drunken watermelon on tap

I know what you're thinking: "What if I attached a faucet to a watermelon and filled it with spiked watermelon juice so party guests could serve themselves right from the melon?" Well, my husband finally turned that dream into a reality.

After testing three different types of faucets and spending the entire afternoon of our housewarming party creating his masterpiece — only to have it clog just hours before guests arrived, resulting in a mad dash to Home Depot and the supermarket so he could do it all over again — he's now perfected the model so all you have to do is build it. Want to impress guests with a DIY watermelon keg of your own?

Read on to find out how...

What you'll need:
•   10-pound seedless watermelon
•    Sharp knife
•    Big spoon
•    Big bowl
•    Drill with a 1/2-inch drill bit
•    3/4-inch ball-valve faucet with a handle that's easy to turn with one hand
•    PVC-to-faucet adapter that will screw into the back of the faucet
•    Rubber O-ring that fits the back of the faucet
•    Blender
•    Sieve
•    Pitcher
•    1 1/2 cups rum
•    4 limes
•    About 90 minutes of your time

1. If your watermelon is wobbly when standing on one end, use a knife to trim off the stem end of your watermelon rind just enough that the melon sits flat. Then decide which side of your melon looks best — that'll be your front. Cut the top jack-o'-lantern style, big enough to fit your hand through, but center the cut more toward the back of the melon so you can't see the seam from the front.

2. Use a big spoon to scoop out the fruit into a large bowl. Eat some of the watermelon as you're scooping it out to make sure it doesn't poison your guests. Pour any juice in the bottom of the melon into your pitcher.

3. Drill a hole a few inches from the bottom of the melon for your faucet. Then use a knife to slightly widen the hole till it's just a little smaller than the diameter of the back of the faucet.

4. Gently screw the faucet into the hole, putting your other hand inside the melon for leverage. Don't jam it in or you'll bruise the outside of the rind and compromise your seal. Inside the melon, carve away a little more fruit from around the back of the faucet (don't go through the rind) to make room for screwing on the adapter.

5. Slide the O-ring onto the back of the faucet, then screw on the adapter. To test for leaks, fill the melon halfway with water, then turn on the faucet. Once you've confirmed that your watermelon is indeed operational, pour out the water through the top.

6. Reserve some watermelon to eat tomorrow for breakfast, then throw the rest into a blender and puree. Use the back of a spoon to push the puree through a sieve placed over your pitcher so you're left with just juice. Discard any solids. You should have about 6 cups of juice. Mix the juice with 1 1/2 cups of rum and 1/2 cup of fresh lime juice (about four limes' worth).

7. Pour the mixture back into the watermelon. Put the top back on the melon and set it on the edge of a counter or table to serve.

Comments

this is very cool.....thanks for sharing.....i might get my sweet husband on this project for next year ! LOL

This is one of the best party ideas I have ever seen. Your husband's hard work and perseverence (Sp?) have paid off. :)
I can not wait to use this idea and share it with my mom, who will adore the idea. What fun! Thanks for sharing!!!

Awesome idea!! Thank you so much...we are having a Luau Party this weekend and this will be a perfect addition to it.

FANTASTIC! THANK YOU for posting this very valuable info and THANK YOU for being honest. LOVE the commentary!! Great read!! I can't wait for my hubby and his friends to make this:)

This is sweet... I love how you even stuck a real o'le faucet in there.

I smell project!

I love this! Perfect for that last bbq of the season. It also reminds me of another alcohol-melon concoction I’ve served in the past with much success – Cantaloupe and Tequila. I think I originally got the recipe from a Rozanne Gold cookbook (although it was so long ago, I could be totally wrong).

Basically, you make melon balls and mix them in a bowl with about a 1/2 a cup of top shelf tequila, 4 or 5 tablespoons of sugar and a pinch of salt.

After you refrigerate them for a half an hour, dip the rims of 4 glasses into the tequila and then in sugar (the way you do with margarita glasses and salt) and then add the marinated melon balls. I usually put salt out with them when I serve.

The sweet and salty combo is what makes this a hit.

Wanted to post the costs for the drunken watermelon on tap project, since I would have had no idea how much, say, a faucet would run me before putting this together. The watermelon and limes cost me about $6 (and my melon was probably closer to 15 pounds) and the faucet, PVC adapter and O-ring were about $15. So assuming you already have a drill and a bottle of rum (or tequila or vodka--any of them will work), the whole shebang can be yours for just 20 bucks and change.

How awesome is this idea!!!! Martha Stewart would be put to shame...and envious!!! I'm going to try it out at my next bunco event!!! Thanks for sharing!

OMG!! That's awesome!! We're definitely gonna have to give it a "shot".

How do i get one of those for my up coming ski trip? :)

This is awesome! I did something similar one year and was equally as cool and a big party hit! Take a watermelon, cut a hole in one hollowing out just a bit on top for liquid to seep in. Dump a bottle of your favorite vodka in there (this takes some patience as the vodka needs to be added slowly to soak into the watermelon like a sponge). It'll work, it just takes some time.

Then come party time cut up the watermelon and eat the fruit. You get you daily fruit intake and a cocktail at the same time!

AWESOME! I can't wait to give this a try!

Could this be done with a pumpkin for a Halloween party? Seems like as long as you really got the inside clean, it would work!

DC--yeah, I'm sure it'd work great! Though you'd probably want to fill it with something other than spiked pumpkin juice. Maybe fill it with orange juice and vodka? Mulled cider? Have fun!

I cant wait to give this a try for our Poker Night! Thanks for the great idea and for sharing! And I love the watermelon idea! Keep the ideas coming!

Very cool! :)

I saw another bit of watermelon / alcohol fun on a UK cooking show once. You stick a funnel in the top of the watermelon and gradually fill it with alcohol over a few days (the flesh absorbs the alcohol):

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_14317,00.html

Excellent idea!!

I think putting it in the freezer after cleaning and testing the faucet is operational would be best, gotta keep the drinkypoos cool baby.

& perhaps also a lil ice in the top once done.

You can also use melons for halloween lanterns, which is great if no one likes pumpkin in your house!

Fantastic! Makes me wish it were summer.

The pumpkin idea sounds fun too but you'd want to make sure it was a drink that would be ok tasting a little pumpkin-y as I'm sure the flesh would leech a bit of the flavor into the drink unless you can find a way to seal it before putting the drink in.

This is GREAT! What a cool idea - I have lots of pool parties and bbqs each summer, I will have to try this for SURE! Thanks to you for posting and hubby for inventing!

This is how we ALL look like Martha Stewart's - it's only when these fantastic recipes see the light of day that we can all truly be inspired to actually try this sort of "miracle" party favour - cudos to you for sharing what is obviously a labour of love - Thanks - Cultus Lake, B.C.

That's creative, but its' expired on the next day. This always benefited to the people who having interest on their creativity, they do it & proof of their creativity ideas, is patent & what do you name it.
Its to be of your name & its forever.

I've been serving spiked grape juice this way for years, you amateur!

Good idea but is it necessary to use a drilling machine to make hole? if the drill bit is brand new and properly washed then its ok otherwise it may be harmful.

@Mike:
Why do you this about a very nice idea. Serving grape juice does not remind me thinking of a watermelon. Yes, Elizabeth and husband might be amateurs, but the wheel was invented more than once, too!
In the Bahamas I've been drinking from pineapples, but that's completely different!
I love this idea, and coming summer we plan to have some bbq's, so I hope to use the idea.

liked and faved =D

Wow, that is cool. We could use that at our next tailgate party.

You had me at SPIKED !!!!
Looks like a great plan!!!
Thx!

i would love to have a husband to work out this amazing idea.

Amazing tip...i like it.

that can't possibly have a long shelf life.

ouch, do you know how much a 10 pound watermelon would cost here in northern Maine?

Fantastic post. My mom would inject navel oranges and puncture them with a straw. Walked around her college campus drinking screwdrivers with no one the wiser. That was a single serving, but this one screams party!

love the idea

just make sure you do not leave it out of the fridge very long. Watermelon is very open to heavy microbial contamination!

This is one fruit NOT to leave out very long...

Man this is by far, the brightest idea i've seen lately. Loved it!!

Toby, are you kidding? How do you get one? Why don't you stop being a lazy parasite to society and read the thorough instructions instead of skipping the entire page and asking where you can go buy one? You're disgusting. And Hashim, you're a tool. A little dirt on a drill bit isn't going to be "harmful" unless you typically drill hazarzous materials boxes in your garage. A good rinse would more than suffice...so stop being a nancy. Awesome article by the way, very creative...and well executed I might add!

freakin BRILLIANT!!!

Can you post pictures of the actual faucet? The directions are good, but I am much more visual.

Back-in-the-day....
1 - large watermelon
1 - bread knife
1 - clear bowl just large enough to hold your melon upright with the end not touching the bottom.
1 - bottle of Everclear, size depending on size of your melon and/or how happy you want to end up.

With the knife, cut a thumb size hole into one end of the melon, just into the red. this is the 'drain end'. (retain this plug for later use).
On the opposite end of the melon, cut a whole just big enough to firmly seat your bottle of Everclear in to the shoulder of the bottle. This hole needs to go several inches into the center of the melon, taking out a plug to leave a cavity for the bottle to hang into.
Place bowl on counter, place melon, deep hole end over the bottle. grasp both firmly and gently upend both into bowl, drain end down.
Monitor the drippings until you begin notice they somehow taste better. Replug the hole and duct tape it securely and allow the melon to steep for several more hours. (overnight in the fridge is excellent, or an ice chest, but LEAVE THE BOTTLE IN THE MELON).
Place melon and bottle into bowl, bottle-down and remove melon from bottle, capturing any excess alcohol/juices in the bowl.
Slice however you slice a watermelon and splash with any leftover alcohol/juice and party-on!

Wow, very interesting, useful and nice.

You may want to consider the fact that the faucet you are using contains high amounts of lead. Any item that comes into contact with drinking water should have NSF stamped on it. Otherwise the cheap route for the manufacturer is to use lead in the "metal". Even normal PVC will have lead in it. It is used as a stabilizer because the chlorine in PVC would be too unstable.

Brilliant you guys!!!

Excellent idea, good creativity, thanks for sharing!

Great party idea!! What a winner! Liz, you are such a cool chick!

crazy. But it's nice idea!

Great :)

Ah, brings back 35yr old memories of my mother's most popular creation: Instead of smushing up the watermelon insides, she carved out a bunch of watermelon balls, but left a good deal of the meat intact. The balls then went back inside along with quite a bit of vodka. She used the spigot from an old cooler/thermos-thingie (thus food-grade plastic -- or at least it would be now.)

First guests drank the liquid and ate the melon balls. Then, Mom carved up the watermelon and people feasted on the (very potent) vodka-soaked slices! Don't know how it tasted, but all the adults were *very happy* by the end of the night! (And yes, Mom had to make certain the munchkins had their own separate watermelon!)

salam hi
thats good for what ideal?

This is an awesome idea... My boyfriend will love this one!

very creative ! what a bright mind =)

That's awesome! I'm going to decorate the outside of the watermelon. =)

Hi there,

I just stumbled accross your blog by using stumbleupon and love the design of the whole thing! I normally skip straight past food blogs as I have over 20 in my RSS and dont even have enough time to read the ones that I have! I am started out as a blogger myself and always tried to keep the design simple like yours as I think it is crucial, especially if you can back it up with some nice food pics like yours! Keep up the good work and if you feel like sharing some of the photos with other foodies pop over to www.ifoods.tv which is my new site for foodies! Cheers!

Man! you are crazy! Are you bored?

PVC pipes are poisonous -- don't use them for this.

Love it!

Brilliant! This takes the simple watermelon bowl to a new level of sophistication. Nicely done!

Mark

One of the coolest posts I have seen in a long while. Great job.

This is going to be perfect for my 4th of July BBQ. It even looks easy enough for me to put together on my own.

Cool idea...thanks! I would add, though, that you can just put the watermelon in the blender rather than spend a lot of time and energy putting bits of watermelon through a strainer by hand. You could pour the mixture through a strainer after the blender, but I like the texture of the juice unstrained.

Also, an idea is to freeze the watermelon before they go in the blender so everything is cold and ready to drink after the blender.

Hey guys!! Thanks for the really cool idea! I thought I'd try it out myself, and it turned out really cool.

Check out my blog - poppawinst.com

and of course I gave you guys credit ;) If you guys have a website or blog i could edit it in. Thanks again for the cool idea.

That is a really great idea!! Does the watermelon get soggy tho?

I have never had watermelon juice. it sounds delicious!

Pvc is poisonous if eatten probably, but people drink out of pvc pipes carrying water all the time. Ok well I do atleast... Hummm... That might explain alot lol. Awsome idea guys!

Good grief. Some of you are perfect examples of what is wrong with this world. Most of the fear mongers have been taken to task so I will reserve my comments to Dee's comment.

That faucet does NOT have high amounts of lead in it. Your claim is a flat out lie. If you have sources that claim so, you need to find accurate sources.

As far as lead in PVC? If there is ANY there it is such a teeny, tiny amount it does not even matter.

People like you disgust me. This was a cool article and you have to come in here with your preachy, sanctimonious lectures.

BLECH and a pox on you.

That is an awesome idea! Fun for parties!

Holy.... That is amazing!

I think this is the most amazing thing ever... The first time I did a drunk watermelon we got tired of eating the watermelon and other assorted fruits that had soaked for a few days and everything went into the blender for awesome smoothies- I wonder if the watermelon makes a good cooler and would be conducive to drunken mixed fruit smoothies as well.

awesome! thanks for the step by step instructions.

do you think it could be done with an actual tap like for draft beer?

This is the coolest thing! Thanks for the step by step photos...I'm pretty sure this is going to turn up at my next party!

I love this!!!

That is a great idea! I am glad it finally worked out for the party.

That is a great idea. The joys of the watermelon vodka!!

Nice! This is REALLY great!!

I love how you drill the hole in the watermelon -- with a drill!!

Peko

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WOYoMJkPLJk

A complete waste of a perfectly good watermellon. I guess if you're a boozer it's a "great" idea. But for loosers.

Wow this is so fantastic.. May i post it in my blog and share to others... this is quite interesting! and very fabulous and truly amazing!

Escoofield-
http://alotofit.com

Have Fun!

OMG that's so cool!

That's awesome...I like the cool idea!! This gonna be my next project for party..Thanks!!!!!

To those of you saying that the PVC pipe is poisonous do some research before you say that. It only will release the toxins if it is being incinerated... people have been piping drinking water into their homes with PVC pipe for years.

This is a wonderful idea. I've been thinking about a luau for my rehearsal dinner i think this would be a wonderful addition. Thank you!

Wow this is so fantastic great idea!!
Hey guys!! many Thanks for the really cool idea!

This is too fun,. What a great cocktail concept.

In college, we would cram a traveller of vodka in the skin large melon and set it so the bottle slowly drains into the melon. After 24 hours, the vodka will have permeated the melon and it can be eaten.

It can either be eaten with a spoon or melon balled and frozen in a deep freezer.

Just curious, normally spiked watermelons only really work on "Seeded" watermelons.. does that not really matter since you're making your own puree?

OMG!! What a great idea! I will be trying this for sure this summer! It's definitely going to be a crowd pleaser! I can't wait to show this to family and friends!

WOW, excellent Idea I hope to use this at an up comming office party.

Wow.. this is fantastic idea. I love this idea. Let me try this process. Thanks for sharing.

my sour bunny candy tastes like a pina colada !!! OMG ITS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DELITIOCE

AWESOME! So doing this in the summer. thanks!

Good idea mate.

You are such a playful chef!!
I dont want to drink anything from that tap.....

real cool!

planning to do that haha

nice idea

wow!
This is awesome!

this is a great idea. I'm putting this page on my favorites and making this the next time I throw a party! My guests will be very impressed.

This totally a great idea!! Perfect for serving punches as well just remove the faucet ^^

Güzelmiş bunu düşünen kesin baskillidir :)

This is awesome. My husband and I plan to make this for our July 4th party and our river trip. Thanks for working out the kinks.

sorry but stupid.

ooooh...careful! i wouldnt stick it in the freezer if i were you! frozen melon gets mushy and youd probably end up with faucet trouble.....

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