Bushwacker (cocktail) topped with a grating of fresh nutmeg. However the recipe now has as many variations as there are gin joints or bartenders. The quantity of vodka or rum, which lends the drink most of its alcohol, can be varied making the drink anywhere between 40% and 75% alcohol or it can be completely left out for a low-alcohol beverage. Fruit can also be added to the cocktail as another seasonal variation to an otherwise basic drink. The Bushwacker was invented at the Ship's Store/Sapphire Pub in Sapphire Village, St Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands in the spring of 1975 by bartender
Cocktail publication of a bartenders' guide which included cocktail recipes was in 1862 – "How to Mix Drinks; or, The Bon Vivant's Companion", by "Professor" Jerry Thomas. In addition to recipes for punches, sours, slings, cobblers, shrubs, toddies, flips, and a variety of other mixed drinks were 10 recipes for "cocktails". A key ingredient differentiating cocktails from other drinks in this compendium was the use of bitters. Mixed drinks popular today that conform to this original meaning of "cocktail" include the Old Fashioned whiskey cocktail, the Sazerac cocktail, and the Manhattan cocktail. The ingredients listed (spirits, sugar, water, and bitters) match