Honey Deuce Cocktail Recipe: How to Make US Open Drink, What’s in It?

Sep 02, 2023

In 2006, US Open sponsor Grey Goose Vodka asked Gramercy Tavern restauranteur Nick Mautone to create a signature drink for the game. At first it was a bit of a struggle, but after being inspired by little melon balls that look like tennis balls, Mautone perfected the iconic drink.

“I’m going to freely admit the mini honeydew melons that look like tennis balls capture the eye and therefore, the imagination. It’s visually a fun thing to drink at a tennis match,” he told Vogue.

Mautone also recalled that he encountered people drinking the Honey Deuce outside of the US Open. “She had no idea I invented it,” Mautone says about a woman who threw a tennis-themed party he attended. “And that happens every year—every time the U.S. Open comes around, I just keep hearing about the drink.”

The trifecta of the liquids used in the Honey Deuce is a pleasurable drink you can enjoy at any time of the day AND year. “You get the fruit from the raspberry liqueur. You get the tartness from the lemonade and you get the clean flavors of the Grey Goose. It’s balanced, is what it really comes down to,” he says. “It goes extremely well with whatever food you’re having on a hot day.”