7 minute read
THE NEW ICE AGE
Boutique ice is a growing trend in the luxury drinks industry with one Dubai entrepreneur leading the way
When a drink has been lovingly crafted by an expert bartender using premium ingredients and poured into a beautiful hand-cut crystal glass, why would you then toss in any old ice cube found in the back of the freezer? It’s like wearing a piece of haute couture and pairing it with your scruffy gym sneakers.
For years, ice has been the forgotten component of the beverage industry, a poorly made and often unhygienic product that can impair the taste of a drink and spoil its appearance.
“Ice is the ingredient that no one talks about,” explains John Gillespie, founder of Artisan Ice Co. in Dubai. He established the boutique ice company in Dubai in the summer of 2022 and already counts the likes of Zuma, The Maine, LPM, The Arts Club Dubai and Gaia among his high-end clients. The Arts Club Dubai, for example, orders 1,600 pieces of ice per week. Gillespie says, “People say, ‘Oh, it’s just ice,’ but my ice is a luxury product, and it’s so important to how a drink looks and tastes.”
A comparison can be drawn between boutique ice and the boom of posh tonic water over the last decade. For years, a familiar yellow can of Schweppes was the standard mixer found in bars. But the arrival of flavoured tonic waters (elderflower and rose, anyone?) from brands such as Fever-Tree, Fentimans, and Double Dutch has elevated the mixers market. From a Dhs3.6 million two-storey lab in Al Quoz, Artisan Ice Co.’s skilled craftsmen wear gloves and puffer coats as they handle 300kg blocks of crystal clear ice onto tables where they are hand-cut with Japanese knives and a motorised bandsaw that slices through the ice with a satisfying buzz. Ice can be frozen into attractive shapes such as rectangular columns, spheres, diamonds and cubes, or customised to fit glasses and cocktail shakers of the fivestar bars that place a bespoke order. On Business Traveller Middle East’s visit to the ice lab, we noticed a copper stamp bearing the Maserati logo that was used at a recent event in Dubai. Cartier and Burberry have also hosted parties serving bespoke branded ice from Gillespie’s lab. While industrially-produced ice using unfiltered water is cloudy and spotty, the stuff Gillespie and his team make is completely transparent because any impurities, bacteria, sediments or residue have been removed in a four-step process. Regular water is filtered through paper and charcoal before reverse osmosis and ultraviolet light conclude Our ice has a lower the purification stage. Over three melt rate because days, this water is frozen slowly from the bottom up in large of the filtration baths, forcing impurities to the process, and so it surface and resulting in clear lasts longer ice. “It looks almost invisible in the drink,” says Gillespie. “You want to taste the spirit and mixer in your drink so you need ABOVE: Customised ice shapes ice that has minimum dilution but maximum chill. Our ice has BELOW: The Artisan Ice Co. lab in Al a lower melt rate because of the Quoz, Dubai filtration process, and so it lasts longer.” Picking up a cube, he adds, “This isn’t just ice, it’s a piece of art.”
Melting Point
The genesis of Artisan Ice Co. came in 2007 in Dubai when Gillespie came up with the idea of a copper stamp that would ‘melt’ a brand name into an ice cube. Using Dhs2,000 of his own money, Gillespie made a copper stamp for The Macallan spirits brand, which caught the eye of the management at Zuma Dubai who commissioned stamps with their restaurant logo.
The novelty ice cube became a talking point for guests at the bar and planted a seed in his head about the untapped potential of boutique ice, an idea that – eventually – has come to fruition with Gillespie as the front-runner. He just can’t believe it’s taken this long for artisanal ice to enter the UAE market. “Dubai is such a dynamic and futuristic city so it baffles me that no one has done this before,” he says.
Dubai’s luxury restaurant and bar scene, Gillespie adds, is the ideal environment for boutique ice. “As a result of things like The World’s 50 Best Bars [Zuma, Galaxy Bar and Bulgari Bar were the Dubai venues that made it onto the 2022 list announced in October], we’re starting to see an injection of bartender talent come into the city and they’re asking their bosses for the best products. Owners are investing in their bar offering because they realise that, nowadays, drinks are just as important as the food.”
Atlantis Resorts and Five Hotels are just two of the major hospitality brands building ice rooms at their properties to latch onto the trend, something that, surprisingly, Gillespie welcomes as he believes it will spread the word of luxury ice and ultimately benefit his operation. He’s signed a deal with MMI to stock his neat packs of ice boulders, pillars, marbles and diamonds, enabling customers to craft their own luxury drinks at home. As well as potential expansion in Saudi Arabia, Gillespie plans on importing Japanese premium Hoshizaki ice machines to Dubai and selling bags of his own-brand
ice in supermarkets. Capitalising on the rocketing no- and low-alcohol beverage industry that is currently valued at Dhs37 billion according to IWSR, a beverage market and data analysis firm, Gillespie aims to open a series of nonalcoholic bars in Dubai that will enable guests to witness the theatrical process of cutting ice by hand. Coffee shops and the growing thirst for iced coffee in the region are also on his ambitious radar.
“Eventually, I want my ice listed on the drinks menu in bars so that customers have an assurance that they’re being served quality ice,” he says. “It’ll be like when people order a bottle of water in a restaurant: do they want luxury water or house water?” He looks around his workshop and smiles: “It’s the new ice age.”
THE MACALLAN M COLLECTION
The Macallan M Collection is a range of limited-release single malt whiskies that celebrate the brand’s Six Pillars.
These pillars are the brand's foundation that account for The Macallan’s distinctive whiskies. It includes Spiritual Home, Curiously Small Stills, Finest Cust, Exceptional Oak Casks, Natural Colour and Peerless Spirt. The first two expressions are the 2022 editions of the previously released M and M Black and the brandnew M Copper, which pays tribute to the unique copper stills utilised by The Macallan since it was founded in 1824.
The M 2022 Release M embodies Natural Colour, a result of The Macallan’s commitment to craftsmanship and its dedication to using the finest, 100 per cent natural ingredients and sherry seasoned oak casks. Matured in a small number of hand-selected casks, M showcases The Macallan’s rich natural colour, while the transparent decanter reflects the fact that there is no artificial colouring.
The M Black 2022 Release M Black represents The Macallan’s relentless dedication to its Peerless Spirit and the absolute trust in its craft. Rare, black ended casks holding peated spirit have been carefully selected to create this whisky.
The spirit is matured in the sherry seasoned oak casks, and has gathered depth and distinction over time. The handcrafted Lalique black crystal decanter reflects the distinctive peat smoke within the whisky. It is a fitting decanter for a whisky that deserves to be treasured and savoured. The M Copper 2022 Release M Copper is an ode to the Curiously Small Copper Stills that remain key to crafting The Macallan’s spirit to this day. Their distinctive shape and size help to concentrate the new make spirit, creating a rich and robust character.
The handcrafted Lalique copper coloured crystal decanter represents the stills and reflects the brand's dedication to innovative methods.
The Collaboration Visually representing the Six Pillars, the decanters are created in collaboration with renowned creative director, Fabien Baron and French crystal maker Lalique. Envisioned by Baron, they feature six facets while Lalique has drawn on over 130 years of mastery to bring refinement and flawless clarity. The decanters are encased in exquisite outer packaging, also denoting the Six Pillars and is sustainably sourced in Scotland.
The Macallan has also worked with renowned luxury fashion photographer and creative visionary Nick Knight, to create a series of photography and films in his abstract and expressionistic style. Knight’s imagery captures the collection in blocks of ice as an homage to The Macallan’s intrinsic connection to nature and the River Spey which runs through The Macallan Estate.
