The Ice Floe

Working with W Chandler Taff, a sophomore at Johnson and Wales, this is the next offering I will be working on in the coming weeks. I'm not sure where it will surface, heck I'm not sure it will even work, but I'd still love to share it with you...

I don't believe I have ever seen a moving garnish, but I have made a whole range of drinks I call 'progressive,' in that the flavor profile changes throughout the experience. Inverted test-tubes, layering and highly macerated fruits in the bottom of the glass are some of the ways I have done this in the past. This one will actually rely upon the ice itself. The idea is that the ice will either be made of, or coated with a flavor component, which will the be gradually introduced into the drink over time. The motion aspect of the garnish will essentially be inspired by iceberg formations. The ice will be shaped into a cone, so that the heavier base will sit below the water line. a point of reference, perhaps a currant, will be frozen to the top of the berg. A flick of the wrist and voila! a rotating garnish!

I like the idea of using Russian Standard Platinum Vodka, not only for quality, but because it is produced from glacial water. I enjoy making drinks that have intellectual continuity and certainly prize brand characteristics!

In writing this, I believe I have hammered out the drink minus exact proportions. We'll work on that soon, most likely with Tom Fischer and http://www.bourbonblog.com. I believe we are going to begin producing a series of podcasts similar to the beer, bourbon and BBQ drink...

Those of you who remember the Glacial Purity drink will also see that technique employed here...

The liquid aspect is simply a Greyhouond on steroids:

1.5 oz Russian Standard Platinum Vodka
3-4 oz Grapefruit Juice (fresh squeezed, or boxed, not canned)
2 dashes Rhubarb Bitters
1 oz cube dry ice

Place first 3 ingredients into a shaker tin. Add ice. Allow to sit for 15 seconds. Strain. Dry ice doesn't splinter, but instead melts from the outside in (not actually being ice.) So there is no hazard if you know how to work with it. May I take this moment to add a disclaimer: Don't mess with it unless you know what you are doing!!! PM me and I'll give you the breakdown if you are so inclined...

Glassware: Rocks 4-6 oz model

This drink is poured slowly down the side of the glass with the ice already sitting inside. The iceberg will rise with the water level and the smoke will give an excellent effect, in addition to keeping the drink exceptionally cold and seizing the syrup on the outside of the berg. This will retard the progressive aspect of the drink for a few minutes until the temperature rises back up to 32deg. Then the sugar will begin to incorporate into the drink...

For the ice...

The blue 'paint' is simple (syrup)

1 part blue curacao
1 part sugar

Place curacao in a pan and bring to the slight boil. add sugar and stir until dissolved. Chill. Place in a spritzer bottle and reserve until used. After use, flush the nozzle with hot water or it will become clogged.

This mixture is spritzed around the outside of the berg, Set in the freezer for 10 minutes and then a dried currant is applied to the top, off-center. Be sure to place it as far to the top as possible, as over weighing one side may cause the berg to capsize. It could also be placed just above water level, I think, but this would require a good deal of practice. The berg may also be spritzed with the Syrup on only one side so that the motion is evident. The guest needs simply to swirl the liquid around inside the glass to appreciate the effect...

For the berg:

I believe the execution of this element needs to take into account the purpose of the drink.

Daily Special: Homemade paraffin mold
Special Event: Plastic Wrap folded inside pastry bag cone

In either of these two cases, hand carving is an option (as long as max servings = 10-15)

Cocktail Menu: Might as well purchase custom plastic molds. The cost will eventually be offset by the novelty and increased sales of this kind of an offering. Not to mention guest satisfaction and by-virtue, repeat business. This would definitely be a drink that people would order just to show their friends.

I figured you might enjoy an update on our progress...


http://www.bourbonblog.com/blog/2010/04 ... n-quixote/

Loved it Stephen! That's a great deal of work to put into the design of a cocktail. I can't wait to see part II.

Carla, we may just be going to part III on this one. As you could tell, I am passionate about this particular developmental project, due in large part to my collaboration with a certain young chef...

I truly want this thing to come back to him a great work, so that he can feel the fulfillment of seeing an idea grow and become something great!

You know me... I'm not gonna stop.

Oh! And we spoke with the distiller about the fact that thier vodka tasted like tequilla. This is where it gets interesting (and a bit dubious, to be honest.)

He said that they made this product to be a sipping vodka, not ultra-refined, so characteristics of the grains came through in the final product. This, I feel, and believe.

He also said the character comes from distilling at high altitudes, like they do in mexico- I'm finding that kinda hard to swallow.

But what do I know? I'm no distiller, just a dancing monkey with a hat....

Well I guess I'm a bit old school when it comes to vodka. (Not a hugh vodka fan anyway) I prefer potato vodkas to grain vodkas but that's just me. They work so much better with those gravy rims ya know.

Oh, I'm with Carla all the way. Potato vodka rules. Personally, I prefer Vikingsfjord, a Norwegian potato vodka made with glacial waters.

You know I am changing that...

A completely interesting spirit, just not Greyhound material. I kept wanting to make a sunrise...

Who knew? Certainly not me. It's a brand-new product- I don't even think they distribute in KY yet. Still, ya gotta them props for what they did- absolutely fresh, creative and unintuitive!


Oh! And the tequilla-ish nuances (strong) were 'as a result of high-altitude distilling' (sic) Still trying to wrap my head around that...

Oh! And the tequilla-ish nuances (strong) were 'as a result of high-altitude distilling' (sic) Still trying to wrap my head around that...

I dunno... that 'high altitude distilling' explanation sounds a bit iffy to me too. Glad it was you talking with the guy and not me. You're a much better diplomat than myself. I would have been tempted to say, 'High altitude distilling gave it a tequila nuance huh? No, really, why does it taste like that?"