the RAF and flying, combines with the sweetness of peach schnapps and Southern Comfort, popular drinks of the 1980s reflecting the tastes of the decade. 

Pink grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and Grenadine provide a little extra East-End sweetness, with sourness and complexity. 

The cocktail is shaken over ice and served in a double martini glass.

Peter Dorelli said: “I have really tried to capture the spirit of the time to mark the airport’s birthday and create a tempting celebratory cocktail. 

"Many of my guests would fly to and from London City after it opened, because it’s only a 30 minutes journey door to door from Central London. Thirty years on, this brief was a great chance to play with some nostalgic flavours and create a sweet, stylish and decadent drink.”

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A London City Airport spokesperson said: "Those who grew up in the UK in the 80s look back with fondness at the big hairstyles, shoulder pads and leg warmers, cult TV shows, and pop music defined by the classics penned by Stock Aitken Waterman. 

"The airport is a proud 80s child, a product of a decade which saw rapid and considerable change, from politics to popular culture. What better way to celebrate than with an indulgent cocktail reminiscent of the time."

The East End Flyer will be sold exclusively at the airport’s City Bar for £13.95, appearing on a special 30th birthday cocktail menu which includes other 80s-inspired drinks including Purple Rain and Air Mail.