The Simple Elegance of the Gold Rush Cocktail

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We recently have been looking back to discuss some historical recipes and how they’ve evolved over time, but this week we’ll be looking into a drink that comes from the cocktail renaissance that began around 2000. Though it’s comparatively a much more recent addition, it is by no means overconceived or baroque. On the contrary, the Gold Rush is a bourbon drink so simple in its construction one would think it’s been around since the gold rush.

The Gold Rush comes from one of the first and most influential bar programs of the last few decades’ cocktail renaissance, Milk & Honey. This NYC cocktail bar, under the leadership of the late and beloved Sasha Petraske, was responsible for the inception of several drinks that went on to be known as modern classics. A basic whiskey sour riff, this particular modern classic earned that position based on its simplicity, the elegant balance of its triad ingredients, and that it functions as an easy answer to a bourbon cocktail that isn’t an Old Fashioned or Manhattan.

To that, this bourbon libation is a perfect mix to keep in mind as the weather heats up. Great as they are, Old Fashioneds and Manhattans can be quite heavy-bodied for late spring sipping, whereas a Gold Rush offers some juicy citrus characteristics with all the easy going bourbon sweetness. For our build, we used a syrup made from local wildflower honey. Given the simple three part structure of the drink, it’s worth using a flavorful honey. To properly incorporate it, you’ll need to make a honey syrup. Thankfully, that’s as simple as adding one part water to three parts of your honey and heating the mixture until the honey is fully dissolved.

For choice of bourbon, we opted for our single barrel store pick from Spirits of French Lick. This expression is characterized by a very unique mashbill, including a portion of toasted buckwheat. The end result is a uniquely sweet bourbon with a thick texture that we thought would partner perfectly with the honey and balance the acidity of the lemon. True to form, this three-parts cocktail both lives and dies by its balance and presents, when made well, something more than the sum of its parts. Only one way to know, though, grab a bottle of our Spirits of French Lick pick and see for yourself!

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