Move over, Carlos Alcaraz, there’s another star at the U.S. Open.
Since 2006, attendees at New York’s Grand Slam event have quenched their thirst with the tournament’s signature cocktail: The Honey Deuce.
The boozy beverage — whose name is play on “honeydew” and the tennis score “deuce” — features Grey Goose vodka, lemonade, raspberry liqueur and is garnished with three honeydew balls, scooped to look like mini tennis balls.
This year, the cocktail will cost $23, up from last year’s price tag of $22. It’s the sixth price hike the drink has seen since 2012, according to Morning Brew, when it cost a comparatively cheap $14.
The cocktail has been a major moneymaker for the tournament, with the 450,000 Deuces poured at the 2023 U.S. Open generating $9.9 million in sales. Indeed, the Honey Deuce will bring in more money than the combined $7.2 million awarded to the winners of the men’s and women’s tournaments.
Monica Schipper | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images
“The mini honeydew melons that look like tennis balls capture the eye and therefore, the imagination,” Nick Mautone, the drink’s creator, told Vogue in 2021. “It’s visually a fun thing to drink at a tennis match.”
If you can’t make it to Flushing, Queens to try it, Grey Goose has shared the recipe so that you can make a Honey Deuce at home. You’ll just need the following:
- Ice
- 1 ¼ oz Vodka
- 3 oz Lemonade
- ½ oz Raspberry Liqueur
- 3 Honeydew Melon Balls, Skewered
To make a Honey Deuce pitcher instead, you’ll need 16 oz of vodka, 32 oz of lemonade and 8 oz of raspberry liqueur.
New Yorkers, meanwhile, will have a chance to try the cocktail without buying tickets for the Open. Grey Goose has a cocktail locator showing all the bars in New York City that are serving the Honey Deuce during the duration of the U.S. Open.
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