All About You
Customer Spotlight
Ryne’s Love Affair with Artisanal Ice
By Sam Agrawal, Managing Director/Owner, Arizona Ice Art
Ryne Hoffman has been a long-time customer of Arizona Ice Art and has been purchasing our premium ice cubes for the last several years. At his first job, working at a bar shortly out of college, Ryne’s boss taught him the importance of thinking about ice as one of the ingredients in a cocktail. She explained that it was just as important as any of the other components in the cocktail. Back then, they made their own ice. But nowRyne sources his artisanal ice directly, from us.
I recently had a chance to talk with Ryne. “It’s hard to get the same density and clarity when you make your own ice”, Ryne told me, “And the consistency of your ice is most impressive—it’s clear that you’ve mastered the technique”.
Born and raised in Tucson, AZ, Ryne’s journey into inventing mixed drinks was his destiny. At barely 21, Ryne and some college friends decided to visit a liquor store while they were on spring break. They purchased a variety of alcoholic beverages including spirits and mixers. But then they did not know what to do with them! Ryne immediately stepped up to the challenge, creating his own concoctions and playing bar tender to his
friends. That was an eye opening and educational process that Ryne enjoyed so much, he decided to pursue mixology as a profession.
Ryne’s creativity didn’t end with spring break, though. Several years later now, at his most recent position with The Century Room (Hotel Congress), he invented the Chevelle, which is a shaken drink. “This was as a tribute to my grandfather who used to work on the Chevrolet Chevelle, (a classic muscle car), back in the 1960’s”, said Ryne. “Normally, you don’t put a large cube of ice in a shaken drink, but since the Chevelle gets a float of red wine on top, introducing the large cube before adding the wine beautifully distributes the wine”. Ryne must like red, because another drink that he loves to serve with a large 2×2 inch ice cube is the Negroni–a cocktail of gin, sweet vermouth and Campari. “Negronis with a giant ice cube are absolutely beautiful. The ice showcases the colors of the ruby red cocktail and invites you to drink more”, said Ryne excitedly.
Ryne’s been using artisanal ice from Arizona Ice Art for many years. Although we carry several shapes and sizes of artisanal ice, his go-to format is the 2×2 inch King Cube. In addition to using the King Cube when creating stirred cocktails, he also uses them to enhance the look and temperature of the drink when serving high quality spirits “on the rocks”. “The ice is so clear that sometimes customers don’t realize there is already ice in the drink”, quipped Ryne. “I ‘ve had instances when the customer has asked the server for some ice to put in their drink!!”
As Bar Manager, Ryne will now bring his expertise as a mixologist and bar trainer to Ursa, a new restaurant which opened earlier this month. He’s already busy curating their offerings to create a robust beverage program including craft cocktails, wine and beer, utilizing local spirits and flavors. This will complement Ursa’s food offerings which will consist of native ingredients that are locally foraged from the four deserts of the southwest: The Sonoran, Mojave, Great Basin and Chihuahuan.
I enjoyed catching up with Ryne and learning about his love for premium ice. Stop by Ursa to say hello to him and tell him Sam sent you. He loves his customers and enjoys making new friends. And maybe… you’ll get to try one of Ryne’s new drinks—with a fabulous, giant, crystal-clear ice cube in it!
What’s your ice cube story?
Let us know by emailing us at contact@aziceart.com. We’d love to share it with our customers and friends through this newsletter or our website.
Event Spotlights & Recaps
Fund Raising at the Reid Park Zoo, Tucson
ZOOcson is a roaring fun annual fundraising event held by the Reid Park Zoo to support the zoo’s conservation, education and animal care programs. This 21 and older social gala features live music, food from local restaurants, specialty cocktails, and yes—an ice bar from Arizona Ice Art. Arizona Ice Art is very grateful to the zoo for allowing us to set up an ice bar at this event each year, often celebrating the arrival of a new animal
ZOOcson 2025 celebrated the zoo’s 60th anniversary and marked the eighth year that we’ve been celebrating this wild night at the zoo. For a befitting ice bar that honored all the zoo animals, this year our sculptors created a bar which combined a variety of carving techniques and art. A snow inlay towards the bottom center showcased a group of animals (can you see the elephant, giraffe, monkey and lion together?) flanked by a carved out “60” on each side. Atop this was an ornately decorated table top which together formed a bar that was 80 inches long and 30 inches high. Sitting on top of the bar were two tube luges which dispensed delightful cocktails perfected and served by ZOOcson staff. On the top left was a crouching jaguar and toward the right was a giraffe, 40 inches tall from bar-top to ears. Yes, guests had to wait for their cocktails to travel the great distance from the top of the giraffe down to the bar-top!
Congratulations to the zoo for 60 years of conservation and animal care. We hope to
be part of several more ZOOcsons to come!
Did you have a recent event which involved ice?We’d love to learn about it!! Let us
know by emailing us at contact@aziceart.com.
Education & Ice Facts & Interactive
What Is Artisanal Ice?
Ice has transformed from a mere chiller to a crucial component of the modern beverage experience, enhancing both the aesthetic and sensory aspects of drinks. It’s not just frozen water; it’s a deliberate choice that influences a cocktail’s balance, temperature, and presentation. Today, the highest quality beverage ice is Artisanal Ice, also known as craft ice.
Uses and Functions of Craft Ice
Ice serves several vital functions in a drink: chilling, dilution, and visual appeal.
Craft ice elevates these functions:
• Controlled Dilution and Temperature: The primary advantage of craft ice, especially larger formats, is its slower melting rate due to a lower surface area to volume ratio. This allows a drink to remain consistently chilled without becoming over-diluted, preserving the intended flavor profile over time. This is particularly important for spirit- orward cocktails like Old Fashioneds and Negronis, or for sipping high-proof whiskeys.
• Flavor Enhancement: Dilution is integral to a balanced drink, as most spirits are too strong to drink neat. Melted water can draw out tannins in oak-aged spirits or open up fruity notes in rum. Large ice offers a “slow release of cooling” making drinks better for sipping.
• Garnish and Aesthetic Appeal: Beyond function, craft ice acts as a visual garnish, setting the mood and elevating a drink from good to great. Crystal-clear ice, unique shapes, and even infused or custom-carved designs are key to this appeal.
• Specific Applications: Craft ice is predominantly used in high-end restaurants, bars, and hotels. It is increasingly finding its way into premium grocery stores and direct-to- consumer sales for home use.
Types of Artisanal Craft Ice
Craft ice comes in various shapes and sizes, each suited for different drinks and
experiences:
• Large 2×2-inch Cubes: An introductory “statement ice”, these melt slowly, ideal for maintaining temperature in spirit-forward stirred drinks or neat pours like Negronis and Old Fashioneds, typically served in rocks glasses. They can also be used in shakers for frothy drinks.
• Collins Spears: These rectangular spears, sometimes called pillars (e.g., 1×5 inches) fit into Collins glasses. They offer slow melting and help carbonated drinks stay bubbly longer by having fewer nucleation sites which cause CO2 to form bubbles and escape.
• Ice Spheres: With the lowest surface area to volume ratio, spheres dilute a drink slightly slower, and add a stunning visual appeal. Spheres come in different sizes, but the 2.5 inch diameter is the most widely available.
• Custom Shapes and Infusions: Beyond basic forms, innovation in craft ice includes unique shapes (e.g., diamond cocktails, miniature pineapples, letters), enhanced clarity, flavor infusions (fruits, herbs), and sustainable production methods.
Industry & Local News
Ice Sculpting in the Media
Ice Castles Returns to Cripple Creek and Silverthorne this Winter
Product Highlight
The Round Ice Cube
At Arizona Ice Art, we’re happy to offer our customers a variety of high quality, extradense, perfectly clear custom ice cubes and craft ice in various shapes and sizes. In today’s newsletter, however, we’re focusing on an ice format that is a truly impressive upgrade. I’m talking about a large spherical ice ball, which we call the 2.4” Orb. The word orb refers to a spherical body. Craft ice orbs are used in a wide variety of drinks, including straight spirits like whiskey on the rocks, mixed cocktails like the Negroni, Whiskey Sour, Margaritas, and even iced coffee, tea, or punch.
“So why is the 2.4” Orb so special”, you ask? The spherical shape has the lowest surface-area-to-volume ratio, meaning it melts at a much slower rate than a standard square ice cube. This results in a more consistent and controlled chilling, helping to preserve the nuanced flavors and aromas of the spirit. In addition to this enhanced sensory experience, the almost two-and-a-half inch orbs are unmistakably elegant, immediately upgrading the drink and making it visually striking.
To enhance the drink experience, certain types of glassware are better suited for this ice format. We recommend either a whiskey tumbler or a martini glass. A whisky tumbler, also known as a rocks glass, or a lowball glass, is best for spirits served “on the rocks” because its wide, short design comfortably accommodates the large ice sphere.
Tumblers leave enough room on the sides to make your drink cold, and allow you to pour a few fingers of whiskey or fill the entire glass with a fruity concoction. Martini glasses are larger than whiskey tumblers and have a long stem connected to a spacious bottom. The shape and contours of the martini glass allow for the placement of an ice ball while leaving plenty of room to appreciate the scents and notes of spirits, fruits and other complements. We consider the martini glass to be an upgrade from whiskey tumbler.
The ice you use may seem like a small detail, but it can make a significant difference in your guest’s overall drink experience. By selecting the appropriate size and shape of ice and the right types of glassware, you can enhance the flavor, presentation, and nenjoyment of your favorite cocktails and high-quality spirits. So, the next time you’re crafting a drink, remember that the ice you choose can be the secret ingredient that takes your drink to the next level. Cheers to your newfound mixology mastery!
Ready to upgrade to Artisanal Ice? Contact us now!! contact@aziceart.com
