Bee's Knees Classic Gin Cocktail Recipe

The Bee's Knees is an iconic, Prohibition-era gin cocktail. The timeless mix of gin, lemon, and honey is light, refreshing, and just as beloved today as it was 100 years ago.

It is often assumed that the Bee's Knees was created to help make the illegal, not-so-pleasant-tasting gins of the time more palatable. However, it's the classic cocktail was actually invented in Paris, France.

While it's possible that Americans were indeed masking the taste of their nasty gins with lemon and honey in the 1920s, the drink wasn't invented solely for that purpose.

The story of the Bee's Knees

There are two people credited with the invention of the Bee's Knees. The most popular story is that it was created by an American socialite named Margaret Brown. Brown was famously a survivor of the Titanic, which led to her nickname as the "Unsinkable Molly Brown." In 1929, an article was published stating explicitly that the Bee's Knees was created by Mrs. Brown.

However, also in 1929, a book called Cocktails de Paris was published and listed the inventor of the Bee's Knees cocktail as the head bartender of the Ritz Hotel in Paris, Frank Meier. According the Difford's Guide, it's possible that the drink was a collaboration between the two - maybe Meier invented the drink for Brown, or perhaps Brown asked Meier to make her a drink containing those ingredients.

How did the drink get its name?

The expression "the bee's knees" means that something is fantastic and it was a popular phrase during the roaring twenties. It's not known exactly how or when the cocktail was given its name, but its pretty easy to surmise that the mention of bees was inspired by the use of honey. And anyone who's had one can attest to the fact that the delicious yet simple mix of ingredients is truly the bee's knees!

How to make the cocktail

The Bee's Knees is a simple, three ingredient cocktail. While the ratio of ingredients has varied over time and from one recipe to the next, the ingredients themselves have remained the same for nearly one hundred years.

An early version of the recipe called for equal parts gin, lemon and honey. Today, most recipes combine two ounces of gin with either one ounce each or three quarters ounce each lemon juice and honey syrup. While either version is quite good, I find that 2 ounces gin, ¾ oz lemon juice and ¾ ounce honey syrup is more balanced. If you prefer your cocktails a little more on the sweet side, or a little less strong, try the 2:1:1 recipe first.

Choose your gin

The Bee's Knees is a very simple cocktail that can work well with just about any gin. A classic London Dry is always a good choice, but offbeat, modern, and floral gins are also great with lemon and honey. I think the Bee's Knees is an excellent recipe to use with a floral gin like Uncle Val's Botanical, Nolet's, or Hendrick's Flora Adora.

Fresh lemon juice

It's critical to use freshly squeezed lemon juice when making any citrus-based cocktail, but especially the Bee's Knees. The lemon juice provides much of the flavor of this drink and fresh juice is sweeter and brighter in flavor than bottled juice. Bottled lemon and lime juice have an extra sour, off, bitter taste that will throw off the balance of the drink.

Honey syrup

Honey is such a common cocktail ingredient that I've dedicated an entire page to How to Make Honey Syrup. Because honey is rather thick and doesn't dissolve readily in cold liquids, it's best to make it into a syrup by adding water.

Thinning the honey like this helps to rapidly incorporate it into the rest of the drink when we shake it up with ice. To make honey syrup, combine equal parts honey and water (room temperature or warm) and stir until combined. This makes a honey simple syrup. A rich (sweeter and thicker) honey syrup can be made with two parts honey and one part water.

To make a Bee's Knees, add your gin, freshly squeezed lemon juice and honey syrup to a cocktail shaker. Fill the shaker about three quarters with ice and shake for about twelve seconds, or until very cold. Strain the liquid into a cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

Variation with orange juice

A Bee's Knees variation with orange juice appeared during the 1930s and 1940s. It first appeared in print in David Embury's The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks in 1948. This version typically just involves adding about a half ounce of fresh orange juice to the standard recipe. Garnish with an expressed orange twist.

Garnish and glassware

The classic Bee's Knees is shaken, served up, and garnished with a twist for its bright citrus aroma. A lemon twist is most common, but if available, an orange twist is perhaps an even better choice. Orange oils add a sweet, almost floral aroma that gives depth to the flavor and softens the overall acidity of the drink.

Glassware for a Bee's Knees is typically a cocktail glass such as a coupe or Nick and Nora. Alternatively, you can serve the cocktail on the rocks in an old fashioned glass. This will add a little bit more dilution and keep the drink extra chilled. I personally do prefer a Bee's Knees on the rocks because I can enjoy it cold for longer! A Bee's Knees on the rocks was likely the inspiration for the famous modern classic, the Gold Rush (bourbon, lemon and honey syrup).

Bee's Knees variations

In addition to the Gold Rush with bourbon, there are also lemon and honey sour-style cocktails made with rum, tequila, Scotch and other spirits. White rum, lemon and honey syrup is called a Honeysuckle or a Honey Bee. Sometimes the lemon is replaced with lime which gives the rum drink an even more tropical feel. The Penicillin cocktail is a variation on the Gold Rush that's made with Scotch and a ginger and honey syrup.

You might also like my Lavender Blueberry Bee's Knees

Another variation is a Bee's Knees riff on the Classic Gin Sour. The recipe is the same ingredients as listed below but adds an egg white. The drink is shaken without ice to build up the egg white foam, then shaken with ice to chill. It's then served up and garnished with a lemon twist.

One of my all time favorite riffs is to add a bar spoon or two of vanilla yogurt. This creamy Bee's Knees is the perfect brunch cocktail. Try it with my foraged forsythia honey syrup.

Pro tips for the very best Bee's Knees at home

Chill your cocktail glass in advance. Place the glass in the freezer for at least thirty minutes before serving. This helps to keep your cocktail colder for longer.

Use a quality gin such as Bombay Sapphire, Tanqueray, or Sipsmith. The flavors of the gin will really shine with such a simple recipe template.

Choose a wildflower, orange blossom, or acacia honey. These and many other types of honey are far more complex and flavorful than basic clover honey. If you really want an experience, try rare Hawaiian kiawe honey. It's one of the most expensive honeys in the world but it is truly unique and delicious.

Try it with Meyer lemon juice. Meyer lemons are sweeter and less acidic than the average lemon. Their gentler flavor pairs beautifully with honey and can make for a great Bee's Knees. Just keep in mind that a sweeter lemon can affect the balance of the drink, so you may need less honey syrup.

You might also enjoy these other gin cocktails:

• Guide to Gin and Gin Cocktails
• How to Make a Perfect Negroni
• Classic French 75 Gin and Champagne Cocktail
• Violet Gin Fizz
• Guide to the Classic Gin Martini