Why Drinks Need Big Ice Cubes

Those huge chunks of ice that are in your drink aren’t just a fad where bartender show off whose ice is biggest or best. Ice is a crucial component of a drink because it dilutes the alcohol and helps to release some of the more nuanced flavors of a particular spirit. In other words, a little bit of melted ice will make some drinks taste better – especially if they’re strong drinks or straight pours of something like whiskey or bourbon. A larger ice cube will melt more slowly, so you will be able to savor your drink for a longer period of time and will be able to taste how its flavor changes as you drink it. In short, a larger ice cube will lead to a better tasting drink that you don’t have to shoot back quickly.

Round ice cubes melt more slowly than square ice cubes, but they are also more difficult and thus more expensive to produce, so you won’t see them too many places. Square and rectangular ice cubes are easier to make and easier to come by. Square silicone ice cube trays work perfectly if you want to make your own at home.

The sign of a really good quality ice cube is its clarity. A professionally frozen ice cube should be perfectly clear – something that you can’t easily do at home, since water in an ice cube tray freezes from the top down and the outside in, trapping little air bubbles and impurities at the center of the cube and making it look cloudy. That said, a cloudy ice cube isn’t going to ruin your drink. But a clear one is just one more quality touch that can justify a slightly higher price for that specialty cocktail at a good bar.