Ice:
Chilling & Dilution
Overview
Ice is arguably the most important of all co*cktail ingredients. It is what transforms themixtureof booze and other assorted items into a finished co*cktail. Ice is to co*cktails what heat is to food. Without it, there would be no co*cktail.
Chillingand Dilution
Ice'stwo primary contributionsare chilling and dilution, which together formthe crux of co*cktail technique.The benefits of chilling go without saying. We all know that cold co*cktails taste better. But dilution’s role is a little less obvious. Some view it negatively,as the culprit thatexcessively waterstheir drink down, which isalways a huge bummer. Butsome dilutionis essential to a co*cktail. It brings out subtleties in the booze, rounds off their harsher edges andhelpsto bind the ingredients together. Dilution is the glue.
Chilling and dilutionareinseparable. Whenever you get one, you get the other. Furthermore, they are also intertwined;a change in one will initiate a change in the other. For example, the colder a drink gets, the slowerthe ice will melt, and therefore the slower it will dilute, and vice versa. These two elements have a huge bearing on the success and failure of a drink. It doesn’t matter, how fancy your tools are, or how expensive your booze is. Ifa drink isn’t chilled enough, or is under/over-diluted, it will not taste good.
The Sweet Spot
The goal when mixing a drink is to manage chilling and dilution until youreachoptimum levels of both, which is when the drink is as cold as possible but not under or over-diluted. Or as I like to call it, the sweet spot.
To consistently hit the sweet spot, you need to be aware of the various factors that can influencechilling and dilution and how fast they occur. There are two primary ones. The first one iswhether you shake or stir. Shaking chills and dilutes much faster than stirring. Youcan read about this in much more detail, as well as how shaking or stirring relates to a co*cktail’s general style, on the Shaking vs. Stirring page. The second factor is the type ofice you are mixing with, which is what we're concerned with on thispage.
Below is a look at ice from all sorts of angles, including how its size and temperature will affect the rate of chilling and dilution, as well as the different types of ice used in co*cktails and the best tools to make them with.
How Ice Melts and Why It’s Best of Chilling Booze
As we know, when ice is warmed above freezing temperatures - like say, when it’s dropped into a mixing glass containing the ingredients for a Martini - it will begin to melt. When ice melts, it melts right off its surface, because that is warmed first. So if you’re stirring that Martini, that liquidwill be wicked away and dispersed into the drink, exposingthe next layer to be warmed up and melted.
It’s this continual dispersion of near freezing water that makes ice such an effective chilling agent and why stirring faster chills and dilutes so quickly. It’s also why those whiskey stones, despite being very popular,don’t keep drinks cold very long. They only have one surface temperature andwhen that warms up it doesn’t melt away to uncover another colder layer underneath.
Size
Largeice cubes melt slower thansmall ice cubes because they have less surface to area ratio.
To better illustrate this, imagine a glass full of large ice cubes and a glass full of small ice cubes. You will be able to fit far more small cubes in theglass. When both glasses arefilled with water, the onewith the small cubes willchilland dilutemore quickly, because more ice will be in direct contact with the water.
All this is to say, the larger ice cubes you have, the slower they will melt, meaning you'llneed to shake or stir for longer than you would withsmaller cubes.
Any Kind of Ice Can Be Used For Mixing
(But Larger Cubes are Generally Better)
No matter what kind of ice you use - big, small, wet, dry - chilling and dilution will happen either way. There’s no such thing as one typeof ice chilling or diluting a drinkbetter than another kind of ice, it will just happen at different rates. That being said, large and/or dry ice cubes are generally easier to work with than smalland/or wetcubes, and in some cases the former is clearly superior, for these reasons:
Smaller Wet Cubes Melt Precariously Quickly - With small cubes,if you're not careful you can accidentallyover-diluteyour drink. Because they melt so rapidly, thesweet spot's windowis shrunk down and is very easy to overstep, and once you cross that line,there's no going back. Additionally, if your cubes have been sitting out a long time and are really wet, you might not evenbe able to get the drink as cold as you’d like because the ice will be so warm and slushy.
Larger Dry Cubes Give You a WiderMargin for Error - The slower melting time of large icecubes stretches out the mixing time, whichlengthensthe sweet spots window, giving you more wiggle room. Dry ice cubes arealso ideal because they can chill a co*cktail down quickly withoutdiluting ittoo much. This helps get drinks down to those negative temperatures. For this reason, when making co*cktails at home, it’s best to keep the ice in the freezer right up until you need it, if you can. This is one advantage that home bars have over co*cktail bars, where the ice is always sitting out in an ice bin.
Large Cubes Create Better Texture in Shaken Drinks - The difference between shaking a co*cktail with a pile of tiny cubes verses a handful of large cubesis very apparent. Larger cubes are heavier and crashback and forth with more force, thiscreates more aeration - one of the primary benefits of shaking -and gives the co*cktail a better texture.
Serving Over Large Cubes Won't Water a Drink Down - For serving drinks, larger cubes are hands down the better choice. They will melt slower, which keeps the drink colderfor longer and waters it down more slowly. A win, win, win.
Basic Ice Cubes, aka Rocks
These are your standard, all purpose ice cubes. They can be used for any, and all of your co*cktail ice needs. In general, they are around 1 inch in diameter.
Crushed Ice
This is ice that’s been broken down into smaller pieces. It can vary, rangingfrom tiny pearls to crunchy slush. Being so small, naturallyit melts very quickly, which rapidly chills drinks to frigid temperatures, while also heavily dilutingthem. It's used primarily for serving co*cktails, not mixing them. Crushed ice isn’t ideal for all co*cktails, but for some, it is absolutely essential,most notably a Mint Julep. For others it can be a big upgrade, particularlytropically inspired, aka"tiki", co*cktails. Italso makes drinks look sublime.
Big Rocks, aka LargeIce Cubes
These are cubes that are around 2 inches in diameter, and used one at a time, also mainly for serving. They melt exceptionally slowly -at glacial pace you might say -and look extremely cool. They are best for sipping a single spirit straight on the rocks, or a stirred spirit-forward co*cktail that you’re likely to nurse for longer, like an Old Fashioned.
Crushed Ice
Access to crushed ice is probably one of the biggest advantages co*cktail bars have over home bars. We have a machine that makes heaps of perfectly shaped pebbles at our disposal (#3, in the photo), whereas at home, manufacturing crushed icetakes some elbow grease. But it’s not impossible. Here are the various ways you can obtain crushed ice:
1. Hand Crank Ice Crusher - This is what I use. Outside of an electric machine, it’s the best tool for making crushed ice that’s a uniform size. It’s not perfect to be sure. They’re bulky, only make enough ice for a couple drinks at a time and operating one islike playing with a stubborn Jack in the Box. But they do their job well and the ice pebbles come out nice and even.
2. Lewis Bag & Mallet - This method is nothing more than puttingice into a canvas bag and whacking it with a mallet. But the canvas is important. It absorbsmoisture from the fast melting ice, keeping it relatively dry and avoiding a wet slushy mess. While it’s a rather abrasive method, it issimple, quick and effective. You can also make crushed ice in larger quantities, and let off a little steam in the process. The ice isn’t as pretty as it is with a hand crank crusher, and you risk getting some snow in there, but it's good enough for my taste.
3. Commercial Pellet Ice Maker - This is from one of those magicmachines I mentioned above. I've used bothScotsman andIce-O-Matic brands, whichcost upwards of $2000. However, there are some ice crushers out there made for the home kitchen. I haven't used them, but they seem tobe a good mid-range option. Here's one:
4. Cracked Ice - Thisisn’t quite a true substitution for crushed ice, but it's a very serviceable understudyin a pinch, andis the only one here that doesn't require any special tools. Cracked ice is nothing more than a larger ice cube brokenapartinto smaller pieces. You can crack ice with one of these ice tappers, but I’ve always just used a basic broad bowled barspoon(say that 5 times fast!)the one with thered cap. I also will crack a few ice cubes and add them into a mixing glass before stirring a co*cktailto expedite chilling and dilution.
Basic Cubes, aka Rocks
Whenever the type of ice isn’t specified in a recipe, which will be most of the time,this is what you should use. There are several options, some are more ideal than others, but any will get the job done.
1. Common Ice Cube Tray - Despite being very low-tech, these flexible plastic trays make very reliable co*cktail ice for shaking, stirring and serving. They’re a good size, shape andcan easily be cracked with a spoon if need be. Theyare also easy to remove from the tray.
2. Silicone Perfect Cube Tray 1x1 (recommended)- These are your best bet for affordable, beautiful and perfectly square ice cubes at home. There are several options for molds available. I recommend the 1x1 inch size. You have to pop them out one at a time, which is a bit tedious, but by no meansa deal-breaker. It helps to stockpile them.
3. RefrigeratorIce Dispensers - Ice made by refrigerator ice dispensers is not ideal for serving drinks because they’re on the smaller side. However, since they comedirectly from a the freezer they are nice and dry, whichmakes them great for stirring and shaking drinks. These are what I use to mixco*cktails at home.An added bonus isyou can reserve anynicer ice cubes you have for serving only.
4. Bag Ice - The plastic bags of ice you get at the grocery store are comprised of a few acceptable sized cubes, some snow and a couple massive melted and refrozen hunks of ice. This thenpromptsthe famousslamming the bag on the ground technique, something I’ve always found satisfying. This ice is certainly inconsistent to say the least. But the decent cubes you do getare a good size for co*cktails;you just have to pick them out. Plus, as annoying as those large pieces are, if youset them aside in your freezer, they make for great big rocks, see below.
ShavedIce/Snow Ice (not pictured)
Shaved ice is a step finer than crushed ice. It is light and fluffy and has the consistency of snow. Itis commonly made by a machine that scrapes a thin shaving oficeoff of alarge solid block.
The typical application for shaved ice is for fruity non-alcoholic frozen treatswhich are similar to Snow Cones. Yes, thereis a difference, and ironically shaved ice is more snow-like, than Snow Cone ice. In fact, shaved ice connoisseurs like to point out that with Snow Cones, all the flavor sinks to the bottom, which anyone who'sever had a Snow (Sno) Cone can profess to. With true shaved ice, or as it’s called in Hawaii,shave ice (spelled with no “d”), the flavors are better retained.
Shaved ice is generally not ideal for most co*cktailsbecause it melts so quickly, though it’s essential for some, like the tiki-nerd classic Navy Grog ice cone.
The machine listed below is for home use and very affordable. But if you run across a need for shaved ice and don't have a machine handy, you can make a fairly comparable substitutionby banging a Lewis bag into oblivion. Or you could just wait for a blizzard.
Temperature
Naturally, ice's temperature is below freezing, otherwise itwouldn’t be ice. But how close it is to the threshold of melting backinto a liquid will have a bearing on how fast it'll chill and dilute a drink.
If ice has been sitting out, say in an ice bucket,it will be warmer. Itssurface will begin to melt and willglisten and shine; this is what we call "wet" ice. Wet ice will chill and dilute a co*cktail more quickly.
On the other side of that coin, ice cubes that comeright out of the freezerare totally frozen on the surface. They will havea frosty exterior and will stick to wet fingers, or your tongue. These are dry ice cubes. They are much colder and thus, will melt more slowly.
Big Rocks akaLarge Ice Cubes
Also sometimes magisterially referred to as "large format ice", big rocks are another familiar feature of todays best co*cktail bars, but unlike crushed ice, which takes some effort to recreate, making themis very easy. You just need a bigger tray.
1. Silicone Perfect Cube Tray2x2 - Like the 1x1 tray, this is by far the easiest way to make nice big cubic ice. Thereare plenty of options out there;Trovolo is the mostprominent brand.
2. Muffin Tins, or something similar - You don’t need to purchase anything to make big cubes. Filling up muffin tins with water will give you a handful of nice sized cubes in one pop. Preferably useone with wide, deep molds. You may need to run the bottom under warm water to dislodge them.
But it doesn’t have to be a muffin tin of course. Ice will freeze in anything, bread pans, cake pans, tupperware containers, you name it. Using alarger vessel is great for makingan extra large cube that will melt slowly ina punch bowl over the course of aparty. Just be careful when freezing ice in a plastic container that you use to store other foods. Plastic isporous and will take on other flavors. You don't want to addleftover chicken lo mein flavorsto your ice. And, of course,stay away from glass.
3. Ice Sphere Molds - Serving a co*cktail overperfectly shaped spheres of ice ratchets a its coolness factor up to 11. But to be clear, there’s nothing empirically superior about ice spheres. Just superior aesthetics. There are several molds available that make very solid, if not absolutely perfect,spheres. I use this one below and it works just fine. For the real ice ball McCoyyou need to pony up the cash for an ice sphere press, which is described on the other side of the page.
4. Bag Ice Lumps - As I mentioned above, moststore bought bags of ice contain large hunks of melted and refrozen ice. These can make very effectivebig rocks. Just pick them out and keepthem in the freezer. Dislodging them is another matter, and they usually take some shaping. An ice pick is helpful.
Ice Ball Press (Not Pictured)- I’ve personally never used one of these becausethey cost an arm and a leg,which is why it isn't pictured here. They usegravity to press down on large ice cubes to melt them into the shape of a perfect sphere. It takes about 1-2minutes, and ispretty remarkable,here's a good look at one in action.
The cheapest options run around $160, which make spheres that area little over 2 inches in diameter. The ones that make 2.5-2.8 inch spheres, which are definitely nicer, can be upwards of $500. Coolness, it seems, comes at a price.
But if it'sworth it to you, this will seriously elevate your co*cktail operation. Italso makes for an unparalleled gift for a co*cktail lover. If you really want to pull out all the stops,use clear ice in one of these puppies. Clear icecertainly is an undertaking -I'll release a page about it in the coming months. But theway I see it, ifyou’re ponying up that kind of cash for an ice ball maker, you might as well go the extra mile.
5. Kold Draft Ice - Ever wonder how co*cktailbars seemto have an endless supply of beautiful 1 inch cubes? Two words: Kold Draft. This is the brand of ice machine that pumps out those perfect cubes, which are actually 1 1/4 inches. These babies will cost you a few thousand dollars, but if your bar is looking to serve top of the line drinks, it’s a worthy, or even essential, investment. There are several models available. Here’s one good option, you can peruse the others on their site.
Hotel Ice (not pictured)- This is the wet, chippy ice you get from the ice machine in that littleside room with the vending machine on your hotel floor. It’s great for chilling down co*ke to pair with a slice of Pizza, but for co*cktails it’s prettymuch a worst-case scenario. In the industry, we call it“sh*tty ice”. The only task this ice is not completely unfitfor is stirring, but you better strain it offquickly. But of course, if this is your only option, sh*tty ice is better than no ice.
Types of Ice
& How they are Made
Below isa directory of some of the different kinds of ice that factor into co*cktail-making, along with the different trays, tools and machines used to create them. While ice comes in many shapes and sizes, there are just three basic types of ice to be aware of.
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Purchase - This is one of a few options out there:
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co*cktails Can Be Chilled Below Freezing!
It’s true! You canget stirred co*cktails down to around -7 degrees Fahrenheit, especially if you chill your mixing glass. You can monitor this with one of these thermometer spoons. Shaken drinks can even get a little colder.
The reason this is possible,in a nutshell, isbecause alcohol freezes at a lower temperature than water, so it is able to draw more heat out of the liquidbecause entropy lowersthe freezing point of water in an alcoholic solution. I know that last sentence didn't makea lot of sense. For the whole story, check out the ice chapter in Dave Arnold’s aforementioned Liquid Intelligence.Regardless, cold drinks = better drinks (to a point of course).
For More, Read Dave Arnold
Full disclosure, I learned much of the information on this page from Dave Arnold's work. Check out his wonderful book Liquid Intelligence. It is a co*cktail science extravaganza full of in depth explorations and experiments. Also, his articles onice's effects onchilling and dilution rates whenshaking vs. stirring are essential reading for co*cktail nerds:
The Key Ice Variables:
Size and Temperature
There are multiple factorsone could consider when appraising ice. But for basic co*cktail application,you'll really only need to concern yourself with two: how big or small the cubes are, and whether they are shiny and wet or frosty and dry.
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Crushed ice
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Wintersmiths Ice Chest(Not Pictured)- Another option for clear ice spheres and/or cubes is this rather ingenious looking product from Wintersmiths. I haven’t tried it myself, but it seems to work based on this video, and is certainly most cost effective considering how pricey ice ball presses are.
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Ice Factors
Small Cubes Melt Faster
Common Mixing Times
Since the purpose of this page is to endow you with the information you need to assess and adjust your mixing times, you should probably be aware of what kind of time variables we’re talking about. These are examined more closely on the Shaking vs. Stirring page.
In general, you will want to shake for 8-10 seconds with basic ice cubes, perhaps a bit shorter or longer in extreme conditions, while stirred co*cktails typically take about 18-25 seconds, but again, it can be more or less. Stirring is the more fickle of the two, which you can read more about here.
As you can see, these windows are quite narrow. It’s hard to believea second or two of mixing time can have that much of an impact on a drink. But trust me, within these ranges is a wide array of co*cktail outcomes, some good and some not so good.
Having Said all That, Don’t Overthink it.
I know I’m a total hypocrite. Clearly, I think these things to death. But really, in the end, justtrust your gut. No matter how much measuring and assessing you do of all the variables, there’s no way to quantify exactly how long you need to shake orstir a drink.
Use your best judgment and remember to keep tasting. It is without a doubt the best way to understand the effects ofchilling and dilution over the course of mixing a co*cktail.
Big Cubes
Sweet Spot
Basic cubes
Cup the cube in the center of your palm with a flat side facing up.
Whack it firmly in the center with the back of a spoon with a large bowl. Isn't not about hitting it hard, it's about hitting it in the right spot.
Cracking Ice
Howto Crack Ice
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