The Story Behind The Gold Rush

In 2001, the Gold Rush cocktail was developed at the now-shuttered NYC bar Milk & Honey. As the story goes, a man named T.J. Siegal, a longtime friend of the bar’s owner Sasha Petraske, came by one evening to order his usual Whiskey Sour. Milk & Honey was notorious for not having a set menu back then, so customers could order whatever drink they desired. As a result, Siegal omitted the egg white from his cocktail and asked to replace the standard simple syrup with honey syrup. Thus, the Gold Rush was born.

Today, the Gold Rush is considered to be a modern classic. It employs a base of bourbon (Petraske was known to use Knob Creek or Elijah Craig), lemon juice, and honey syrup.

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces bourbon
  • ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice
  • ¾ ounce honey syrup (recipe follows)
  • Garnish: lemon twist

Directions

  1. Add ingredients to a shaker with ice and shake until cold.
  2. Strain into a rocks glass with fresh ice.
  3. Garnish with lemon twist.

Rate This Recipe:

(74 votes)

Yield: 1
Calories: 127
Updated: 2024-11-14

Honey Syrup Ingredients

  • 1 cup honey
  • 1 cup water

Honey Syrup Directions

  1. Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
  2. Simmer until honey is dissolved, stirring occasionally.
  3. Remove from heat and let cool.
  4. Store, covered, in the refrigerator.
The Gold Rush Recipe