Bourbon Slush

Make a big batch of Bourbon Slush for those hot summer days. Made with iced tea, orange, lemon and bourbon whiskey all frozen together, this frozen cocktail is so refreshing and delicious. It is almost effortless to make with just four ingredients and easily serves a crowd.

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Bourbon Slush recipe

The hot days are upon us more than ever this summer. We need ice cold drinks and we need them now!

I am especially looking forward to pool days and walks along the beach, but I will not be able to enjoy them without an ice cold drink in my hand.

I’ve already decided that my drink of the summer is going to be this Bourbon Slush. It is refreshing, citrusy, zesty and has a generous splash of bourbon.

Made with just four or five ingredients, this delicious frozen beverage comes together overnight in the freezer. It freezes into a slushy that you can scoop into glasses.

Serve everybody scoops on a hot summer day and top it with ginger ale or lemon-lime soda. 

I’ll tell you how to make it and all my tips for making it a successful drink.

More frozen drink recipes: Frozen Margaritas • Cheerwine Bourbon Slushies • Frozen Moscow Mule

Why you’ll love this recipe

This refreshing frozen cocktail is going to be any bourbon lover’s new favorite drink, for a few reasons:

• Made with only four ingredients, it’s super simple to assemble.
• No need for a blender or slush machine — it freezes overnight!
• It serves a crowd. This summer staple is perfect for pool days and parties. 

You can enjoy this boozy drink all year long. Try it with cinnamon whiskey for a holiday party or chai iced tea in the fall. Use mint tea in the spring for a Kentucky Derby cocktail. 

Tools & glassware

No slushy machine needed here. You really don’t need much more for this recipe than an ice cream scoop and a big mixing bowl (or other large container) with a lid. It should be a large freezer-safe container and should hold 2.5 quarts. 

Beyond that, all you need are serving glasses! I use stemless wine glasses but plastic cups would work just fine.

If you don’t want to hold the ice-cold cup,  insulated cups like these ones are perfect for keeping the cold in.

Ingredients

You only need four or five simple ingredients to make bourbon slush. The fifth ingredient is optional and it just depends on if you’d like a little bit of extra bubbles when you serve it (I recommend it).

Iced Tea

Unsweetened iced tea made with black tea works best because already-sweetened tea will make the drink pretty sweet. The other ingredients are sweet enough on their own but you don’t need to add a lot of extra sweetness. 

Feel free to use sweetened or a combination of sweet and unsweetened. Green tea or other kinds of tea will work, too, but they may not be as strong as black tea. 

Want to make your own iced tea? Make my homemade cold brew iced tea. You can also make hot tea and let it cool. 

Frozen juice concentrate

Next time you’re at the grocery store pick up a canister of frozen lemonade concentrate and frozen orange juice.

Typically you would mix this with water to make a quick lemonade or orange juice — but you won’t need to do that here.

Pay attention to the sizes of the canisters, as they may vary by store. You need 12 ounces of lemonade and 6 ounces of orange juice.

Whiskey

You want to use bourbon whiskey in this cocktail — It is called a bourbon slush after all!

But you can use Jack Daniels, rye, Canadian whiskey or Irish whiskey instead. You could even try it with spiced rum.

Soda or juice

You should also pick up something to top up each glass. This helps the frozen mixture melt a little bit (so it’s not one big frozen blob) and also adds some extra flavor.

Ginger ale and lemon-lime soda both work well. You can use diet soda if you don’t want to add more sugar.

You could also use lemonade, champagne, sparkling lemonade, iced tea or club soda.

Variations and substitutions

There are a few ways to mix this up and make it your own:

Lemon lime bourbon slush: Use 12 ounces lemonade concentrate and 6 ounces frozen limeade concentrate.

Strawberry bourbon slush: Use 12 ounces frozen strawberry lemonade concentrate (or pink lemonade) and 6 ounces frozen lemonade concentrate.

Make a frozen Arnold Palmer: Make it with 18 ounces of lemonade and no orange juice.

Use your favorite whiskey: You can use Jack Daniels, rye, Canadian whiskey or whatever sounds good.

Use another spirit: It works with tequila, rum or vodka if you don’t want to use bourbon.

How to make Bourbon Slush

Here is how to make bourbon slush:

First, get out a big freezer-safe bowl with a lid — the lid is important.

To the bowl, add the ice tea, bourbon, lemon juice concentrate and orange juice concentrate.

Stir together well until the icy concentrates are mostly melted but it’s okay if some chunks remain.

Cover and place the bourbon mixture in the freezer and then store it in the freezer overnight. It will freeze up — but not completely because of the alcohol in the bourbon.

When you’re ready to enjoy, get out an ice cream scoop or a big spoon. If needed, use a fork to rake through the ice crystals and separate clumps.

Scoop spoonfuls of the mixture into glasses.

Then top with ginger ale or lemon lime soda if desired. This helps it to melt down just a little bit and add some extra bubbles, making it more drinkable right away.

Serve it with a straw or a spoon and dig in!

Tips & tricks

Here are some tips for making this large-batch cocktail: 

• Be sure to use a freezer-safe bowl with a lid. Without a lid, odors from the freezer, can seep in.
• Add Ginger ale or Sprite to brighten the drink and give it a more slushy consistency.
• Garnish it with a slice of orange or lemon to make it feel fancy.

How to serve Bourbon Slush

Keep the bourbon slushy mixture in the freezer when you aren’t using it so it can maintain the perfect slushy texture. 

Scoop the mixture into glasses or cups with an ice cream scoop.

Then each glass of bourbon slush with some liquid to keep help it melt into a slushy texture, or it will just be ice chips. A few ideas:

• lemonade
• strawberry lemonade
• ginger ale
• iced tea
• lemon-lime soda
• club soda
• cranberry juice (for the holiday season)
• sparkling cider 
• champagne.

If you like, you can garnish the drinks with cocktail cherries or an orange slice. A straw is nice too.

And it’s a sneakily potent drink, so be sure to serve it with lots of water and snacks!

What to serve with Bourbon Slush

Bourbon slushy drinks are fit for a crowd, so enjoy them with your favorite party foods.

Enjoy it with cheesy popcorn or trail mix for snacky foods.

You could also serve it with heartier foods like chicken wings.

Even though it’s kind-of a frosty dessert, you could still serve it with more dessert. Why not make bourbon balls to go with it? You could also go citrus here and make lemon drop cookies.

FAQ

More summer whiskey cocktails

• Kentucky Mule
• Mint Julep
• Whiskey Ginger
• Jack & Coke