Reply to "Best Purple Colorings?"

Pinks and purples (especially Wilton) are notorious for fading in fondant, which explains why some brands have no-fade versions of those colors. I mostly use Chefmaster Violet in my icing (though they have a few shades of purple, as you noted) and I like it. Used lightly, it's a soft lavender shade; but with fair bit, it intensifies easily to a deep "true" purple (which is what you might mean by well-balanced - not too much red in it; not too much blue in it). It has a slight aftertaste when a lot of coloring is used, but not what I've gotten from some other brands of color.