Orange Beach, Ala. – (OBA) – If you have been on the island, then you have probably been bushwhacked at some point. It doesn't mean you've been in a surprise attack. It means you have enjoyed the official drink of Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Perdido Key. Maybe even sat on the deck of a beach bar watching the sunset and sipping one through a straw until you heard that slurp at the bottom of the glass.

Almost every bar and restaurant has a different version of the Bushwacker. Many even have different versions at the same bar. Of course, there is the infamous "floater" that local bartenders strategical fill in the straw if you ask! You may be 151 times more likely to order another afterward.

So Where Is Your Favorite Place For A Bushwacker? (VOTE HERE)

So how did the Bushwacker become synonymous with our area? Legend has it that back in 1975 Linda Taylor Murphy was exploring the Virgin Islands and found a local beach bar serving the "milkshake with a punch" cocktail. She went back to her bar on Pensacola Beach and fined tuned the recipe for local's taste.

Once a regular at Linda's bar, the Sandshaker, Flora-Bama co-owner Pat McClellan “Bushwacker” his own recipe and brought it to the state-line lounge. The thick, creamy Flora-Bama-fied” Bushwacker is a popular mainstay at the world-famous beachfront honky-tonk bar in Perdido Key.

From there the now famous drink grew into a Kahlua dream. "How to make a Bushwacker" is one of the most searched terms by people returning home from vacationing on local beaches. There are so many recipes, but which bar's version do you like the best?

Visit the site: BEST BUSHWACKER and let us know. You will also find the link in our "Best Of" list on the home page. If we left a location off the list just let us know in the "other" category.

May your straw be large, your hand be cold and your floater be just the right amount!