Why the Bee’s Knees is a Perfect First Cocktail

Look. I came of age in the prime time of “Sex and the City.” When the Cosmo was considered the “it” drink and, let’s be honest, made drinking cocktails easier for women. Why? Because we now had permission to drink them and we KNEW what to drink. I’m not saying women haven’t been involved in cocktail-making forever, because we have. But we’ve also been historically excluded from that realm-whether physically or by actually excluding us from historical records.

I want to change that paradigm. Women like cocktails. I’ve seen it first hand. We like them and we want to know how to make them. Can I get an amen?

Cocktails are fun! And they should be. They’re exciting. They make us feel fancy and, well, for lack of a better word, cosmopolitan.

I started my cocktail journey about three years ago…when I met my now fiance. He was very into cocktails. He made me a….wait for it…cosmo. Ha! But that’s because it was the only cocktail I knew about. I literally had no concept that there were other cocktails. Anyway, after that initial shock and awe that this guy knew how to make cocktails and could make me one on the spot, he started to make me other types of cocktails.

We started watching “How to Drink” together. I learned about prohibition era cocktails. I learned about the “Bee’s Knees.” What is a “Bee’s Knees?” Well, basically it’s a mixture of gin, lemon juice, and honey syrup. But that combo…goddam it’s good. And it also happens to be a great foray into cocktail making for those just discovering it. Because it only has three ingredients. And they’re very accessible.

So how do you make it? You always start with your cheapest ingredient- in this case the lemons. You cut a lemon in half and squeeze the juice into your shaker. You make honey syrup by combining equal parts honey and hot water. You put 1/2 a shot of honey syrup in with your lemon juice. Finally, you put 2 shots of gin in your shaker. Then you add about four ice cubes. Put your shaker top on (make sure it’s tight) and shake until your hands get cold. Then strain your cocktail into a coupe glass.

If you didn’t understand any of the above- you’ll need a cocktail shaker, a juicer, a lemon, honey, and gin. I prefer Tanqueray, but honestly any London dry gin works in this recipe. Anyway, try this! And let me know what you think. It remains one of my favorites, and by now I’ve had a lot of different cocktails.