Impress Your Party Guests By Serving Cocktails With A Watermelon Keg
The most important factor for you to consider when hosting a party is the taste of the comestibles you will give your guests. That said, visuals play a critical role in making sure your food and drink are as appealing as possible. You're undoubtedly familiar with the oft-repeated notion that eating begins with the eyes. A dish can be made perfectly and have a fantastic flavor profile, but if it looks sloppy, your guests may not fully appreciate your painstakingly prepared snack setup.
You don't have to look further than refreshing watermelon to make the perfect party cocktail. If you really want to bring your cocktail to the next level, you should consider serving it out of a watermelon keg. Despite the watermelon being one of the largest and most visually intimidating fruits, there are a ton of creative watermelon ideas for you to try out, and transforming its hearty husk into an alcohol receptacle is a relatively easy way to impress at your next party.
How to hollow out a watermelon keg
After you've decided to make a watermelon keg for your get-together, you'll need to pick the perfect watermelon for your project. A smaller watermelon will hold less of your chosen cocktail, so take the size of your guest list into account. Also, choosing a melon that will ripen in time for your gathering is paramount.
Once you select the perfect watermelon, it's time to start carving your keg. First, scrub off any dirt that's adhered itself to its rind. Then, you'll need to shave the bottom of the melon so that the oblong fruit will be able to stand upright on its own. If you can accomplish this task without slicing into the fruit, your watermelon will likely stay fresher longer. Next, cut a hole near the top of the melon, then use this opening to remove the fleshy pink fruit, similar to how you carve a pumpkin. You'll want to set aside the section of the rind you sliced off, as it will serve as a keg cover later.
Additionally, save some of the scooped melon, which can be used to craft various watermelon drinks. If you really love watermelon, you can even use a melon baller to make circular chunks. These spheres can serve as edible garnishes, or you can give the fruit balls a quick freeze and use them as ice cubes.
Tapping your homemade watermelon keg
Once the fruit has been thoroughly excavated, it's time to turn the hallowed husk into a keg. Arguably, inserting the tap is the most important step. Fortunately, a seemingly inexhaustible supply of taps is available online for you to purchase for your homemade drink receptacle. Start by making an indent a small distance above the flattened base with the tapper and use this indentation as an outline for carving a hole into the husk. Check that the hole goes through the entire rind.
Now, simply stick the spigot into the hole that you carved. It should require a bit of force, indicating that your tap has a sufficient seal. Clean out your tap's tube of any watermelon residue it may have picked up while it was affixed to the melon. Next, to check that your keg is watertight, pour a small amount of water into the watermelon, flip the tap to open it, and see if any liquid dribbles from the original opening. If your keg has sprung a leak, you can wrap duct tape around the tap until it has a tight fit.
There is no shortage of delicious drinks to put in your watermelon keg. One simple and sure-to-please beverage is watermelon margaritas. To craft this cocktail, blend the recently removed watermelon into a liquid and add water, ice, lime juice, sugar, and simple syrup. Then, these melon margaritas are ready for garnishes — lime wedges, mint sprigs, and a salt rim.