classic · shaken
Bee's Knees recipe
Prohibition-era classic. Honey and lemon make gin shine.
A Bee's Knees is 60 ml (56.4 g) Gin, 22 ml (22.7 g) Fresh Lemon Juice and 22 ml (26.4 g) Honey Syrup, shaken and served in a coupe. It pours to about 104 ml before ice, at roughly 23.1% ABV. Weighing the ingredients instead of measuring them is what keeps the balance identical from one round to the next.
- Glasscoupe
- Methodshaken
- Pour volume104 ml
- Strength (est.)23.1% ABV
- Time3 min
Bee's Knees ingredients — in millilitres and grams
Grams are what the PourPilot coaster actually targets. They are not the same as the millilitres: a spirit is lighter than water, a syrup is heavier, so 30 ml of one is never 30 g. The right-hand column is the density we use, in grams per millilitre.
| Ingredient | Volume | Weight | g/ml | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gin | 60 ml | 56.4 g | 0.94 | Weighed by the coaster |
| Fresh Lemon Juice | 22 ml | 22.7 g | 1.03 | Weighed by the coaster |
| Honey Syrup (1:1) | 22 ml | 26.4 g | 1.20 | Weighed by the coaster |
How to make a Bee's Knees
- Set your coupe on the scale (or on the PourPilot coaster) and zero it. Every measurement below is given in millilitres and in grams, so you can use either.
- Add Gin, Fresh Lemon Juice and Honey Syrup to a shaker, weighing each ingredient rather than eyeballing a jigger.
- Fill with ice and shake hard for 12–15 seconds.
- Double-strain into a chilled coupe.
Bee's Knees: the questions people actually ask
How strong is a Bee's Knees?
Roughly 23.1% ABV as poured, before the ice dilutes it — typically another 15–25% water by the time you finish stirring or shaking. Spirit-forward. Sip it, do not sink it.
What glass should a Bee's Knees be served in?
A coupe. Chill it first — a room-temperature stemmed glass will undo half the work you just did in the mixing tin.
Can I make a Bee's Knees without a jigger?
Yes — that is what the gram column is for. Put the glass or tin on a kitchen scale, zero it, and pour to the weight. It is more accurate than a jigger because nothing is left clinging to the inside of the measure. The PourPilot coaster does the same thing without you having to watch a display: it lights up as you approach the target and tells you when to stop.
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