Hey friends! Thank you for the amazing response to this video! I just wanted to clarify a few points to address some questions and comments: 1) This method is designed for light home use, not large parties or commercial venues. As I say in the video, the idea is that it is an easy, low-effort way of making clear ice which doesn't take up loads of freezer space - something many people don't have. It is perfect for adding a nice visual element to a cocktail or two every now and then. 2) If you time this correctly and don't full freeze the ice block, no carving is required. I intentionally froze it the whole way through to show that even if this happens, it can be removed in a matter of seconds so don't stress if it does. Simply reduce the freezing time until it isn't totally frozen and repeat this every time, and you'll never need to carve clear ice again (assuming the freezer temp is consistent). 3) For those of you just looking for the method, the video is timestamped. The first sections clarify (😉) the type of flask you will need to ensure you get good results, and explain why this works. Feel free to skip these sections, but I always want to share important details and an understanding of why things work as well as how, whenever possible. 4) The link directs you to the flask I used if it is available where you are - "Sivaphe Travel Tumbler Stainless Steel Cup with Straw and Lid, Insulated Coffee Drinking Mug Double Wall Vacuum for Hiking Home Office 20oz". It seems that it points to a more generic search if it is not available in your area. As long as you follow the directions in the video, the brand shouldn't matter. 5) A few of you have had some trouble removing the ice from the flask. I have tried this method in a few different flasks and a good squeeze of the flask has always worked to release the ice. It seems that it creates a vacuum and as soon as you break this, it should drop right out. I hope this clears things up! Thank you again for watching and I hope you are enjoying some delicious drinks with clear ice!
Watched this video the other day and tried it right away. Followed the instructions and I have a 6 inch tall block of the clearest ice I have seen. Thanks so much. This worked perfect.
I’m trying this because it sounds fun. I’ve also purchased the 6-ball clear-ice maker from Wintersmiths and have gotten it for at least a half dozen gifts. Works like a charm - basically a 8-inch diameter yeti mug with a silicone mold (spheres, cubes, etc). Directional freezing with clear ice every time.
I happened across this video and wanted to point out a suggestion. I started using this thermos method about 2 years ago and at first I also was using smaller thermoses to get pretty smaller single cup cylinders, however I found it to be a pain every time I forgot about it and they froze all the way thru. Yes you can cut off the end, but it takes much longer to remove the ice and you have to bother with cutting it and you have wasted energy and water freezing more ice than necessary and I felt that my thermoses were not long for this world if I kept it up. Plus air bubbles would rise up thru the already made clear ice making it not so clear any more. Setting a timer for it to sit in the freezer for only 18 hours every single day was even more of a pain and for me it was not much better than my previous method that also had to freeze for only a specific number of hours. I quickly switched to a much larger thermos (yes still V shaped and no ridge) when I saw them available at Target to get my targeted "roughly the same time every day, make a new batch of ice". The problem was the larger cubes would not fit in my drinking thermos, so I purchased a thin plastic cutting board while I was in Target and cut out two not quite rectangular pieces (they were the same shape as the inside of the thermos) with slots at the ends so that I could slip one over the other into a long X-shape that reached from nearly the bottom to nearly the top (I first created a template of cardboard until it seemed the right size). Now, at roughly the same time every day (give or take 4 hours because it really no longer matters) I take it out of the freezer and put tap water on top and swish it around to get a clear finish and to start warming up the inside sides of the thermos and put it upside down into a bowl and set a timer and come back later and twist the plastic dividers upside down over the sink (the ice sticks to the dividers) and voila, out it comes.... four convex triangular cylinders of clear ice, pre-tempered and ready to be used with very little of my time required. Generally, two go into my thermos (for soda) and two go into the freezer for later. When I need ice, I take out a stick or two out of the freezer and let it temper for 10 to 15 minutes and it is good to go. Now just one large thermos gives me a full day of ice (much better than multiple smaller thermoses in the freezer). But I can see how cylindrical ice can be more visually appealing for guests, so... this would be limited to people like me who only want clear ice for personal use and have no need to make it visually appealing. Tho I do still have my foam insulated round sphere plus reservior below mold that worked well before I switched to thermoses. I always keep a bin full of those, pre-made, for company. But that took up so much more space in my freezer than this thermos idea and it was a lot more time consuming on my part, so I stopped making them for myself. It also could not reliably be ready "at any point between 20 and 28 hours" without being problematic.
I've been using this method for a while now to make spheres. I take the cylinders and drop 'em in a sphere press -- easy as you like. I got the press for about $85 off Amazon. I keep extra cylinders in the freezer so I can have a sphere whenever I need it. I've tried making spheres ahead of time and then freezing them, but the little bits of water that inevitably end up in the freezer bag with the spheres re-freeze to the spheres and form imperfections that never quite come off right. The same basic thing happens to the cylinders too, but the imperfections get melted off by the press -- voila, perfectly clear spheres, on demand, any and every time. Another benefit to this method is you don't end up with a crease around the circumference like you do with the sphere molds.
Great method. I bought an insulated metal mug and followed your instructions. The only issue is that the mug has straight sides so the ice doesn’t come out too easily. I just leave it upside down in a bowl for several hours until the ice drops out. I can make one large ice cube a day. I will break them into smaller pieces when needed, thanks.
You can pour a little hot water on the top. It melts the ice slightly off the edges as the water seeps down and loose the whole block in under 5 minutes.
@@angadchanna658 I cut a plastic container lid so that would fit across the inside of the cup to the bottom then used two clothes pegs to keep it in place roughly in the centre whole it froze . The next day I removed the two pegs and turned it upside down in a bowl. Then poured some hot water as you suugested . after a while I can use the protruding plastic to pull the frozen ice out. works a treat.
To everyone whining about cube shape and can’t get it out of the yeti. First invert the mug in a dish drainer it will release eventually. Second, use your serrated knife to split the cube into several dissimilar shapes and sizes. Simply cleave the ice by holding the knife where you want it to split and lightly tapping the back of the knife with the smooth side of a meat pounder or a hammer. Like splitting diamonds. It hardly takes any strength with pounder or hammer to do. Lastly, distilled water alone simply does not work. Those who tout that method simply have never tried it!
I have tried all 3 methods and the one with the thermo mug worked best... but now I have tried where I have run the water through one of the water filter Pitcher you can buy and the result is great when the cup is frozen you can still see to the bottom of the mug . it doesn't cost much, I haven't tried the first two methods
My ice never comes out of several tumblers I’ve tried. Seems like it just stays frozen for an entire day. To fix this, I cut the tops off some soda cans and slide it into the tumbler. It fits perfectly in a lot of tumblers, so you can slide it out and just run some hot water around it to release the ice when you’re ready.
I'll try your idea. Maybe use a plastic cup. First time I've tried this and have been trying to get the ice out of mine since last night. Two different tumblers. Put them in the fridge overnight. Tried again just now. Melted a bit on the top edge, and more watery on the bottom, but still won't budge, They're mocking me now!😆
@@lporter8240I’ve also noticed sometimes there is a suction effect under the ice that prevents it from coming out. I like the soda can method because it creates a perfect cylinder rather than a cone shape, and it makes it really easy to store multiple ice blocks each in their own can.
@@austinflowers3789 Finally got them out. It was definately a suction issue. I squeezed the tumblers more toward the tops. After much gurgling, they finally let go! 😁
@@lporter8240 Exactly what happened to me. When I did it, by the time it melted enough to come out (after a whole day), it had melted far too much to be worth using. Glad to help!
I've been using a Yeti tumbler for my clear ice since I don't have room in my freezer for a cooler. The part I struggle with is that after I've put my ice through a mold, when i put it back in the freezer it ends up with melt lines all over it (it's not perfectly smooth like it is straight from the mold).
Are you using a press mold? If so, make spare cylinders, keep the cylinders frozen, and then press-melt them on demand. The same imperfections that end up on the cylinder will get melted off when you press them.
Game changer? It is same stuff, but in smaller vessel, and you still need to cut it to size, better just by silicon molds, drill holes in them and stuff into that bigger isolated box, now you have directional freezing but with already shaped cubes
Let it sit out on the counter for 45 minutes to an hour, turn upside-down over the sink, and squeeze the rim of the tumbler out-of-round with your palms for a few seconds. This lets the water underneath the ice drain out, and once that vacuum seal is broken, the ice cylinder should slide right out.
I hope that is a knife dedicated to just using with your beautiful clear ice because that looked like a crime. If you must score your ice with your quality serrated kitchen knife at least turn the blade around and smack it with the spine rather than the blade. And thanks I will be making ice this way later today!
So get a sphere press and press-melt them into spheres. That's what I do. Got mine (Vevor brand) for $85 off Amazon. I make cylinders in batches of five or so, so I always have spares in the freezer -- ice spheres on demand. I've tried making the spheres ahead of time and freezing them, but they always end up with imperfections after the bits of water that end up in the freezer bag re-freeze to them. Same happens to the cylinder, but the imperfections get melted off during the press process.
The link takes you to an Amazon page with dozens of choices. Which brand is the one used in the video so I don't end up with one the ice won't come out of?
@@DANFELLOWScoffeecocktails I have a, and don’t judge me (I have a full three grinder espresso setup too), Nespresso branded flask that is perfect for this. I don’t know why I’ve never thought of this. I don’t have the space for a giant cool box in my freezer.
Dan, what temperature is your freezer? Mine is set at the factory recommended 0 F and it takes my flasks much longer to freeze. And when I take them out of the freezer, it's a pretty long time before I can get the ice out of them. It works really well, but my durations are much longer.
So if I had wanted, say, a dozen clear ice cubes for a party, I guess that I’d either need a dozen insulated mugs or one insulated mug × 12 days? Urghh.
Unfortunately so, this is more for people enjoying a drink or two at home rather than a larger scale option. But the cool box method should make 12 smaller cubes at a push, or easily in two batches, which would take much less time but require some carving.
My thought as well. Very wordy when it could’ve been a short. Also, I won’t live long enough to make the ice I need for a single evening if I make one at a time at 18 hours per…
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Freezing distilled water will still trap dissolved gases, resulting in cloudy ice. The directional freezing method forces the gases downward and leaves them in the remaining water, or in the bottom of the cylinder if you let it freeze all the way or nearly all the way to the bottom. If that happens, you can cut the cloudy part off as demonstrated in the video.
If you put boiling water in the flask, then let it cool, then stick it in the freezer, most of the ice will be clear. Boiling takes the air out of the water.
I've found no reason to not fill it up almost all of the way OTHER than you don't want to fill it so high that it overflows when the ice expands during freezing. Fill it about 90% and freeze it until the top 75% is frozen. Remove from Tumbler and let it temper before cutting, usually gives 3 nice perfectly clear cylinders for double rocks glass.
Interesting. I lack a thermos. Maybe a reusable coffee cup will work. Maybe catch before the whole ice block freezes. I don't like the idea of ruining a good knife hacking ice blocks. One point you did not mention in your episode on ice in the excellent cocktail course was water. I treat water as I would with coffee. The ice will dilute into the cocktail, thus use the same filtered water as would if making coffee. Note: Dan's cocktail course is well worth watching, all 50 episodes.
Thanks Keith! Totally agreed on water quality, it is such a big part of a cocktail, it should be water you'd be happy to drink. Let me know how it goes in a coffee cup. As long as it is insulated, it should work!
Water, think coffee. Water makes a big difference to coffee, it will therefore make a big difference in cocktails. And yet I never see mention of water, ice yes, water no. Use filtered water. Ask nicely in your local coffee shop. Bottled spring water. Britta filter or better still for coffee Peak water filter.
As a friendless bachelor, I can appreciate your comment because I love this method. Also, thank you for shining a light on my particular demographic! We are so often overlooked.
That's only necessary if you let the tumbler freeze completely. If you're only leaving it in the freezer for 18 hours or so, the bottom of the tumbler won't be frozen (which is where the impurities are), and when you release the ice, the impurities are in that unfrozen part and you don't need to carve anything.
As he said in the video, you don't need to carve anything unless you leave it in the freezer too long and the whole thing freezes. If you do it the way he describes, the bottom of the tumbler won't be frozen and the impurities are in that liquid part. No carving necessary.
