I find the hum not frightening but rather hypnotic. And then there is a loud buzz in my left ear. It’s disconcerting. Is it in my suit or outside? As has been well publicised, honeybee numbers are in decline. This year is the worst Andre has experienced since he began beekeeping in 2007. We learn some fascinating facts. Ninety eight per cent of the hive is female. The queen lays around 1,000-2,000 eggs a day and the bees hatched in late August and September will live through the winter - creating heat by flexing their wings. Bees are so important to our ecosystem and it's imperative we do everything we can to protect them. One thing we can all do to help is to create pollinator friendly habitats. Whether that's not mowing all of your lawn, planting wildflowers or even installing a bee hotel. The more pollen and nectar we can make available for our pollinators the more chance they have of survival.’

Early in the book I spoke in disparaging terms of the Bee's Knees. This, however, was because as it originally came out during prohibition days it consisted of equal parts of lemon juice, honey, and gin. If made as a variation of the standard Gin Sour, merely substituting honey for the sugar syrup, it is acceptable. David A. Embury, The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, 1948

Winner of 3 spirit awards

Gin Fans, did you know you can personalise your very own bottle of Warner’s Gin! With up to 20 characters, you can customise a bottle with a message of your choice for your friends and loved ones (or even yourself!) You have 60,000 bees all working cohesively for the greater good. They cannot survive on their own, they need to work together to survive. We could learn a lot from them.' A treat at the end of our experience was a glass of honey gin from Cardona’s range, which was met with nods of approval from the group. ‘Honey is such a versatile and delicious ingredient,’ explains Andre. ‘We have experimented in the past with making our own meade and kombucha with tasty results but we knew when we infused some of our own raw honey with a delicious London dry gin that we'd come across a winner.’ Cardona and Son Spirit Co was launched two years ago and with the success of its Hitchin Honey Gin and Hitchin Honey Spiced Rum, in the summer they launched Hitchin Elderflower and Borage Honey Gin. Andre is working on a clementine and spiced gin for Christmas.

I ask if the hives have their own characters. ‘Each colony definitely has their own character,’ Andre says. ‘They are generally based on what the queen is like and which drones she has chosen to mate with. Our colonies are generally quite mild-mannered. Colonies generally remain in the hive. Sometimes the colony may swarm if they run out of room in the hive or a new queen is ready to hatch.’ Andre continues: ‘When scout bees find a good source of nectar or pollen they tell the other bees of their discovery by doing a special dance on the honeycomb called the waggle dance which communicates the distance and direction of the source.' Cardona & Son Spirit Co's Hitchin Honey spirits range. A clementine and spiced gin is planned for Christmas (Image: Adam Parker Photography) A total winner with Mediterranean tonic and a sprig of sage if you’ve got one nearby. What's the story? I used Rieger’s Dry Gin, which is distilled here in Kansas City. The Rieger distillery is manufacturing tons of hand sanitizer right now, so I’m featuring their beautiful product as my own little thank you. Bee’s Knees VariationsIf you want more of a casual, long sipper, pour the ingredients over ice and top it off with club soda (essentially a Tom Collins).

He hopes to expand the business nationally with a percentage of profits used to support local biodiversity projects, as well as continuing to build new hives and cultivate raw honey. But the focus is also to continue to spread the message about the importance of bees. ‘We've loved introducing people to our honeybees over the summer - it's been so rewarding to watch people interacting with honeybees for the very first time. How do you like your honey? Swirled in a smoothie? Spread on toast? Drizzled over pancakes? This iconic ingredient truly takes any tasty treat to the next level and is so naturally moreish, there’s no doubt you’d devour that honey-laden loveliness in seconds. What’s ultra-impressive is that it’s all thanks to a lifetime of work by a tiny — but incredibly talented — creature: the honey bee. Nectar is very high in water, so the honey bees collectively flap their wings to drive off the water until its moisture content is reduced from approximately 90% to 18% at most — though this can vary. If the water content is too high, the honey will ferment. But these incredible creatures instinctively know when the nectar is sufficiently dry enough to create the perfect consistency of honey.When Andre takes out the first honey frame covered with bees there is a collective intake of breath from the group. It is incredible to see these creatures at work and I feel rather privileged.

One hardworking honey bee produces one 12th of a teaspoon in its entire lifetime (which can last from 36 days in peak summer to 3-4 months in winter). This equates to 12 honey bees producing that single teaspoon. A yummy spoonful of honey stirred into porridge or a smoothie can brighten up breakfast time but take a moment with every mouthful to appreciate their un-bee-lievable dedication. Fever-Tree began in 2003 with a meeting of minds and one simple premise: if three quarters of your G&T is the tonic, wouldn’t you want it to be the best? Personalisation is available on the following 70cl Gins; Harrington Dry Gin, London Dry Gin, Lemon Balm Gin, Honeybee Gin, Elderflower Gin, Rhubarb Gin, Raspberry Gin, Sloe Gin, Spring Blossom, Strawberry & Rose Gin and Christmas Cake Gin

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Frank Meier's ownership is reasserted in his 1936 book, The Artistry of Mixing Drinks, where the recipe is accompanied by a design that signifies the recipe was one of his own. Andre’s approach to the hives is slow and methodical and I take note that he advises the group not to wave their arms around, as this in fact is more likely to attract them. I am surprised that I feel quite calm. It became apparent that Charles and Tim had both come to the same conclusion – namely that the growing prevalence and popularity of premium spirits had not been matched by what was on offer in the tonic category.