The best way to cool your whiskey
Let’s start with a disclaimer: I normally do not cool my whisky. I also do not care what you do to your whisky/whiskey. I just don’t cool it normally. Don’t judge me, I have my reasons and part of my name is snob.
But with this hot summer weather, I was wondering what the best way would be to cool my drink.
So I decided to do another experiment and test multiple ways of cooling my dram. Trying to find the best way to do that fast and efficient.
Another small disclaimer: Part of this experiment was sponsored. But we will discuss that when we reach that part.
The tests:
I decided that I should test several ways to cool the dram, so here is the line up:
Put the bottle in the fridge/freezer
Use ice
Use whisky stones
Use a special glass
For the complete experiment I will use the same drink:
Black Whiskey from the Andes. Why? Because I like it, and it is close to Bourbon, a drink I would cool.
Put the bottle in the fridge/freezer:
Ok, this is where I’m immediately disappoint you:
I may have started this experiment, but I simply refuse to put a bottle in the fridge. Never mind the freezer.
Let’s treat these bottles with some respect.
Plus, if I start the experiment with a cooled whiskey, how would I be able to see the effect of the other cooling methods?
So, this method is not tested, nor graded.
But, for reference, I did pour a small sip on current room temperature. (21C/69.8F)
Ice:
So, I put a big ball of ice in my testing tumbler.
I forgot to mention, I’m using a tumbler although it did not score that high on my Best glass for whisky experiment.
The reason is very simple: You cannot put a big ball of ice into any of the other glasses tested. Nor would the whisky stones be ideal. Plus, the special glass is also one in the tumbler category.
Back to the test:
The ice does cool the dram rather quickly. But with these temperatures, it also dilutes the dram rather fast.
The first sip was nice and cool. The final sip had diluted the dram a bit too much for my taste.
Again: taste is a personal thing and I can imagine some people might actually enjoy this way of cooling because of this dilution.
Whisky stones
This set of 6 granite blocks has been laying around for a while, using up almost no space in my freezer and therefore available for this test. I received it years ago as a gift and I believe I tried it once.
And while enjoying another cooled dram, I remembered why I only tried it once:
It is literally rocks in your glass. Rocks. In your glass.
Do they cool your dram? Yes. However not nearly as fast as ice does. It takes the stones some extra time to cool my dram.
No dilution however, so I have a nice cool dram after a while. Not as cold as the ice experiment though.
And, like I mentioned, rocks in my glas. They slip and slide and it is not the same as ice cubes. It feels weird and not my thing.
A cooled tumbler
For the final test I was sponsored. The kind folk at LIITON reached out after reading my article about the best glass for whisky. They provided me with the The Peaks Crystal Whiskey Decanter Set. A set of four tumblers and a decanter. But a little more about that as a bonus below this article.
The fun part of the LIITON tumblers is that they have “The Chill Charge™” technology which will cool my drink within 18 seconds. At least, that is what is mentioned on the box.
You keep the glass in the freezer and pour your drink in it.
So I did! ON the package they claim it cools within 18 seconds. I did not time, but the dram is cold! The complete glass is cold. So, differently from the other options, my fingers are cold as well. But we were testing the cooling of the dram, not the fingers.
Truth be told, I quite like this solution. The frost on the glass as seen on the photo disappears rather fast and it no longer cools my fingers.
Did you like this experiment?
Go and check some more:
A little extra:
Curious about the LIITON set? The Peaks set consists of 4 glasses and a decanter and represent 5 famous mountain peaks.
The decanter has Mount Everest embossed on the side, and the four glasses have a raised bottom shaped in the forms of:
-K2
-Mt. Denali
-Mt. Fuji
-Mont Blanc
I made an unboxing video and will show you what is in the set!
See the video below.