"Artisanal Ice" is the latest and oh-so-very-cool new trend in craft cocktails
The American craft cocktail revolution, which emerged around the mid-2000s, brought a massive change to American drink culture. Focused on using high-quality ingredients and meticulous techniques, this movement changed the ways that Americans drink, order, and make cocktails.
Chattanooga is a great example of the way that craft cocktail culture has spread throughout the country. In our midsize city, there are dozens of bars that sell innovative, excellent craft cocktails along with upscale liquor stores boasting an impressive selection of ingredients for at-home mixologists.
Because the craft cocktail has become de rigueur, restaurants and bars are always looking for ways to stand out. Often, this means making their cocktails just a bit more artisanal than the competition by using house-made ingredients—think handmade bitters, fruit juices, and infused simple syrups. But even this is fairly common, so what’s left to innovate?
The ice. Yes, that’s right. There’s a new trend in craft cocktails, and it’s got nothing to do with the alcohol. Well, that’s not necessarily true, as one of the purported benefits of artisanal ice is that it's a better complement to the alcohol in the drink.
There are a number of machines common to the artisanal ice world, all of which make different shapes. The Scotsman produces airy ice balls perfect for mint juleps, and the Kold Draft machine creates precise 1 ¼-inch squares. The most common, and most impressive machine, however, is the Clinebell (also used by ice sculptors), which freezes massive, 300-pound blocks of ice that are then hand chipped, sawed, or pounded into the desired shape.
The carefully shaped ice is designed to enhance the flavors of the cocktail. One of the most common shapes is the chunky square—just big enough to fit into a rocks glass. The bigger the ice, the slower it melts. So, whereas a handful of small ice cubes can water your whiskey down in a matter of minutes, a big slab of ice will ensure that your drink is cold but undiluted.
Also, when the artisanal ice inevitably does melt it doesn’t impart any funky flavors to the drink. Regular ice absorbs the odors and flavors of its freezer companions, but carefully frozen artisanal ice avoids this problem, keeping rogue hints of food flavors out of your Old Fashioned.
In addition to these more logical benefits, artisanal ice is aesthetically pleasing. The use of purified water and special freezing processes ensures a dense, crystal-clear cube with no cloudiness from minerals or bubbles. Also, the ice is hand cut, usually with a saw, which adds character to the shape.
Slow-melting, perfectly transparent, completely flavorless ice does sound pretty good, but is it really so different from the regular, machine-cut ice you’ve been drinking for years?
As you may suspect, artisanal ice has been met with its fair share of raised eyebrows. The suspicion is obvious—is this just a way to dupe people into dropping unnecessary cash on some cold water?
I’ll let you be the judge. Maybe the unique “character” of an ice cube’s shape is impossible for you to talk about with a straight face, or maybe you’re itching to get out and see if there’s something to this trend after all.
If you’re curious, you can check out Stir, a cocktail and oyster bar here in downtown Chattanooga that employs its own “ice chef” and creates eight different artisanal ice shapes for its signature drinks.
Even if you ultimately decide that artisanal ice is just a passing trend, it will be a fun thing to bring up at your next cocktail party.