Bee's Knees recipe
Prohibition-era gin sour sweetened with honey — the bees did the heavy lifting on this one.
Method: Shake ·
Glass: Coupe ·
Time: 2 min ·
Difficulty: Beginner ·
Family: The Daiquiri Family
Ingredients
- 2 oz Gin (a floral gin like Hendrick's works beautifully)
- 0.75 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
- 0.75 oz Honey Syrup (2:1 honey to water, mixed until dissolved)
How to make a Bee's Knees
- Make honey syrup: mix 2 parts honey with 1 part warm water until dissolved. Let it cool.
- Add gin, lemon juice, and honey syrup to a shaker with ice.
- Shake hard for 12-15 seconds.
- Strain into a chilled coupe.
- Garnish with a lemon twist.
Garnish
Lemon twist.
Pro tip
You cannot just squeeze honey into the shaker — it won't dissolve in cold liquid and you'll end up with honey stuck to the bottom. Make the syrup ahead of time. It keeps for two weeks in the fridge. The 2:1 ratio gives you a pourable consistency that mixes easily.
History of the Bee's Knees
Created during Prohibition (1920-1933), the honey was used to mask the taste of bathtub gin, which was often terrible. 'The bee's knees' was 1920s slang for 'the best thing ever.' The drink fell out of fashion after Prohibition ended and good gin became available again, but it's had a major revival in the craft cocktail era.
Flavour profile
Honey, Floral, Citrus, Smooth
Variations
- Gold Rush — Use bourbon instead of gin — same honey-lemon template
- Penicillin — Scotch, honey-ginger syrup, lemon — the medicinal cousin
- Lavender Bee's Knees — Infuse the honey syrup with dried lavender
Practise making the Bee's Knees in the free Virtual Bar game.