This project began as a fun #armchairImagineering contest brief on Twitter, started by @robjyeo. The challenge was to make a themed food or beverage cart for a spooky forest area of a park.
I began by creating this concept sketch which tried to capture the mood of a ghostly beer wagon stranded in the forest, overtaken by vines and overgrowth, and driven by a skeletal horse and driver. I could easily see either of these skeletal figures having subtle AA features to give them subtle signs of life.
Here’s the backstory for the attraction. Because it’s gotta have a backstory, right?
Guests would enter around a spooky tree past the “Ingang” (entrance) sign, accessing draught beers from ghostly bartenders on the backside of the wagon. The cart is unique not only due to its moody wagon and nighttime lighting effects, but a unique twist on how to pour guests draft beer that’s not only served but brewed by ghosts amidst a shower of fog..
Bartenders would pull a tap on a horizontal cask up on the cart, only to release a ghostly glowing fog which miraculously fills the guest’s cup with glowing beer that is secretly filling the cup from a bottom filling nozzle hidden within the upright barrel below. The barrels would have built-in kegerators and can be rolled away to refill.
Here’s a diagram I threw together illustrating how the beer tap would be set up.
The beer itself would be a park-exclusive signature brew which uses legit bio-engineered fluorescent yeast. It would be called Spectraal and glow under UV lighting in the area. To make it even more exclusive, it could be available only after dusk.
In case you’re wondering why the signage is all in Dutch, this is not only due to the backstory but also due to the fact that I’m envisioning this being added to the Dutch theme park, Efteling, near its existing Spookslot haunted house attraction, right by its spooky Heksenpad “witch path” through the woods as shown in yellow on the Efteling map below.
To get a better sense of the area, I’ve included a 360degrees view of the area using Google Street View below:
I also found a couple photos online that show the cool vibe of this area and its Heksenpad through the woods.
