The Worst Monin Syrup Is A Flavor That's Having A Big Moment

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Here at Tasting Table, we're all about adding a kick of sweet-spicy "swicy" flair to plain, predictable beverages. Alas, despite our fervor, Monin's Hot Honey Syrup fell to last place in our ranking of 20 popular Monin syrups. The biggest sin here is that the syrup is simply too spicy to drink. We got our hopes up, mixing it with gin and fresh lemon, aiming for a spicy version of a Bee's Knees cocktail. But the result was disappointing, as the overwhelming spicy flavor resulted in an unbalanced drink. 

The official Monin website promises the syrup will "turn up the heat on your beverage and culinary creations with the perfect balance of sweetness and spice." This advertising is half-delivered-upon. The site goes on to describe its Hot Honey Syrup as "made with organic wildflower honey and zesty jalapeño pepper," which sounds delightful and dimensional on paper. In execution, however, the syrup was just too intensely hot to work for cocktails or any other beverages, and consequently, it came across as one-note.

Ultimately, the syrup left us scratching our heads about how it could even be used in a beverage. Monin's product seems to be targeting voracious hot honey fans — a somewhat niche audience. And anyway, wouldn't these folks ostensibly already have a bottle of hot honey stocked in their pantries to begin with?

Beyond cocktails, Monin syrups are frequently used in coffee shops, but the scope of possibility for using hot honey flavor in a coffee drink is narrow at best. It might taste alright in an Americano, cold brew, or black drip coffee (which would maintain the savory, bold robustness of the condiment). However, forget about using it in a creamy iced latte or any sweet-tasting beverage.

Monin's Hot Honey Syrup could (in theory) add flair to a zesty glass of lemonade or an ultra-punchy old fashioned. Unfortunately, the syrup doesn't deliver. Customer reviews on the Monin website say the flavor reminds them of a "simple syrup with candied habanero" but is hotter than expected, "very limited in ways to use," and "a bit overpowering." The syrup offers a different type of heat, just one that doesn't work well. The pillar brand Mike's Hot Honey is infused with red chili peppers rather than jalapeños, as are many Mike's offshoot brands. Monin's syrup brings overkill heat and vegetal flavor tones that are hard to complement.

Our advice? Stick with Monin's versatile passion fruit syrup, our favorite from the brand's oeuvre, and save the hot honey for drizzle on pizza. If you want to shake up a hot honey cocktail (like this dimensional hot honey apricot margarita), just use regular hot honey.