Is There An Ideal Ice Cube Shape For Whiskey?

We spend a lot of time and effort (as one should) fussing over the right alcohol, mixers, and proportions for making the perfect libation, but one crucial component is often overlooked. Whether in frozen or liquid form, water is a basic yet essential cocktail ingredient. Even a drink on the rocks benefits from ice and not just in terms of temperature, but also because of the slight dilution that melting ice adds to the glass. However, unlike cocktails that have several ingredients with dominant flavors and can thus handle a comparatively large amount of melting ice, a drink on the rocks needs balanced dilution. For many liquors, the right amount of water can open up the spirit's flavors. Too much water suppresses them.

When deciding how to ice your drink, the number of cubes is not the only way you can control things. Instead, the shape and size of the ice cube should be considered depending on what you're using the ice for. If you're shaking or throwing a cocktail, for instance, the ice is being used to chill and dilute your drink quickly. Conversely, ice in the glass is meant to keep your drink cold for an extended period. For the best ice cubes to use with whiskey, we got some helpful tips straight from Anna Axster and Wendelin von Schroder, the co-founders of Lodestar Whiskey and know their spirits (and how to drink them) inside out. To them, the very best sort of ice for drinking whiskey must be a single, large piece that melts slowly.

Those rocks in your whiskey need to keep the drink cold, provide slight dilution, and stay solid for a long time. This is too much to expect from regular cubed ice, which is generally one inch by one inch in size. Fortunately, it is now possible to buy or make ice of virtually any shape and size. "We prefer big ice cubes," says Anna Axster, adding "There's some great, affordable jumbo ice cube trays available online."

Considering how just a splash of water improves the flavor of most bourbons and whiskeys, the ideal ice cube should melt slowly. The best way to ensure that is to reduce the cube's surface area. A single block of ice will almost always have less surface area than multiple smaller pieces. This is why one large ice cube, which will melt more slowly, is a much better choice than a handful of regular-sized cubes. A large ice sphere may work even better than a cube, because, for the same volume of ice, a sphere has less surface area than a cube. It's also quite easy to make them at home using ice ball molds.

Irrespective of shape, make sure you store your ice appropriately and use it quickly so it doesn't absorb freezer smells that could taint your drink. And if you ever find yourself without the appropriate ice for your whiskey, chilling your glass and adding less ice can help your drink stay cold but not get overly diluted.