When drinking with friends with the intent to get really quite drunk the quickest way is not beer nor is it a quality mixed cocktail (like a Manhattan or Martini). Too much beer makes you full, and a good cocktail is for sipping and savoring (and buzzing). No, the quickest way to a drunken stupor on a Saturday night is to gulp down either whiskey or rum topped up with some type of carbonated beverage like cola, citrus soda, ginger ale, or just plain club soda.

I've had all kinds CC&7 (Canadian Club and 7-Up), Crown, Classic, or Jack & Cola (Coke, Pepsi, RC..), Vodka Tonic, Rum and Cola, what have you.

For a while me and my two closest drinking buddies swore by the Crown & Coke. However you'll find blowing a $25-30 bottle of Crown on a night of drinking can get somewhat expensive. Of course there's always an alternative, CC, CC Classic, Jim Beam, Jack #7, Seagrams 7, Seagrams VO (I like VO Gold if it can be found  same flavor as crown when in cola (not as smooth straight) but $30 for a 1.75 handle as opposed to a 750!)

However one night while drinking a VO Gold and Coke (I call it a Gold Coke) I ran out of Coke. However what I did have was Diet Dr. Pepper. I'd never really heard of mixing alcohol into Dr. Pepper before, certainly not at a bar anyway. So I gave it a what the hell and tried it anyway with the VO Gold in a shot glass. And...not really that good. However it got me wondering would any liqour (specifically a Whiskey) taste good with Dr. Pepper? So I tried some CC...and not that great either. A little Jack...smokey but not right.

Then I spied my bottle of Old Bushmills Original. Bushmills is to most casual drinkers, not well known. It is a blended Irish whiskey, like Jameson which is a relatively more popular Irish whiskey that most people can at least name. While Jameson works well with Cola and especially Ginger Ale, Bushmills is not often mixed with soda, typically all of Bushmills expressions are taken up, on the rocks, or with water. So just for the hell of it I mixed the Bushmills with Diet Dr. Pepper and something amazing happened...I had created one hell of a tasty beverage.

Now it is sweet. Bushmills is a very smooth and sweet whiskey. Most Irish whiskeys have a sweet nature to them. But the way the Bushmills distinctive flavor melded with the classic Dr.Pepper syrup flavor was amazing. Now I would NOT use regular Dr. Pepper. Regular Dr. Pepper is very syrupy anyway, and would likely just be way too sweet (I typically mix diet sodas with liquor because liqours like Whiskey typically add a sweetness). So use Diet Dr.Pepper.

Henceforth I have named it the Peppered Bush, because every good "drinking" drink or shot should subtly hint at a sexual innuendo.

Now you do sort of need to like the flavor of Bushmills to enjoy this drink, but if you do or if you're looking for something different then this is one to try.

I make this drink (and any liqour and soda) one of two ways...and always add your liqour first, adding soda first always causes head foam and makes you wait longer...the liqour kills some of the carbonation...

One:
Fill a Rocks glass with Ice (preferrably clean, filtered, cubed ice from a commercial bag).
Add Bushmills to at least half (or more) of glass.
Top Up with Diet Dr. Pepper.
Stir with a swizzle stick and enjoy.

Two:
Required: Chill 12oz. Cans of Diet Dr. Pepper in fridge.
Optional: Chill 750ml bottle Bushmills in fridge.
Procure a 14oz Pint Glass. and a 1oz standard shot glass
Add two shots of Bushmills to the pint glass.
Pour in the whole 12oz. can of Diet Dr. Pepper.

You'll find that you can down the second verson very rapidly and you get drunk quicker. Although you might get derided for not using any ice (but the soda must be chilled!). Though you're also downing a lot of caffene that way too (Dr. Pepper is notorious for it's Caffene content), so you get a liqour buzz and a caffene buzz at the same time. This is perfect for staying up, getting drunk and rocking out.

Now my friends aren't sure about this drink. They've tried it and like it, but they stick to more traditional soda and liqour variants. However I do really enjoy this drink.

I actually "invented" this drink about three months ago, but seeing as how St. Patrick's day is fast approaching, a mixed beverage featuring an Irish whiskey seemed to be appropriate...

So have you had a Peppered Bush today and perhaps peppered your bush?