There's one thing better than pumpkin beer, and you don’t even have to argue about whether it's hitting the shelves too early. That's because you make it yourself. Pumpkins are easily hollowed out, as we gather every year around this time, but instead of creating a jack-o-lantern, why not give your party extra pizzaz by creating a keg out of that orange squash?

The folks at Celebrations.com posted a video explanation that a ton of blogs picked up on, but on the whole, the process is pretty easy.

You will need:

- 1 large pumpkin
- 1 tap spigot
- a serrated knife (best if you have two sizes, large and small)

Steps:

1) Cut a circle around the top stem with the large knife (just like you’re making a jack-o-lantern) and pull it off to access the inside.

2) Scoop out all the pulp and seeds and pumpkin guts. Scrape the interior sides so you don’t end up with extra veggie flavor in your beer.

3) Draw a small circle near the bottom of the pumpkin where your spigot will go, and carefully cut around it. Use a serrated knife, as you want to be pretty precise, and err on the side of making it too small. The hole must be slightly smaller than the spigot.

4) Pop the spigot in the hole, and twist and turn to make sure it gets all the way through the wall of pumpkin.

5) Pour beer into the pumpkin.

6) Drink, without delay. This is really only a good trick if you have several brew-loving friends around, as beer in a pumpkin will spoil pretty fast, as well as get absorbed into the squash walls. But, if you’re having a party, nothing’s better.

Happy Halloween!

Photo via Celebrations.com