Clear Ice
Also known as: craft ice
In short
Clear ice is completely transparent ice without trapped air: crystal clear instead of cloudy, the grand entrance in the glass. We explain why normal ice turns cloudy and how crystal clear ice is made.
In depth
Why normal ice turns cloudy
When water freezes in a regular ice tray, it freezes from all sides at once. Air and fine particles in the water stay trapped, and the ice turns milky and cloudy. That is not a quality problem, just physics.
How clear ice is made
The trick is called directional freezing: the water freezes only from top to bottom, pushing air and particles ahead of it. What remains is crystal clear ice, while the cloudy part at the bottom gets removed. From the clear block come cubes, spheres or cut stones for the glass.
Why the look matters
Clear ice is not colder, but visibly finer: a crystal clear cube in a whisky or in a stirred martini is the grand entrance in the glass, because you see the drink through the ice. In many bars, spheres and cut blocks have long been part of the craft.
Remember this one
The cube makes the calm, crushed ice makes the cold, clear ice makes the show.
At our lounge
Whether in a whisky or a stirred classic: a clear cube is a statement in the glass. Ask our team which ice goes with which drink.