Cocktail Ice Machines

Why ice matters in a cocktail

Ice does three jobs in a drink: it chills, it dilutes, and it presents. Bartenders control all three by choosing the ice.

• Chilling and dilution go together. Ice cools a drink by melting. Dense, clear cubes with less surface area per ounce melt more slowly, so a stirred drink or a spirit on the rocks stays closer to the recipe.
• Clarity is a quality signal. Cloudy ice contains trapped air and minerals and can crack when spirits are poured over it. Clear ice looks deliberate and premium.
• Shape is part of the drink. A 2-inch square in an Old Fashioned or a sphere in a whiskey glass is part of what guests pay for.

Ice types for a cocktail program

For crushed-ice drinks such as juleps, swizzles and tiki drinks, add a flake or nugget machine. See commercial crushed ice machines.

Cocktail ice machines compared

Specifications from each product page. Full dice well machines and more gourmet models are also in the grid.

What stands out

• Best clear ice in a hot back bar: the Ice-O-Matic UCG130A keeps 94% of its rating at 90°F air and 70°F water (114 lb/day), and the ITV DELTA NG 150 keeps 91% (130 lb/day) with a 55 lb bin.
• Most clear ice from one undercounter: the Hoshizaki IM-200BAK makes 150 lb/day of clear square cubes at 90/70, but needs a 39.5-inch-wide space.
• Smallest footprint: the Ice-O-Matic UCG060A (15.25 in. wide, 25.25 in. tall) and Hoshizaki AM-50BAK (14-7/8 in. wide).

The two-machine bar

Most cocktail bars split ice into two jobs:

Shaking breaks up and dilutes ice anyway, so using premium clear ice in a shaker wastes it. Keeping the clear ice at the service end protects it for the drinks where guests see it.

How much cocktail ice do you need?

A common planning figure for bars is about 3 lb of ice per seat per day. Split it by job:

For large squares and spheres, plan by drinks instead: one cube or sphere per drink. At about 500 spheres a day, the Hoshizaki IM-50BAA-Q covers most single-bar programs.

Clear ice and water

Clear-ice machines make clear cubes by flushing away minerals, so they use more water than standard cubers: the ITV DELTA NG 80 lists about 40 gallons per 100 lb and the DELTA NG 120 about 49, against roughly 20 for many standard cubers. Good water treatment matters even more:

• Fit a water filter with scale inhibitor; scale clouds clear ice before it slows production.
• ITV's DELTA NG uses an A3S anti-scale spray system designed to help in hard water.
• Descale on schedule.

Fitting a cocktail ice machine behind the bar

• Under-bar height: back bars are often lower than kitchen counters. The UCG060A (25.25 in.), UCG080A (27.25 in.) and DELTA NG 80 (29.3 in.) fit low spaces.
• Front breathing: the ITV DELTA NG draws and exhausts air through the front, so it can be built in with no side clearance. Ice-O-Matic UCG discharges air at the front.
• Heat: back bars are warm. Choose by the 90/70 output and keep the front grille clear.
• Drain: clear-ice machines drain more water. Make sure the bar's drain can take it.

Running costs

Gourmet and specialty machines use more energy per pound than standard cubers because they make dense cubes slowly. From the product pages: Ice-O-Matic UCG080A 9.6 kWh per 100 lb, UCG130A 8.4, ITV DELTA NG 120 8.6 and DELTA NG 80 9.9. At 60 lb a day and $0.15 per kWh, a 9 kWh machine costs about $300 a year in electricity. Many bars recover that from a single premium drink a night.

Cocktail ice at home

Home bar owners use the same machines. The Ice-O-Matic UCG060A and UCG080A, ITV DELTA NG 80 and Scotsman CU50PAX-1 fit under many home counters; the CU50PAX-1 adds a built-in drain pump and is UL approved for outdoor use. See residential ice makers and best ice maker for a home bar.

Handling and storing premium ice

Clear ice is only worth the investment if it reaches the glass intact.

• Temper before pouring. Very cold ice straight from a freezer can crack when spirits hit it. Ice from the machine's bin is usually close to 32°F and tempered already; ice held in a freezer should rest a minute or two first.
• Use tongs for large squares and spheres. Handling them by hand marks the surface and isn't hygienic; a scoop can chip them.
• Keep a separate covered bin or well for presentation ice at the service end, away from the shaking station.
• Back up big nights with a freezer. Large-cube and sphere machines make about 50 lb a day, so bag cubes into a freezer during quiet days for weekend volume.

Three cocktail ice set-ups by budget

Worked example: an Old Fashioned program

A bar sells about 120 stirred, on-the-rocks drinks on a Saturday, each served over one large square. It needs about 120 large cubes on its busiest night, plus a small reserve for breakage.

• One Hoshizaki IM-50BAA-LM makes about 50 lb a day of 2-inch class squares and holds 22 lb.
• Because large cubes are heavy, 22 lb of storage is only a portion of a busy night. Plan to harvest into a freezer across the week, or run two machines.
• Well ice for the same night (shaken drinks, highballs, water) comes from a separate cuber sized at about 3 lb per seat.

Counting cubes per drink, rather than pounds, is the most reliable way to size specialty ice.

Which machine for which bar?

• Hotel bar or wine bar: a Hoshizaki AM-50BAK top hat machine gives a classic, elegant cube for spirits and soft drinks, in a 15-inch cabinet.
• Whiskey bar: a Hoshizaki IM-50BAA-Q for spheres, plus a gourmet machine for everything else.
• High-volume craft bar: the Hoshizaki IM-200BAK makes clear squares at 150 lb a day on a hot day, enough for most rocks drinks without a freezer stockpile.
• Restaurant bar with a cocktail list: an Ice-O-Matic UCG130A or ITV DELTA NG 150 for clear cubes, with the kitchen's main machine supplying the well.

Whichever you choose, check the machine's height against the under-bar space and the 90/70 output against your busiest night.

Common mistakes

1. Using clear ice in the shaker. Save it for the glass.
2. One machine for everything. A gourmet machine alone can't keep up with a busy well.
3. Ignoring the back-bar heat. Use the 90/70 figure.
4. Skipping water treatment. Clear ice shows every mineral.
5. Forgetting height. Measure under-bar clearance.

Related collections

• Large cube ice makers, gourmet ice makers and crystal clear ice makers
• Commercial ice machines for bars
• 18-inch undercounter ice makers
• Guide: best ice machines for bars and cocktails