Bourbon Slushies and the Party Vortex

My friend Tizzie is lucky enough to live in a vortex.

Okay, so I probably should clarify that a little. By "vortex", I mean the constant, ever-shifting party that swirls around her house and those of the friends on her block in a tight-knit, friendly neighborhood in Kentucky. (And by "live in", I mean "create and contribute to." You think vortices just start themselves?)

A visit to her house is always enlivened by her neighbors, who wander in and out of each others' backyards, usually with drinks in hand. The last time I was there, the denizens of the party vortex were celebrating a birthday, and though we were just passing through, we were welcomed into the vortex for ribs, sweet corn, and plenty of bourbon. People kept dropping by, including an airline-pilot neighbor who swore he could see the party vortex from his holding pattern five thousand feet over Cincinnati's airport.(Fortunately, Air Traffic Control cooperated, and he was able to join us in good time.)

The party vortex is fueled by all sorts of good food and drink, but Tizzie's bourbon slushie recipe is deservedly a popular favorite:

Tizzie's Bourbon Slushie

• 2 1/2 cups strong hot tea
• 1 cup sugar
• 6 cups water
• 12 oz. can frozen lemonade concentrate
• 12 oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate
• 2 cups bourbon (Tizzie uses Weller; I used Jim Beam.)

Make the 2 1/2 cups tea and dissolve the sugar in it. Add 6 cups water. Combine the frozen lemonade and orange juice concentrates in a large bowl. Add the tea mixture and 2 cups bourbon. Stir and freeze.

This makes a lot of slush, but when the weather is hot and the company is good, it goes fast. An enormous, ever-renewing bowl lives in her freezer all summer long. Why not start a party vortex of your own?