Mixology Wine Institute Blog

So imagine you’re there, with your bottle of Macallan 30, and it’s the end of a perfect day.  You get your favorite glass out, maybe it’s a brandy snifter, maybe it’s crystal, maybe something personal, and you pour yourself a gentle dram (an amount that corresponds to how you generous you feel) of the good spirit. 

Aaaaahhhhhh

But, you wish your Scotch, though perfect, yes, was on a little bit of ice.  

As you sit there, with your (alas hypothetical) $1200 bottle of Scotch, and you realize, that it would be a shame to take the ice from your fridge and just drop some in.

What should you do?  Here are the three commandments to drinking Scotch on the rocks:

1. The ice shouldn’t melt. Well, maybe a little, but not much, the goal is to take away part of the sting of the alcohol, and to infuse it with just a touch of pure water, to bring out its flavor.
2. The Scotch shouldn’t be ice water cold, it should be only slightly chilled.  The purpose of chilling the scotch is to lightly cool it, and take away part of the sting of the alcohol.  If it’s too cold, it will numb your taste buds!
3. The water used for the ice should be either as pure, or as tasteless as possible. That means high quality bottled water (Fiji, which supercools better than any other water), or distilled water (preferred because it’s completely tasteless) should be used to make ice.

How should we accomplish all of this?

Option one, the high roller:

If you are willing to buy one, the Macallan machine will make a perfect circular ball of ice every time.  This was inspired by legions of poor Japanese apprentice bartenders who are taught to cut circular balls of ice for months before they are allowed to get behind the stick.  Now we have a machine that does this!  

Option 2, a great bar:

This is my glass at village whiskey, where they do this sort of thing automatically.  Note the dense, hand cut ice that melts VERY slowly.  

Option 3, Whiskey Stones:

The easiest way to chill Scotch at home is with these stones.  I mean, sometimes I do geek out enough to buy distilled water or Fiji, make a tray of ice cubes, and seal it off from the rest of the freezer.  But usually, I’m lazy.  If you’re like me, you’re going to want to keep some whiskey stones on hand.  Keep ‘em in the freezer, and break them out when you’re ready to drink!