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| 12.06.09 |
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Peter Chase, who owns two bars in Montreal is a lover of the perfect cocktail it’s all about the ice “Ice is the equivalent to a stove for a chef,” One uses heat and the other cold, he adds, but both change every aspect of the final product.
At Montreal's Wunderbar, owned by Mr. Chase, there are three varieties of frozen ice, all depending on the cocktail. Toronto's Sidecar Bar and Grill goes that much further by using four. At The Martini Club, also in Toronto, the private bar serves seven sorts, some crystal clear and others with edible flowers inside.
So what’s all this fuss about ice? It's not just about temperature: It affects a drink's taste, appearance and texture, Mr. Chase explains.
Crushed ice is a necessity for refreshing drinks that need dilution, such as the mint juleps at Sidecar. The pieces melt quickly, adding extra water to the drink. They’re broken with a mallet, and the misshaped sizes add an old style texture to the southern cocktail.
On the other end of the scale, the bar serves its bourbon-based old fashioned with dense, five-centimetre-square cubes. Made with distilled water in a Plexiglas mould, they are designed to melt slowly. “If you used regular ice,” explains Casey Bee, co-owner of Sidecar, “the old fashioned would get too watered down.”
The temperature affects how the drink feels, by numbing the taste buds. Cooler temperatures can smooth average liquor by rounding its edges, Mr. Bee says. “When you really chill it, the harsh aspects of the spirit are dampened and it brings out the subtleties.”
At Toronto's BarChef, a 50-centimetre cylindrical ice slab forms the centrepiece of a counter covered with glasses of fresh-cut herbs and jars of bitters. The block is lit from below, and drinks are served with hand-chipped, jagged shards. “We wanted to return to the way cocktails used to be made before prohibition,” explains Brent VanderVeen, an owner of the bar. “This was the way it was done in the 18th century. And it looks better – it's like a piece of art.”
Video of ice bar
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