Skip to main content

Why less ice result into more dilution



This is a post, which promotes curiousness and scrutinize information which seems to be a given.

We learned already a lot about ice. For example the size of ice doesn't matter [if surface ice is not a subject]. We even learned, that you need to shake a drink for at least 15 seconds, to ensure the right temperature - but you hardly can overshake a drink - as the dilution and temperature almost keeps exactly the same - even if you attempt to shake a drink for a minute.

However the reason, why you should always fill a glass full of ice stays a mystery.
You could argue, that a lot of ice chills the drink faster [and as soon as the drink is cold enough, ice tempt to melt on a very slow rate] - you certainly be right.

But this might need not be the full truth.

Today I felt fancy for cherry coke - but as I had only my normal bad @ss 2.5 liter regular coke bottle, I used Fabbri amarena syrup, to give it the typical cherry/almond ting. And as I am a incurable coke addict, I used the biggest proper container I could find [which was a plastic inversion blender cup].

I added a lot of ice [though it wasn't full. as the container roughly holds ¾ liter of liquid], added coke and the syrup.

And because I had my digital thermometer hanging on the fridge [magnets] and I was curious [well not really curious - cause I know, that the drink will chill down to around 0ºC] I used the thermoprobe to stir. Obviously the temperature dropped quite fast to 0. But the funny thing was, that in the bottom, where no ice was, the temperature dropped only to 4 - later to 2ºC. Even with little stirring it didn't changed much.

What happened?

I can answer it with a simple question: what is heavier cold or warm water?

Sorry - it was a catch question. Yes "colder" water is heavier [or physically correct "denser"] than "warmer" water - but water has the densest point at 4ºC - colder water than 4ªC water is lighter again!

And that means in turn that convection stops. What the hell is convection? Well this is the movement of a medium [can be liquid or gaseous] due to temperature difference. E.g. you heat a soup in a pot - the plate [bottom] is heating the liquid, which raises to the top - there it chills down and it drops [due to the difference in density] again to the bottom - where it is heated again - so a circulation is happening.

Again - if "acquateous" liquid is around 4ºC [and there is no heat source at the bottom] this circulation won't happen.
If it comes to drinks, we are often around this very interesting physical point!

And that means, don't add only "few ice cubes" to stir or to build a drink, as a lot of recipes are suggesting. Always add the glass full of ice [as much ice, that it fills top to bottom].

Then the ice can "chill" [physically correct spoken, it draws heat energy] from the bottom as well as from the top and the drink will be throughout 0ºC - at this point ice will no further melt [only on a small rate to compensate the heat transfer from the warmer surrounding].

Please comment, if you have any question or comment!







Comments

Popular posts from this blog

How to use citric acid - and why you might not want to use it anyway!

To be honest, I shied away of this topic, because I think, people can misinterpret this - big time. I don't want to be part of the problem - I want to be part of the solution!  But when Chris, over at A Bar Above  discussed this subject- I literally could not resist to join into "the discussion". Here is the video: I - however take a bit slower approach than Chris. What is citric acid? Chemical Compound Citric acid is a weak organic acid with the formula C6H8O7. It is a natural preservative/conservative and is also used to add an acidic or sour taste to foods and drinks. Wikipedia Formula: C6H8O7 Molar Mass: 192.124 g/mol Melting Point: 153C Density: 1.66 g/cm3 Boiling point: 175C Soluble in: Water Why is it controversial? In my "mixology world" it is controversial, as citric acid is the stuff, which makes the nightmarish sour mix [ preferably in powder form ] sour. Yeah - citric acid is the main ingredient in one of the most

Fentiman's - part deux

You might already know [otherwise just read my last post ], that Fentiman's Botanical Tonic Water taste great. And I mentioned, that I am not totally convinced of the other flavours... Let me now and here explain why. First to the great ones: Rose Lemonade is really nice... however I have to come across one rose drink, which doesn't taste really good. A couple of years I have reviewed [and tried] Sence - also a drink which is based on Bulgarian roses - and it was lovely. Fentiman's Rose Lemonade is not different - maybe slightly too acidic. Anyway - it is just great [however also very simple to replicate - citric acid, sugar syrup, carbonated water and rose water is all what you need...]. The Curiousity Cola is also nice - it is a bit more standalone and unique as other cola sodas- but hit the right spots. Only problem still is: the original just taste better and - well like the original. Cherrybark Cola - is another good soda. While I've expected it to taste

What is the best cranberry juice in the bar?

A good friend of me "whatsapp'ed" me today and asked for my expertise: "What is the best cranberry juice?" I would loved to just let him know the brand - however it is not that easy. What do we understand of cranberry juice? One of the biggest [maybe the  biggest producer] of cranberry products is Ocean Spray. And: it is well regarded. Problem is: it is not a juice! Wait - what? Ocean Spray doesn't produce a juice - they produce a juice cocktail - which translates into a lot of water, a lot of sugar, some taste-balancers as citric acid [nothing against this really] and a minuscule portion of juice - usually around 3%. Yes they have something which is called 100% juice. Which is on one hand true, on the other the biggest deception ever. Because you don't get 100% cranberry - you get a mixture of juices of concentrate - most of the time apple and white grape and a bit of cranberry. There are also some other brands around, which might feature a h