The first time Stephen Howard sipped a cocktail made with perfectly clear artisanal ice, he became a believer. Going back to standard cloudy cubes was not an option. Unfortunately, he couldn’t find block-cut ice for sale anywhere in Dallas, which is understandable; the traditional process is painstaking and dangerous. So he took matters into his own hands.
“When I learned the process to make this ice, I thought this could actually be a business model,” he says. In 2017, he founded Howard & Sons Ice Co. Howard freezes ultra-purified water into enormous 300-pound blocks, which are then cut into cubes with saws. The crystal-clear cubes are flavorless and slow-melting, keeping drinks cold without watering them down or changing their taste. They are also beautiful.
Most of Howard’s clients are bars and restaurants, but he also sells ice packages out of Pogo’s Wine & Spirits and even delivers them directly to residences. The ice can be purchased in larger quantities—popular for parties—but it also comes in packages of 20 to 25 cubes, designed to fit easily in a home freezer. Howard believes good ice should be considered a just-because luxury that needs no special occasion. Why shouldn’t a drink made at home look and taste as good as one from a bar?
Those who want to improve the quality of their ice at home have other options, although they’re time-intensive and produce only small batches. “There are directional freeze ice tray kits you can buy on Amazon, or YouTube videos of how to make it in small quantities,” Howard says, chuckling. “But most people who are savvy enough to care won’t bother making it themselves when they can just buy it from me.”
Sonic Boom
All right, all right, all right. To be fair, some—Matthew McConaughey included—argue that the best ice in the world is actually Sonic’s pellet ice. You can get it in take-home 10-pound bags for a couple of dollars straight from the source, or, like McConaughey, you can splurge on an in-home Manitowoc model for a couple grand. The tiny tater tot-sshaped chunks check a completely different set of boxes than block-cut ice. As opposed to simply keeping the drink cold, pellet ice has the advantage of being chewable, making it part of the overall sensory experience.
