Have we reached peak Honey Deuce?

If a fan goes to the US Open but doesn’t drink a Honey Deuce, does it count?

The unofficial bevvy of the summer and the signature drink of the annual tennis tournament, which consists of Grey Goose vodka, fresh lemonade, raspberry liquor, and a garnish of three scoops of honeydew melon, has regularly broken its own sales records in recent years, according to Aleco Azqueta, global VP of marketing at Grey Goose parent company Bacardi.

In 2019, Grey Goose, which has been the official vodka of the US Open for the past two decades, sold about 274,000 Honey Deuces during the tournament, according to the company. In 2021, slightly fewer—about 269,000—sold, but in 2022, when demand for live events started roaring back, that number skyrocketed to about 415,000, per Grey Goose.

Honey Deuce sales increased further to about 460,000 in 2024, and last year the company set a record, doling out over 738,000 of the cocktails.

Barring the addition of even more days to the US Open festivities, there are only so many Honey Deuces fans can consume—so while Azqueta still has high hopes for the brand during the tournament, his focus this year is on more than just getting those iconic cups in hands.

“We don’t even know if the number will increase, just because it’s the same amount of people going through the gate,” he said. “They’re already experiencing the Honey Deuce, you’ve already extended a week with [Fan Week], so for us, it’s really become more about ‘How do we give the most premium experience to the fans?’”

Raise the bar

To help up the ante on the Grey Goose US Open experience, the brand renovated all 16 of its bars on the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center this year, Azqueta told us.

Like other longtime sponsors, the Grey Goose team strives to keep their activations fresh, so in addition to the remodels, they’ve also expanded the brand’s presence beyond the grounds. In recent years, that has included Honey Deuce home deliveries, Azqueta said, which the brand began during the early days of the pandemic, as well as a branded Last Serve Bar in Grand Central that debuted last year. The bar will return this year on Sept. 2 and 3, when fans can sample Honey Deuces whether or not they have tickets to the tournament.

Also new this year is the addition of New York Knicks guard Josh Hart as a Grey Goose brand ambassador. Fresh off winning the NBA championship, Hart (who is also a Premier League fan) will create content and attend the US Open with the brand, Azqueta told us. Since the US Open takes place in New York, Azqueta said his team wanted to “keep the celebration going” as the city continues to revel in its first NBA title since 1973.

Glass half full

While the Grey Goose experience and partner roster may change each year, there’s one thing that stays the same: the Honey Deuce itself. “The Honey Deuce, we don’t touch,” Azqueta said. That includes the collectible commemorative cups, with the exception of the addition of the names of the winners each year. (The price of the cocktail has increased over time, although its $23 price tag this year is the same as in 2025.)

And even though the advent of the Honey Deuce about 19 years ago predates the massive rise of social media and influencers, the beverage is highly Instagrammable. While taste and spotlighting the product—Grey Goose vodka—come first, visuals played a role in the creation of the cocktail, too, Azqueta said.

“One of the things we were looking about is ‘How can we create something that’s refreshing, where Grey Goose can stand out, that’s visually really attractive, and also really complements stadium fare very well?’” he said.

To make sure the Honey Deuce is getting its shine, Grey Goose also works with influencers like Paige Paul (the entrepreneur and wife of pro tennis player Tommy Paul) and athletes with big online presences, like Frances Tiafoe.

With a Honey Deuce sold roughly every 1.5 seconds during the tournament in the past several years, it seems safe to say there will be no shortage of demand for the cocktail as the tournament continues in New York.

“I don’t think you really can go to a US Open, and say you’ve been to a US Open, without experiencing a Grey Goose Honey Deuce,” he said. “It’s almost become a bit of that cultural currency.”