Summer cocktails on Delmarva: Bigger is better, especially in buckets

Amazingly, summer is almost over.

Yes, it's really true. Labor Day is around the corner along with back-to-school night. And there's probably plenty on the summer to-do list that remains unchecked.

If one of those items includes a party, there are plenty of places to do so at the beach.

Bigger is better these days, and that notion rings true when it comes to our favorite summer cocktail concoctions. Many bars and restaurants in the area are ditching the sand from the buckets used to build sand castles and instead filling them with liquor and fruit juice to create a big, bold, buzz ... and probably a banging headache shortly after.

In Ocean City, options are aplenty for oversized cocktails. At Hammerheads at Ninth and the Boardwalk, the signature drink section is full of booze-heavy beverages. But if you're looking to drink out of a bucket, the Bacardi Rum Punch Bucket is probably your speed. The drink can be ordered in 32- or 64-ounce portions and is made with Bacardi dark, mango and silver rums with pineapple and cranberry juices.

Bucket fans in Ocean City can also find 64 ounces of fun at Macky's Bayside, where there are four different bucket drinks to choose from. Orange crush fans can find an enlarged version and other options are a rum punch concoction, passionfruit vodka mixture and a fruity sangria.

Looking for tequila? Guidos Burritos has massive margaritas available.

Up in Delaware, the Big Chill Beach Club from La Vida Hospitality is also in on the bucket fun. The facility — with a nice bar and restaurant setup — has a section on the menu dedicated to buckets. Varieties range from a Caribbean Crush to the Dark & Stormy, Coconut Cooler and the aptly-named Inlet Rum Runner. All are $14, a bargain for the 32 ounces of liquid served in the bucket 

For a much steeper price, Mango's in Bethany has quite possibly the biggest drinks on Delmarva available in their "Group Cocktails" section.

Fans of copper mugs and Moscow Mules have two massive, 196-ounce mules to choose from. The Mango Mega Mule is a traditional Moscow Mule made with Smirnoff vodka and Owen's Craft Mixers Mule Mix.

Its cousin, The Paloma Mega Mule, is a grapefruit and tequila mixture you'll need a few friends to help take down.

And rounding out the Mango's big drink selection is Mango's Jumbo Punch, the signature rum punch cocktail served in a very large glass.

All three drinks come in at $45 apiece.

For $5 more up at Nalu in Dewey Beach, The Wipe-Out, maybe the original bucket cocktail at the beach, has been serving partiers in Dewey for 10 years. The 144-ounce drink features 44 ounces of liquor, coconut and pineapple rums, and 100 ounces of fruit juice. A minimum of three people are required to order the drink.

Further north in Rehoboth, the beach-themed, Conch Island Key West Bar and Grill has a pretty big fishbowl style drink for $29 made with orange and coconut rums, blue curaçao, sour mix, pineapple juice and Sprite. 

Sounds like a headache.

If you go

Ocean City

Hammerheads
Where: 913 N. Atlantic Avenue A
Hours: 8 a.m. - midnight Fri-Sun, 11 a.m. - midnight Mon-Thurs
Big drink: Bacardi Rum Punch Bucket

Macky's Bayside
Where: 5311 Coastal highway
Hours: 11-2 a.m. daily
Big drink: Sangria bucket

Guidos Burritos
Where: Two locations: 1st and the Boardwalk and 33rd and Coastal Highway
Hours: 11-2 a.m. daily
Big drink: Margaritas

Delaware

Mango's
Where: 97 Garfield Parkaway, Bethany Beach
Hours: 11:30-11:30 daily
Big drink: Massive Mules

Big Chill Beach Club
Where: 27099 Coastal Highway, Bethany Beach (Seashore State Park)
Hours: 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. daily
Big drink: Beach Buckets

Nalu Hawaiian Surf Bar and Grill
Where: 1308 Coastal Highway, Dewey
Hours: 11-11 Mon-Weds, 11 a.m. - 1 a.m. Thurs-Sun
Big drink: The Wipe-Out

Conch Island Key West Bar and Grill
Where: 211 Rehoboth Avenue, Rehoboth
Hours: 11-11 daily
Big drink: Flying Monkey Fishbowl