Welcome back to another edition of Wednesdays with… Today I’m extremely excited to introduce you to Kat McCourt, social media and marketing extraordinaire, year-rounder on the island, and all around food connoisseur. She’s one half of Salt Creative, a fantastic publicity agency on Martha’s Vineyard (check them out on Facebook!) as well as part of the What’s Up Martha team. Oh, and she also spends some of her time working with The Dockside Inn. Okay, I’ll stop now because honestly? Kat is EVERYWHERE on island; you can run into her grocery shopping or see her driving her car in the 4th of July parade! Check out this amazing drink she’s showcasing from Hooked MV, made with the summer’s ultimate fruit: watermelon!
Martha’s Vineyard Drink Spotlight:
Like clockwork whenever I’m out with my mom or at dinner with the family and I order a vodka cocktail I can predict the exact reaction – “OH! Kathryn!” – then I get a kick under the table….that’s her way of saying, “Kathryn Mary is that a very lady-like drink? Would your grandmother be pleased? How about a pinto grigio or a diet coke?” That’s just my Mom and we can’t fault people for their preconceptions, she just happens be lovely, poised, and very proper (and we all adore her for that). But I’m a little more undone and more of a firecracker than her – I’m a mix – a mix of my rough and tumble Dad and my sweetheart of a Mom. Enter the Sputnik Sweetheart.
Why the long lead-in you ask? Well – the Sputnik Sweetheart is the perfect juxtaposition of something a little tough around the edges, Vodka, (aka ‘mind eraser’) and something sweet, summery, fragile, and lovable – Watermelon. When I first tasted this lovely odd couple, made by the expert bartender’s at Hooked – Martha’s Vineyard, I instantly felt a quiet camaraderie with the drink, and soon the creator, Sam Decker, confirmed that feeling for me, he smiles and says, “You know there’s something a little tough and Russian about vodka and we decided to brighten it up a bit with fresh, cold, sweet watermelon.” I smiled back for a completely different reason. Yeah, The Sputnik Sweetheart made me feel at home. I can just hear my Mom now. But oddly I think she might be ok with this one.
What happened next was my favorite park of the entire 5 minute “order to sip” experience, Sam handed over the drink and said – “I’d give you a straw but that would just be mean.” – “Why?” I asked – “Well because we chose to not strain this drink….it’s like trying to drink a super think milkshake with a straw – not possible – we’d just giggle from the other side.” He promptly passed me a spoon.
Sometimes your most favorite pairings are those that are seemingly opposites – they compliment each other like they were created for each other. Not only do vodka and watermelon match like puzzle pieces but watermelon without vodka now somehow seems, well, wrong. Kinda like food without salt – just not ok.
I’m secretly creating a Top 5 Vodka Summer Drink list (for reference, of course) and the Sputnik Sweetheart is vying for the top spot. And doing this research I’ve found vodka really is the spirit of the summer – able to take on any of those fresh flavors we crave in more than just food…Best part? This sweet lil nugget can be made easily at home, see the recipe below.
After much thinking I’m pretty sure this drink has enough sweetness and charm to woo my Mom in….She’ll be sold.
Sputnik Sweetheart
Print Recipe
Ingredients
- Fresh muddled watermelon almost half a highball
- 1 ounce of Ciroc Vodka
- ½ ounce of St. Germain
- ½ lime juiced
- Agave Nectar to taste
- Prosecco to finish
Instructions
- Muddle the fresh watermelon and add the rest of the ingredients except the prosecco.
- Shake and serve with a prosecco float. Cheers!