Grey Goose is celebrating record attendance at the Australian Open during its inaugural partnership with the Grand Slam.

Grey Goose has created the signature serve of the Australian Open, the Lemon Ace, to celebrate the brand becoming the tournament’s official vodka partner in 2025 and beyond.

The cocktail has become a social media staple and attracted global media coverage as the Australian Open shapes up to be the biggest yet.

More than one million spectators attended last year’s Australian Open, making it the highest-attended Grand Slam event of all time. Record crowd numbers have already been recorded on several days during the first two weeks of this year’s tournament.

Tennis Australia’s director of partnerships and international business Roddy Campbell told The Australian his ambition was to establish the Australian Open as the most “pioneering festival in the world”.

“Most people don’t realise that the Australian Open is the biggest Grand Slam in terms of attendance and audience,” he said.

“The AO is bigger than the US Open and bigger than Wimbledon. So pure media reach for global brands is a big part of the appeal of an event like ours.”

Grey Goose Master Distiller François Thibault and Global Director of Brand Experience Joe McCanta have travelled to Australia to see the Grey Goose activations at the Australian Open first hand.

They include the Grey Goose Rooftop at the Courtside Bar. Introduced last year with sweeping views over Court 6 – it has been transformed into a Grey Goose haven, where fans can enjoy the action with a freshly mixed Grey Goose Lemon Ace, exclusive to the first-floor bar for ground pass holders.

Meanwhile, Grey Goose has also taken centre stage at the balcony bar within Club 1905, the new AO Reserve hospitality space named in honour of the Australian Open’s foundation year. Grey Goose is presenting a drinks menu featuring Classic Grey Goose Martinis and signature serves of its new prestige vodka, Grey Goose Altius.

Grey Goose is hoping to replicate the success of its US Open signature serve, the Honey Deuce, which has racked up a record $US12.8 million in sales and become a global sensation.

McCanta created the Lemon Ace cocktail in partnership with Tennis Australia’s Head of Product Growth & Innovation Fern Barrett.

‘The Grey Goose Lemon Ace was crafted with the Australian summer in mind—a perfect blend of vibrant, citrus-forward flavours that capture the zest and energy of the season,” McCanta said.

“Combining Grey Goose vodka, passionfruit syrup, and sparkling lemonade, this fresh tasting cocktail is elevated with a playful garnish of a lemon “spinning tennis ball” over fresh mint. It reflects the spirit of summer tennis: bright, invigorating, and unforgettable.”

McCanta said Grey Goose had chosen to partner with tennis tournament because they “embody everything our brand represents: sophistication, energy, and the celebration of life’s best moments”.

“As one of the most prestigious and vibrant sporting events in the world, the Australian Open offered a powerful platform to showcase our commitment to creating memorable experiences,” he said.

“With its deep connection to Australian summer traditions and its global appeal, the Australian Open aligns seamlessly with our brand’s vision of bringing joyfully elevated moments to life. Renowned for delivering exceptional experiences, the tournament mirrors Grey Goose’s ethos—offering fans a refined yet accessible way to savour the best of summer, both courtside and beyond.

“This partnership celebrates Grey Goose’s longstanding commitment to tennis, building on the brand’s iconic global legacy established through the US Open. There, the Honey Deuce has become more than a cocktail—it’s a symbol of the event’s elegance and excitement, enjoyed by A-list celebrities and fans alike.

“With the Australian Open, we’re bringing that same celebratory spirit to Melbourne Park through the introduction of the Grey Goose Lemon Ace. This signature serve honours the zest of Australian summer and brings a refreshing new dimension to tennis culture. It’s about more than just a drink—it’s about creating moments of shared joy and celebration, on and off the court, that fans will remember long after the final match.”

McCanta said he had been blown away by the atmosphere at the Australian Open and Melbourne Park.

“It’s a true celebration of the sport but also of Melbourne itself and one of the things that makes it so unique is the democratization of the grounds – you can enjoy walking around the grounds and share in the excitement even without watching a match,” he said.

“This is one of the reasons why we wanted to create a canned version of the Lemon Ace which is being sold throughout – it’s an exclusive Grey Goose RTD for the tournament. The other thing that is so impressive is the level of hospitality found throughout – it’s truly a world class offering of food and drink and adds so much to the enjoyment of the day.”

Recipe: Lemon Ace

• 40ml Grey Goose vodka
• 15ml passionfruit syrup
• 150ml sparkling cloudy lemonade

Glassware: highball or collins glass

Garnish: mint sprig and a lemon coin

METHOD: Fill a glass with cubed ice. Add vodka and passionfruit syrup, then top with lemonade. Give the drink a brief stir to mix the ingredients together and chill it down. Garnish with mint (give it a little smack against your palm first to release the oils) and lemon coin,

How the Honey Deuce became a social media sensation

The Honey Deuce contains Grey Goose vodka, lemonade and raspberry liqueur, garnished with three balls of honeydew melon.

It was created by former Grey Goose ambassador and restauranteur Nick Mautone, who was inspired to make the cocktail when he stopped at the supermarket to pick up some items to create a dessert salad that included honeydew melon balls.

“Immediately the thunderbolt went off and I said, ‘Holy cow, these look just like tennis balls,'” Mautone said. “So, from that moment on, I knew that that was the garnish, non-negotiable.”

Cocktail lovers around the world have become obsessed with the Honey Deuce, which has been a staple at the tennis tournament since 2007.

News Digital the vodka brand estimates that more than 556,000 Honey Deuces were sold at this year’s tournament.

Grey Goose vice president of marketing for North America Aleco Azqueta said: “You really can’t say you went to the US Open without having a Grey Goose Honey Deuce and this year that was more evident than ever.”

While more than 2.2 million Honey Deuces have been sold at the US Open since its creation nearly two decades ago, it’s only been in 2024 that the rest of the world has cottoned onto the cocktail.

Its visibility has been elevated by everyone from retired Grand Slam champion Serena Williams to Kendall Jenner and singer Taylor Swift being spotted with Honey Deuces in hand.

The US Open X account shared a photo of Swift reaching for the drink, along with the caption, “Taylor Swift getting the full US Open experience!”

And a frenzy was born.

“It just reinforces the hype around it, right,” Studley said. “I mean, you have your official cocktail for the tournament, and then you see a celebrity drinking it and it just kind of cements it in place for people to try it.”

TikTok was suddenly jammed with Honey Deuce cocktails as people scrambled to cash in on the excitement.

Serena Williams even gave it a shout out on her TikTok. She took a sip of the drink and said: “Honey, that’s not deuce – that’s called honey ace. Let’s rename it. It is good.”

Why is the cocktail so popular? Grey Goose vice president of marketing Aleco Azqueta told CNN it was “the taste of summer”.

“What’s unique about the Honey Deuce is that it’s something that people really look forward to since you can only have the original at the US Open,” he said.

“You can’t have a US Open without the Honey Deuce. It really is what the Mint Julep is to the Kentucky Derby but even more of a cultural phenomenon.”

How to make a Honey Deuce

Fill a chilled highball glass with cubed ice and 1.25 ounces Grey Goose vodka. Top with 3 ounces fresh lemonade and 0.5 ounce raspberry liqueur, such as Chambord. Garnish with a skewer of three honeydew melon balls.