Gold Rush
Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 19.1% ABV ∙
The Gold Rush is a bourbon sour sweetened with honey syrup instead of sugar, shaken with lemon juice and a swath of grapefruit zest and served over ice.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: Bourbon 60 mlLemon juice 20 mlHoney syrup 20 mlGrapefruit zest 1 swathSaline solution 1 dash (opt.)
- Fine strain into the ice-filled glass
- Express a lemon twist over the cocktail and discard
- Garnish with a lemon wedge
Tips
- Warm the honey syrup slightly if it's stiff from the fridge, so it blends smoothly into the citrus instead of clumping.
- If you use the saline, add its dash last and taste; it sharpens the honey and lemon without tasting salty.
History
The Gold Rush was created around 2000 at Milk & Honey, the speakeasy-style bar on New York's Lower East Side opened in 1999 by Sasha Petraske. It was devised not by a bartender but by T.J. Siegal, a childhood friend of Petraske's, who was sitting at the bar one night after work and asked for his usual bourbon sour to be made with a honey syrup Petraske had recently prepared for another drink, rather than the standard simple syrup.
Petraske built it on his house sour formula, and the honey syrup itself, a rich three-to-one honey-to-water mix, was fashioned with a hand from Toby Maloney, the bar's first hired bartender. Siegal named the resulting drink the Gold Rush, choosing a name meant to evoke a feeling rather than reference its ingredients or origin.
The cocktail became one of Milk & Honey's signature creations and later spread widely as a modern bar-classic variation on the whiskey sour.
FAQ
What are the ingredients in a Gold Rush?
60 ml bourbon, 20 ml fresh lemon juice and 20 ml honey syrup, shaken with a swath of grapefruit zest. A dash of saline solution is optional.
Is a Gold Rush easy to make at home?
Yes. You need a shaker, ice and three main ingredients: bourbon, lemon juice and honey syrup. The one trick is the honey syrup: use it rather than straight honey, and warm it slightly if it is stiff from the fridge so it does not clump.
What whiskey is best for a Gold Rush?
A mid-proof, slightly sweet bourbon. It has enough body to stand up to the honey and lemon without turning harsh. Very high-proof or heavily oaked bottles can overpower the honey syrup.
What is the difference between a Whiskey Sour and a Gold Rush?
A Whiskey Sour is whiskey, lemon juice and sugar, often with egg white. The Gold Rush uses honey syrup instead of sugar and is served over ice rather than up. The honey makes it softer and less sharp than the classic sour.
What is the difference between a Gold Rush and a Penicillin?
A Penicillin is a blended Scotch sour with honey, lemon and fresh ginger, finished with a float of smoky peated single malt, so it tastes spicy and smoky. The Gold Rush is simpler: bourbon, honey syrup and lemon.
