Justin A. Parr - Technologist

If you order a nice Scotch or Irish whiskey, you know that ordering it “on the rocks” waters it down.

What do you do, if you want your whiskey chilled?

At home, I use whiskey stones, but most restaurant servers don’t really understand that you want your whiskey cold, but not watered down.

Here is a good trick to use at restaurants:

1. Order your whiskey neat (no ice), a second whiskey glass with ice in it, and some water
2. Drink some of your water
3. Empty the glass of ice in to the water (leaving an empty, cold glass)
4. Pour the whiskey in to the cold glass
5. Enjoy

A Note on Drinking Whiskey at a Bar

Adding about a teaspoon of water to a standard 1.5 ounce serving of whiskey dilutes it just enough to bring out the complexity of its flavors.

• Option 1:  Order your whiskey neat, then add 1 to 2 ice cubes from your water glass.
• Option 2:  If you have a really good bar tender, order your whiskey “shaken” (implying: “shaken over ice”).  A small amount of the ice in the shaker will melt and mix with the whiskey, but only a really knowledgeable bar tender will know what you’re trying to accomplish.
• Option 3:  If your bar tender walks on water, order your whiskey in a chilled whiskey glass, with two ice cubes.  Only the most awesome of bar tenders will understand the complexities of whiskey, and have a chilled whiskey glass on hand.

Enjoy!