Some beverages we drink on ice; others, we dont'

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

It’s interesting how some beverages are consumed on ice and others aren’t. And some are consumed either way.

Water: I drink it either way. If I want to drink it fast, I don’t put it over ice. If it’s summer, and I want to sip it, I’ll put it over ice. Plus, sometimes I want it to be really cold.

Coffee/tea: I like it iced or hot. If iced, I like it brewed strong. When it’s over ice, I savor it for hours. When coffee is hot, I drink it fast. Same with tea.

Pop/Soda: I like it out of the can or bottle, although in that case, I prefer bottle. If it’s poured in a glass, I like ice. I have never once in my life consumed pop in a glass without ice.

Milk: My brother loves it over ice. I’ve never tried it that way and never will. Sounds nasty.

Beer: Out of the bottle or can, or in a glass. Never, ever over ice.

Orange juice: I prefer in a glass without ice, but sometimes it’s refreshing to have it nice and cold over ice.

Hard liquor is probably a separate post. I love drinks shaken, but quite a few are great stirred and strained. Whiskey is probably the most controversial. Do you serve high-end whiskey neat or on the rocks? Or with one cube? One large cube? Or with three drops of water? I don’t think hard liquor is as controversial as the other liquids :slight_smile:

Do you have any anomalies? Contradictions? Liquids I missed?

#2

I almost never use ice because (a) if I’m drinking something fast there’s not much point in using ice to keep it cold and (b) if I’m drinking something slowly it gets diluted.

#3

As one who attended bartending school (though that was 30yrs ago), I can remember I was taught that most regular cocktails (highballs, tall drinks, martinis/manhattens and such) begin with a glass full of ice. Mostly to chill the glass. Whether or not all that ice is in the final drink depends on the drink and customer requests. Though generally it all stays by default.

One notable exception is brandy or anything in a snifter, which should be warmed first.

Personally, crap bourbon I just do shots. Don’t waste your time chilling it. Good bourbon I like with one ice cube as a cocktail, or chilled if doing a shot. Great bourbon I prefer in a snifter and would never ever shoot or sully with anything.

Beer of course should be cold, but never with ice.

Pop in a can is fine if it is cold. Out of a 2 liter or fountain, I need ice.

Water I can go either way.

#4

Well there has to be ice in iced tea. Other than that, no ice, I’m good. I’m probably cold enough already.

Specifically, I don’t care if the OJ is not cold, I am actually happy if the Scotch and dark beer are not cold, the pop should be cold but it’s probably been in the refrigerator, or it comes out of the fountain that way, cold enough. I would never drink milk at any temperature. I drink red wine mainly in preference to white because it’s supposed to be room temperature. I guess technically that’s European winter room temp which is probably 55 degrees but mine isn’t that cold.

I might put ice in water if I’m not going to gulp it all down at once, and I do freeze water in my water bottles to take to the tennis court if the temperature is over 75. Have an unfrozen but refrigerated one for the first set, by the second set the frozen one is just cold water, or if the set doesn’t take that long then I’m still drinking the first one.

Friends of mine used to say, “Oh, you’ll love Europe, they don’t put ice in the pop,” but they did. Everywhere.

#5

Wine? Wine experts might object to my habit, but I really like to put some ice cubes in a tall glass of red wine, preferably somewhat watered down.

#6

What about other juices?

Apple juice: never see anyone drink it with ice.

Grape juice: I seem to recall seeing folks drink it with ice at some point, but I don’t believe I’ve ever done it myself.

Cranberry juice: seems like it would benefit from ice.

Fruit punch: sure, ice it up.

Lemonade: not really juice, but gotta have ice.

#7

I prefer nearly all flavored drinks without ice (unless they’re specifically something like a slushie, where crushed ice is an intrinsic part of it). If a drink is warmer than I like, I may put a little ice in it, but I have to weigh “too warm” against “watered down”, and I really dislike the latter. I do sometimes like ice in my water.

#8

Water must be heavily iced. I can’t drink the stuff unless it’s filtered and ice-cold. I had to buy an insulated glass so I could ingest enough water daily.

Milk: don’t drink milk after an unfortunate event in my 20s. That’s all I’m saying.

Sodas…depends. If I’m home (Merrimack Valley area of Massachusetts), I don’t ice my sodas. If I"m visiting family back home in Florida, I do, because it’s bloody hot!

I don’t care for iced tea, so that doesn’t come up. Iced coffee is obviously iced.

Liquor/spirits – My drink of choice is a vodka tonic, so that must have ice. Mixed drinks depend on how it should be served. With wine, no. If the wine is warm, I’ll drink red.

#9

I’m mostly a no ice person. I own an ice cube tray but it’s not currently in use. British and Belgian style beers should be cellar temperature but room temerature is OK. German and Czech lagers should be fridge temp. American ‘lite’ beers should be poured away. Proper cider is typically served at room temperature but is nice at fridge temp too. White wine in the fridge, red at room temp.

Room temp in my European (southern UK) house today is 19C, or about 66F.

#10

I only use ice at home for soda, and only then when I forgot to put a bottle in the fridge to chill.

In a restaurant, I use ice because you get it that way as default.

I will use ice in mixed drinks, but I don’t have those all that often. I tend to drink wine, liqueurs, and Scotch, none of which needs to be iced. I will use it in a gin and tonic.

#11

It’s the mollusk-based beverages I’m confused by. Take your Clamato, for example. Is this refreshing? Are there certain foods it’s the perfect complement to, like some wines? Should I be thinking, breakfast? Baby’s bottle? Wedding toasts? Help me try to understand.

#12

I also thought Clamato was a pretty odd concept. But I found that it makes an excellent Bloody Mary. That’s the only situation where I’d use it.

#13

Ice in drinks is an American thing. Most other countries don’t like their drinks iced, and will ration a few cubes for visiting Americans.

#14

Khlav Kalash?

#15

I know a guy who drinks Straub beer poured over a glass of ice. His explanation is that he drinks Straub because it is good for diabetes (he is not diabetic, and he claims Straub is the reason) and the ice keeps him from getting too drunk.

He usually downs 6 - 8 bottles at a time. And he’s too drunk to realize he is drunk.

#16

Bloody Caesar, right?

#17

Ginger beer with lemon over ice is just right on occasion.

ETA: It is policy for some.

#18

Late great comedian Richard Jeni did a joke about that stuff. He said, “Somewhere someone tasted perfectly good tomato juice and went, ‘Hmmm. Needs fish!’”.

Wait, if you order a mixer or cocktail (i.e. not a martini) in a bar outside the US you’re not going to get ice in your glass?! Or is it that cocktails are an American thing?

You can’t put ice in beer because beer is already watered-down alcohol (compared to spirits) and watering it down any more via melting ice makes it gross. You can’t put ice in milk because it ruins the creamy taste & feel that comes from it being an emulsion of fat in water (that’s why skim milk is disgusting tasting).

#19

I drink my milk with ice - it has to be absolutely frigid, loaded with ice, preferably crushed, or I can’t stand the taste. But when it’s cold enough? Soooo good.

Same with water - I need it iced or it tastes really funky.

Likewise “cokes” (which are any carbonated soda thing, whatever the flavor) require a glass with ice. LOTS of ice, and for the drink itself to be kept chilled beforehand so the ice doesn’t melt down and water down the coke.

I’m southern, so “iced tea” is obvious.

I don’t really drink coffee, so I don’t do iced coffee - if I want cold coffee flavor, I go with mocha icecream or a milkshake or something like that.

Mixed drinks come with whatever ice the bartender or host gives them to me with.

Beer and wine don’t get ice, and wine sometimes isn’t even cold. Again, however they’re served to me I assume the person serving knows what they’re doing.

I don’t drink that much fruit juice, so I don’t know. I feel like juices and sparkling ciders are close enough to beers that they should be chilly but not on actual ice. Frozen glasses perhaps?

#20

No ice for bottled water; I drink it at room temperature.

No ice for milk, juice or iced tea (I keep both very cold in the fridge).

Crushed ice for almost everything else, especially mixed drinks.