Bushwacker

A decadent frozen cocktail combining rum, coffee liqueur, and cream of coconut into a tropical milkshake for adults, the ultimate beach indulgence.

The Bushwacker was invented in the spring of 1975 at the Ship's Store and Sapphire Pub at Sapphire Village on the island of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Bartender Angie Conigliaro and the bar's manager Tom Brokamp developed the drink as a tropical variation on the White Russian, replacing vodka with rum and adding cream of coconut and crème de cacao to produce something richer and more Caribbean in character. The drink was christened after a patron's Afghan Hound named Bushwack, who had been a fixture of the bar for several days while its owners — reportedly flight attendants — enjoyed the new creation. That same year, Linda Murphy, owner of the Sandshaker Lounge on Pensacola Beach, Florida, tasted the Bushwacker during a visit to St. Thomas and brought the concept home. Murphy adapted the recipe to her own formula — lighter on chocolate, heavier on coconut and coffee liqueur — and it became an immediate hit. By 1980 the Sandshaker had replaced its blenders with a dedicated frozen drink machine to keep up with demand. The Bushwacker spread from Pensacola across the Gulf Coast and into the Florida Panhandle, embraced by beach bars from Perdido Key to Destin. Pensacola Beach officially designated it the city's signature drink. The Sandshaker has hosted an annual Bushwacker Festival since 1986, celebrating the drink that arrived from a Caribbean island and never left.