kolb's gem

3/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1 chunk Watermelon (~1 oz)

Shake with ice and double strain into a wine glass. Top off with dry sparkling wine (~3 oz Brut Dargent Blanc de Blanc) and garnish with a small mint leaf.

On Sunday night, Andrea and I headed over to Green Street where Derric Crothers was tending bar. Since it was summer, I figured it was a good time to order the seasonal Kolb's Gem which contains fresh watermelon. The drink was named after a watermelon cultivar developed in the 1880's that became famous for growing giant, exhibition-quality melons; however, I do not believe that Green Street purchases such large, late season specimens to make their drink.
The Kolb's Gem had an interesting frothy head from the melon juice interacting with the sparkling wine, and the nose contained a good amount of watermelon and yellow Chartreuse notes. The sip was crisp from the lemon juice and brut sparkling wine, and the swallow contained a good degree of herbal complexity from the Chartreuse. Overall, the watermelon contributed a lot more to the color and smell than it did the taste of the Kolb's Gem.