Watermelon
Watermelon is a large, red-fleshed melon that is about 92% water, so ripe cubes muddle to juice in seconds and usually bring enough sweetness on their own. Our Watermelon Martini muddles four cubes into vodka and lime, and the alcohol-free Watermelon Cooler lengthens 150ml of sieved juice with lime and soda. In our bar cut melon keeps up to three days chilled; the juice, the same day.
Quick Facts
We keep a whole melon somewhere cool. Once cut, cover the flesh and refrigerate it; make juice on the day you use it.
None of the 14 listed allergens.
About Watermelon
Flavour Profile
Primary Flavours
Tasting Notes
Clean sweet water with a green rind edge: subtle enough to carry spirits, sweet enough to need almost nothing else.
Mostly water, so it gives up its juice at once
Watermelon is about 92% water, by the figure the US National Watermelon Promotion Board uses. There is little fibre to hold that water back, so cubes yield to a muddler and chunks become liquid in a blender within seconds. A fine sieve catches the pulp and any stray seeds.
Two of our drinks, two methods
The Watermelon Martini muddles four cubes in the base of the shaker, then adds 50ml of vodka, 15ml of lime and as much syrup as the melon needs. It is shaken hard and fine strained into a chilled glass. The Watermelon Cooler is made without spirit: ripe flesh blended and sieved, 150ml of it over ice with 25ml of lime, topped with soda and a slapped sprig of mint.
Watermelon against the other watery fruit in a long drink
Watermelon
- Flavour
- Clean, sweet melon
- Sweetness
- Enough to replace most syrup when ripe
- How it goes in
- Muddled cubes, or blended and sieved
- Keeps once cut
- Up to three days; juice the same day
Cucumber
- Flavour
- Green, cool
- Sweetness
- Very little
- How it goes in
- Slices, ribbons or muddled
- Keeps once cut
- A day
Fresh strawberry
- Flavour
- Sweet, floral, gently sharp
- Sweetness
- Moderate
- How it goes in
- Blended or sieved purée
- Keeps once cut
- The same day
| Flavour | Sweetness | How it goes in | Keeps once cut | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watermelon | Clean, sweet melon | Enough to replace most syrup when ripe | Muddled cubes, or blended and sieved | Up to three days; juice the same day |
| Cucumber | Green, cool | Very little | Slices, ribbons or muddled | A day |
| Fresh strawberry | Sweet, floral, gently sharp | Moderate | Blended or sieved purée | The same day |
A heavy melon with a yellow patch
Choose a melon that feels heavy for its size and has a creamy yellow patch where it lay in the field; a pale white or green patch means it was cut before it was ready. Watermelon does not ripen after harvest, so there is no fixing an early one at home. Taste the juice before adding syrup and adjust to the melon in front of you.
Cut melon lasts days, juice only hours
We keep a whole melon somewhere cool until we cut it. Once cut, wrap the flesh and refrigerate it for up to three days. The juice separates and loses its colour quickly, so juice it on the day of serving and stir before pouring. Leftover juice can go into an ice-cube tray.
Using Watermelon
Usage
Muddle four cubes in the shaker for a Watermelon Martini, or blend chunks and sieve them finely for the 150ml in a Watermelon Cooler. Taste the juice before adding syrup; a ripe melon often needs none. Both are garnished with a little wedge of melon on the rim.
Pro Tip
Juice the melon first and measure it. A sieved watermelon gives more than it looks, and pouring a measured 150ml keeps each Cooler the same, where blending to order changes with every wedge.
Top Tips
- Lift a few melons and take the heaviest for its size; weight is water, and water here is juice.
- Turn it over: the patch where it lay should be creamy yellow, not white or green.
- Press the pulp lightly through the sieve; forcing it clouds the juice.
- Freeze leftover juice in an ice-cube tray for the next round.
Possible Substitutions
- Cucumber: Greener and much less sweet, for a drier cooler
- Fresh Strawberry: Sweeter and thicker; blend and sieve it the same way
More to explore
Common Questions
What is in a watermelon martini?
How do you juice a watermelon without a juicer?
How do you tell if a watermelon is ripe?
Does watermelon juice need sugar in a cocktail?
How long does fresh watermelon juice keep?
What alcohol goes with watermelon?
Made with Watermelon
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Often Used With
Guide by Jerry Can Spirits · Updated 18 October 2026