Barr Hill Gin's 9th Annual Bee's Knees Week Aims to Add 300K Square Feet of Pollinator Habitat

June campaign set to push distillery's pollinator habitat initiative past 1.3M square feet total.

MONTPELIER, VT – Barr Hill Gin, the most awarded gin in the United States and a pioneer of Landcrafted® spirits, launches its 9th annual Bee's Knees Week (June 13-22, 2025) with an ambitious target: 300,000 additional square feet of new pollinator habitat, equivalent to 22 football fields of flowering plants.

The award-winning distillery's conservation initiative will push its cumulative impact past 1.3 million square feet of pollinator habitat created since the campaign began in 2017.

This year's effort has been moved to June to coincide with Pollinator Week, hosted by Pollinator Partners, and comes at a critical time for North American pollinators. Bumblebee populations have plummeted nearly 50% since 1974, with over 70 pollinator species now listed as endangered or threatened by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

"Caring for the land and the pollinators who keep it thriving is at the heart of everything we do," says Ryan Christiansen, President and Head Distiller at Caledonia Spirits, Barr Hill's producer. “With great gin comes great responsibility.”

The conservation effort directly connects to the distillery's production process, which incorporates over 150,000 pounds of raw honey annually, all sourced within a 250-mile radius of their Montpelier facility. This local honey, gathered from diverse wildflower habitats, provides the distinctive botanical character and complexity that defines Barr Hill's spirits.

"Every bottle at Barr Hill is a tribute to the natural world," adds Christiansen. "Bee’s Knees Week is our way of giving back to the pollinators who make it all possible."

The campaign mobilizes spirit stores, bars and restaurants, and cocktail enthusiasts nationwide, while reinforcing the vital ecological role of pollinators, which support 90% of flowering plants and contribute over $20 billion annually to the U.S. economy through crop pollination.

As a 1% for the Planet member, Barr Hill channels portions of proceeds to verified nonprofit partners focused on pollinator conservation, including Garden for the Environment, Denver Urban Gardens, and Bee The Change. Barr Hill is also a  proud Honey Saves Hives partner of the National Honey Board.

Consumers can participate in Bee's Knees Week (June 13-22) by either ordering the signature cocktail at participating venues or making it at home and sharing photos tagged with @barrhillgin on social media, or by purchasing a bottle of Barr Hill Gin during the campaign period—each action contributes 10 square feet of new pollinator habitat. 

Bars, restaurants, and retailers can join by registering at beeskneesweek.com to receive promotional materials and placement on the campaign's interactive venue map, while enthusiasts can visit the website to find participating locations and follow @barrhillgin on Instagram for campaign updates.

“Our ecosystem is precious. We have a great respect for protecting it responsibly, so we love partnering with Barr Hill to ensure our pollinators keep doing a great job,” said Melissa Moore, at the Pier Bar at the North Hero House in Vermont, a participating bar partner. 

Colin Fodaski, restaurant manager at The Quechee Club, added, “We believe great hospitality should leave the world a little better than we found it. Bee’s Knees Week gives us the perfect excuse to shake up a delicious cocktail while supporting the ecosystems that help our food and drink thrive. Bees are the unsung heroes of the culinary world—and we’re proud to raise a glass in their honor.”

Aaron Kraus, general manager at American Flatbread Stowe shared: "As a restaurant that is rooted in local produce and the Vermont landscape, we know how essential pollinators are to everything we do. Our farm partners are dependent on healthy pollinator habitat. For us, supporting Bees Knees week and Barr Hill is a no brainer. By participating, we live up to our ethos at American Flatbread - supporting local food, local products, and creating a better food system for everyone."

Bee’s Knees Week Events on Gin Lane, Montpelier VT

Celebrate at Barr Hill's James Beard–nominated Montpelier distillery with these special Bee’s Knees Week events:

• Meet the Bees - June 13, 4-6pm Kick-off celebration featuring observation hive and Bee's Knees-inspired cocktails.
• Honey & Cocktail Pairing - June 14, 6-8pm Honey-based cocktails with unique food pairings and live observation hive.
• Hot & Spicy Bee's Knees Challenge - June 15, 3-4pm Sample progressively spicier Bee's Knees cocktails made with Butterfly Bakery Vermont's chile-infused honey.
• Bee's Knees Cocktail Class - June 18, 6-7pm Learn to craft seasonal variations of the classic cocktail; social media posts fund pollinator habitat. 
• Queen Bee Cocktail Championship - June 22, 1-3:30pm Staff competition featuring Bee's Knees variations; winner's creation joins summer menu. Customers can sample the cocktails and help select the winner!

For more information about Barr Hill Spirits and Bee’s Knees Week, visit barrhill.com and beeskneesweek.com. Raise a glass. Plant a habitat. Save the bees.

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ABOUT BARR HILL

Barr Hill is an award-winning, super-premium spirits brand made by the Montpelier, Vermont-based distillery, Caledonia Spirits. Barr Hill started in 2011 when Ryan Christiansen—now President and Head Distiller l—met beekeeper Todd Hardie who was using raw honey in his small production winery. A decade later and now the team has grown and moved into a state of the art, sustainably built distillery and bar spread across five acres, producing America’s most awarded gin—all centered around regional raw honey and helping pollinators. Barr Hill currently produces three spirits – Barr Hill Gin, Barr Hill Reserve Tom Cat Gin, and Barr Hill Vodka.