Crushed and Swizzle Ice

[Yojimbo]

Summer, and the media are full of reciples for daisies, juleps, swizzles, alcoholic slushies, and all many of liquid refreshment calling for ice of unusual textures. My question is, for home bartenders with limited budgets and counter space, what do you do when the medicinal need for a julep or the urge to tiki rises astronomically along with the thermometer? Bag and rolling pin? Invest in an ice crusher knowing perfectly well it'll sit in the closet 8-9 months out of the year? Go to the local bar, bucket in hand, and beg? I'm sure I'm not the only one seeking a solution?

[tanstaafl2]

For a long while I used a Lewis bag and metal muddler to whack it with when making only a few drinks. For a recent tiki party with 25+ people I decided to buy this Waring IC70 Professional Stainless-Steel Large-Capacity Ice Crusher I got on Amazon. Reviews were mixed but it worked well for me. You do have to feed the ice in slowly rather than filling up the hopper because the ice will jam up in the slide before it even gets to the blades (My refrigerator makes the large crescent shaped cubes). Smaller ice that I get at the grocery store tends to get through more easily.

Now even for just a few drinks I will use the ice crusher and save any excess and put it in the freezer which I can then break up easily for later use when necessary.

[heidih]

I love my Ice-O-Matic hand crank. $10 or less at swapmeets, thrift shop and garage sales.

[J_Ozzy]

I concur with heidih, a hand crank ice crusher hits the sweet spot for price & performance when you occasionally need a fair bit of crushed ice, crushed to a consistent size.

Otherwise, the Lewis bag technique works just fine.

[Yojimbo]

Online reviews of the ice-o-matic and other hand cranked models suggest they break easliy, has that not been your (collective) experience?

[heidih]

Online reviews of the ice-o-matic and other hand cranked models suggest they break easliy, has that not been your (collective) experience?

Mine was purchased vintage and has had a good bit of use. A friend also purchased a vintage flea market one about 6 years ago and continues to use it on a steady basis.

[slkinsey]

I have a vintage Ice-o-Matic electric crusher (the one that looks like a deco tombstone). I got it off eBay, and it makes better crushed ice than any other ice crusher I know.

[Hassouni]

Having received an officially branded Cocktail Kingdom lewis bag and wooden mallet a while back, I've been using it to good effect. I just made a brilliant accidental discovery which I have to share:

 

Smash up as much ice as the bag will hold, and then, the brilliant part:

 

Store in the freezer until needed! It'll hold several drinks worth of ice, and it's ready whenever you want. And being in the freezer means it will dilute less than ice smashed on the spot.