For those that enjoy sipping on a glass of whiskey at home or other spirits like rum, gin, and vodka, adding some ice to your drink can help dilute it and make it more palatable. More specifically, adding ice to spirits essentially allows the drink to “open up”, making its signature flavors more accessible while also making the drink itself more refreshing. Still, you shouldn’t just use ice cubes to chill such beverages. Instead, you should use ice spheres, as this shape of ice can cool off hard alcohol drinks more efficiently than your typical ice cubes, while having very little melting. While you could use a traditional round ice ball mold to make these ice spheres at home, using a ice maker machine that’s designed particularly for that purpose is much more efficient, not to mention more enjoyable. For such type of ice maker, we recommend the Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker.
The Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker is an ice maker machine that can produce two clear, slow-melting, 2-inch ice spheres every 90 minutes and up to 32 ice spheres every 24 hours. It features a 34 fl. oz. water tank that’s dishwasher-safe, a removable ice basket with 5 lbs. capacity that can store up to 10 ice spheres, and an insulated design that effectively retains cool air inside. It also has integrates an illuminated control panel that offers an effortless one-touch operation, along with LED indicators that inform you when its ice basket is full or when water needs to be refilled.
With it, you’ll always have ice spheres ready to use whenever you’re looking to enjoy a smooth glass of whiskey or a cool cocktail with some freshly made round ice cubes.
Here’s our review of the Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker, where we check out how this ice maker machine is designed to work and discuss all its major features.
DESIGN & SPECS
Starting with the unit’s size, this ice maker machine has a compact footprint, measuring just 17.7 inches long by 10.5 inches wide by 18.5 inches tall. Its sleek dimensions make it easy to set up this ice maker machine on your kitchen countertop without it taking up too much space. The unit weighs approximately 40 lbs. (18.14 kg), so it can be installed pretty much anywhere, whether that’s your kitchen countertop, a home bar in your living room, etc.
The Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker also sports a beautiful modern design that allows it to seamlessly blend in with the rest of your kitchenware or home bar décor. It comes in a solid Black Matte color with a powder coating finish.
Moreover, the unit also packs a premium and sturdy construction, as its body is built of stainless steel.
Moving on to the ice maker’s internal components. For its ice-making process, the Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker comes equipped with a removable, medium-sized water tank that has a total capacity of 34 fl. oz., from which the machine draws water to produce its round ice spheres.
Note that the unit’s water tank requires to be refilled manually, for which it can be easily removed when it’s low on water and filled up with a water pitcher, or alternatively with your kitchen sink’s tap.
Its water tank is also rated to be dishwasher-safe, so whenever you need to clean it, you can simply chuck it inside your washing machine.
When it comes to its production of ice spheres, know that the Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker is capable of producing two 2-inch ice spheres every 90 minutes by using omnidirectional freezing technology, and ultimately up to 32 ice spheres every 24 hours.
In addition, it also utilizes advanced purification technology to whisk away impurities that would otherwise cause cloudy ice.
The end result is crystal-clear, slow-melting, 2-inch ice spheres that fit perfectly into standard whiskey glasses. Its ice spheres melt significantly slower than ice balls made in traditional silicone round ice cube molds, keeping your drink chilled and tasting better.
For storing its freshly produced ice spheres, the machine comes equipped with a removable ice basket that features a total storage capacity of 5 lbs., making it capable of storing up to 10 ice spheres.
What’s more is that this ice maker machine also features an insulated design that works based on its stainless-steel suction door, which effectively retains cool air inside it, helping to keep all of its ice spheres frozen for longer in comparison to traditional ice makers from other brands on the market.
The Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker also features a fairly quiet operation.
As for its power specifications, this ice maker is powered directly to electricity and is rated to have a voltage of 115V (at 60Hz).
INTERFACE / CONTROL PANEL
For controlling its operation, the Newair Countertop Whiskey Ice Ball Maker comes equipped with an illuminated digital control panel featuring a user-friendly interface that makes it intuitive to use.
At the very center of its control panel, there’s a Power On/Off button that offers users an effortless one-touch operation. You can easily turn on the machine and start its ice-making operation by simply holding its Power button for 3 seconds.
Integrated at the left and right sides of its Power button, there are a set of LED indicators that inform you when the machine is producing ice, as well as when its ice basket is full, when water needs to be refilled, and when its ice basket needs to be cleaned.
FINAL THOUGHTS
In sum, this ice ball maker can improve the way you enjoy whiskey or other spirits at home. Its perfectly round ice spheres greatly enhance the presentation and flavor of your favorite spirits, completely transforming every sip into a more refined drinking experience.
If you’re interested in purchasing it, know that each unit is priced at $699.99, and each purchase also comes accompanied by a 1-Year Warranty. You can order it online either directly from Newair’s official shopping page, or you can instead buy it from Amazon if you’d prefer.
