Feel The Buzz With Honey Cocktails From Rogue Spirits
There’s good reason to think that the world’s first fermented beverage was made with honey.
Honeybees, and therefore honey, have been around for millions of years. Barley wasn’t domesticated until a mere 12,000 years ago. Early cave paintings depict our Stone Age ancestors collecting honey, and the oldest known recipe for an alcoholic brew contained honey and fruit.
For some reason, our fermenting forefathers lost interest in honey. Barley, wheat, rye and other grains became the favored ingredients for spirits and beers. It wasn’t until very recently, with the renaissance of craft spirits and craft beer, that we began to rediscover honey.
During June at Rogue Spirits, we’ll present some of our favorite cocktail recipes made with honey. But before that, here’s one thing to know. Straight honey can be too thick to use in a cocktail. Many recipes call for honey syrup, which is a bit thinner and easier to shake and stir.
How To Make Honey Syrup
Combine 1 cup water with 1 cup honey in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until honey is dissolved. Cool before using.
The Beehive:
Our first recipe is a Rogue take on the traditional Bee’s Knees cocktail. The citrusy, malty and oak flavors of Dead Guy Whiskey blend beautifully with honey and lemon juice.
The Honey Bee:
The Honey Bee cocktail is our tribute to the 7,140,289 hard working honeybees of Rogue Farms. For this recipe we used our Oregon Single Malt Vodka that we mashed, fermented and distilled with malting barley we grew ourselves at Rogue Farms in Tygh Valley, Oregon.
We’re just getting started. Come back next week for more honey cocktails. If you have your own favorite recipes, please submit them below in the comments section. To find out more about how we grow our own honey, visit our Rogue Farms honeybee page.
Join us in the Grow Your Own and Mash Your Own Rogue Spirits Revolution!
Categories: Mixology
Originally published at roguespirits.com on June 7, 2016.
