Gold Rush

You only need bourbon, fresh lemon juice, and honey to shake up the Gold Rush cocktail. This three-ingredient sour is a modern riff, created at New York City’s famed Milk & Honey bar in the 2000s, that draws inspiration from the whiskey sour (made with sugar instead of honey) and the Bee’s Knees (with gin instead of whiskey).

Honey gives this bourbon cocktail body and a silky, lush mouthfeel. To keep the sweetener from clumping, you’ll need to dilute it first with a bit of hot water. Shaking up a round of cocktails for guests? You can make a rich honey syrup in advance by combining two parts honey with one part warm water and stirring to combine (add ¾ oz. rich honey syrup to the shaker per drink instead of the honey and water combination listed below).

Opt for a mellow bourbon here so as not to overpower the honey’s delicate flavors. There’s no garnish in the classic version, but if you’re inclined, a lemon twist would finish the drink off nicely.