The Merchant’s Wife

Name: The Merchant's Wife
Total time: PT0D0H0M
Yield: makes 1 Cocktail
Ingredients: 2 (2"x1") chunks fresh watermelon, plus wedges to garnish; 3 ⁄ 4 oz. simple syrup; 1 oz. gin; 3 ⁄ 4 oz. Aperol; 3 ⁄ 4 oz. lemon juice; 1 oz. club soda

Serves
makes 1 Cocktail

MAXIME IATTONI

A bright mix of watermelon, gin, Aperol, lemon juice, and a splash of club soda, this cocktail from Stella Rosa Pizza Bar in Santa Monica sidesteps the normal pitfalls of watermelon-based cocktails, which tend to veer to the overly sweet. Well-balanced and pleasantly effervescent, the mild astringency of the Aperol tugs back at the melon's sweetness and reignites the gin, elevating this brightly-hued cocktail to the heights of sophistication.

Ingredients

2 (2"x1") chunks fresh watermelon, plus wedges to garnish
³⁄₄ oz. simple syrup
1 oz. gin
³⁄₄ oz. Aperol
³⁄₄ oz. lemon juice
1 oz. club soda

Instructions

Step 1

Muddle the watermelon chunks and simple syrup together in a cocktail shaker. Add the remaining ingredients, fill shaker with ice, and shake vigorously. Strain over into a wine glass filled with crushed ice and serve garnished with a wedge of watermelon.