Sloshie Season

This adult slurpee is a staple of Jackson Hole summers.

// By Samantha Simma

Spinning in the slushie machines throughout Jackson Hole are frozen beverages that give the 21-and-older set a brain freeze with a buzz. These slurpees are not to be taken lightly; they will get you sloshed (hence their name “sloshies”). It was Creekside Market and Deli that first conceived of them, when it introduced the Greyhound, a mixture of vodka and freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, in 2012. But today sloshies seem to have taken over the valley; almost every gas station, market, and liquor store offers them.

In its simplest form, a sloshie is a frozen concoction of sugar, ice, and liquor—vodka, tequila, whiskey … you name it. The alcohol content is usually between 7 and 12 percent. “I am so obsessed with sloshies,” says Dishing magazine editor Allison Arthur. “They create the perfect summer deck happy hour at our house. They are a lot stronger than they taste, so one usually is enough.” Not all sloshies are created equal though: some, like Creekside’s, are made with freshly squeezed juices; others use premade mixes for flavor. 

In its simplest form, a sloshie is a frozen concoction of sugar, ice, and liquor—vodka, tequila, whiskey … you name it. A few of our favorites: 

Last summer, Rations, located at the base of Teton Pass in Wilson, reported pouring 400 sloshies in a single day. It’s hard to estimate what percentage of those sales went to Teton Pass mountain bikers or hikers, but it’s likely high. The most popular flavors here include passion fruit margarita and cantaloupe limeade. Rationsalso always has a nonalcoholic sloshie for the mocktail crowd. From $9; open Monday–Friday 11 a.m.–6 p.m.; 5720 WY-22 Suite 1, Wilson; 307/201-1995, rationswilson.com

Believing in quality over quantity, Creekside Market and Deli keeps just two flavors on tap. One is always the Greyhound; the second is a seasonal concoction. Thanks to the popularity of the former, Creekside is the largest purchaser of grapefruit in Wyoming. On an average summer day, the market, which is one of the last stops where you can stock up on snacks for a day in Grand Teton National Park, sells more than 30 gallons of the ’Hound. From $9; open daily 6 a.m.–8 p.m.; 545 N Cache St., Jackson; 307/733-7926, creeksidejacksonhole.com

Jackson Hole Still Works slings sloshies south of Jackson, via a window to the company’s tasting room off Highway 191. Combining fresh-squeezed juice with Still Works Vodka and Great Grey Gin—both of which are distilled on-site—it’s not unheard of for the distillery to sell 150 sloshies on a hot summer day. From $9; open daily 10 a.m.–6 p.m.; 3940 South Eagle View Drive, Jackson;307/699-8998, jhstillworks.com

South of Jackson—and convenient at the end of a float on the Snake River or after a soak at Astoria Hot Springs—Hoback Market has more than 10 sloshie flavors on tap at a time. Of the market’s consistent repertoire, the Mudslide ranks supreme—a sloshie with a heavy helping of chocolate and coffee in its recipe. From $6; open daily 6 a.m.–10 p.m.; 10880 US-89, Hoback Junction; 307/739-1367 JH