Ice is a Bartender’s Best Friend

ICE

is a Bartender’s Best Friend

Everyone is sick of sh*t ice these days. Once the most overlooked element of cocktail making, it seems nowadays the frozen stuff is finally being given the consideration it deserves. Bartenders across the country, from pubs, to small bars, to high end cocktail venues have come to the realisation that, in many respects, it’s ice over the base spirit that can make or break a cocktail.

This is because ice doesn’t simply chill a drink. Its soluble nature means it will slowly release into a cocktail. This can go one of two ways: a good block will bind the ingredients together as it diffuses, taking the bite off the base spirit while rounding out the flavours and bringing forward new ones. On the other hand, a cloudy block full of impurities and air bubbles – you know, the kind you fish out of the home freezer – can add a range of unfavourable flavours to the drink and will dilute the spirit faster. When in doubt, measure a good block of ice like you would a diamond –it’s all about size, clarity and cut.

WORDS ° Simon Weiss & Damien Liot

Handcrafted ice is more likely to be clearer and denser, meaning overall the block will be harder, colder and better at keeping the drink at a constant, lightly-chilled temperature. You can technically produce high quality frozen water, on a small scale, in house. But from our experience, we just don’t think it’s worth the effort.

That being said, instigating a good ice program within your bar is definitely worth it as it can add about 60 to 80 cents to the cost of each drink sold. Cue the business of premium ice making. Businesses such as Bare Bones Ice Company in Sydney are creating high quality bespoke products to keep it simple for you behind the bar.

Here Simon Weiss and Damien Liot from the Bare Bones team run us through their three standard sizes of ice cut and how you can work with these on a day-to-day basis.

OLD FASHIONED BLOCK

65mm x 45mm x 45mm

The name says it all. The block is the most popular and versatile size of ice. If there is only one style of ice in your bar, this should be it. This cut will melt a lot slower than smaller pieces of ice, meaning you have more than enough time to whip out that camera and snap a pick to fulfill all of your Tumblr needs. The ideal ice for your classic Negroni and Old Fashioned styles.

CUBE

50mm x 50mm x 50mm

The OF’s little bro. For all your non-mixing needs. Simply pick the bottle of spirit, pour it over and poof, you’re done. A great one to trim and put in a stemmed glass like the ever-sostylish coupette.

COLLINS SPEAR

135mm x 30mm x 30mm

AKA ‘The Long One’ or ‘The Rod’. Shout out to our people in the wedding planning biz for their love of this bad boy. If you’re whipping up slings and rickeys, or are intent on taking the G&T to the next level, this one’s for you. Grab your favourite gin and tonic combo, add some fresh citrus in a Collins glass and pop in a spear and a metal straw. You just can’t beat that.

CRUSHED ICE

Think brambles, tulips and tiki cocktails. Take a mullet and smash the life out of any of the sizes above. The idea behind this one is the fast melting crushed ice will keep the drinks super cold and diffuse the perfect amount of water into the mix. Bare Bones will be bringing you crushed ice in the very near future.

There you have it. You wouldn’t have a dull cubic zirconia as the centrepiece of a stunning gold ring, so why have poorly made ice at the centre of your precious cocktail creations? Add a diamond in the form of high quality ice cuttings and watch as your drinks truly shine.