Besot: to make dull or stupid; to muddle with drunkenness
Perhaps the writer (and editor who failed to correct it) was thinking of "Beset"?
Beset: 1) to set with ornaments; 2) trouble, harass 3) hem in; surround
"Surrounded by bees" makes more sense than "made stupid by bees", but, my bees have made me feel stupid at times.