The wooden ice breaker in two lines
This is the wooden ice breaker: the tool that opens cubes in a controlled way, giving two or three usable pieces instead of a handful of fragments.
Who it is for
For anyone who wants to decide what shape the ice will take in the glass. Working cubes the Japanese way means exactly that: not taking what comes out of the mould, but cutting the piece that drink needs.
Wood passes the blow on more softly
That is the technical difference against a metal tool, and it shows in the result. With metal the energy arrives concentrated and instant, and the ice shatters; with wood the impact is more elastic and spread out, so the piece opens along a plane instead of exploding. From a large cube a wooden breaker gives two or three usable pieces; the same blow struck with metal gives a handful of chips and one crooked piece.
Specifications
- Material: wood
- Use: opening cubes in a controlled way
- Result: two or three pieces from one large cube
- Dishwasher safe: no, hand wash and never left to soak
The Japanese gesture
The cube goes on a cloth, you find the most regular face and you strike once, firmly, along the line you want it to open on. One blow only: three or four light ones give a spread of cracks and the piece crumbles at the first handling. It runs against instinct, and it is the part that has to be learned.
Why a mould is not enough
Because a mould gives one shape, and glasses come in different sizes. A cube that fills a rocks glass exactly is too large for a tasting glass and too short for a collins; starting from a large piece and opening it gives you what you need each time. Worked ice also has fracture surfaces that catch the light unevenly, and it shows in the glass: it is the same reason carved ice gets photographed and moulded ice does not.
The ice has to be tempered
A cube straight out of a very cold freezer is brittle and cracks unpredictably. Left out for two or three minutes it comes up a few degrees and turns more willing: it opens where it is struck instead of exploding. That holds for the wooden ice breaker as for any ice work by hand, and it is the step almost everyone skips the first time.
Care
A quick rinse and immediate drying, never soaking and never the dishwasher: water swells the wood and then splits it along the grain. Store it dry and lying flat, and look over the striking surface now and then, since that is the part that wears and chips with time.
FAQ
How many pieces come from one cube? Two or three usable ones, if the blow is struck well.
Why wood and not metal? Because the blow is softer: the ice opens instead of shattering.
How many blows does it take? One, struck firmly. Repeated blows crack the piece all over.
Should the ice be used straight from the freezer? No, let it temper for two or three minutes.
Can it go in the dishwasher? No, the wooden ice breaker is rinsed and dried by hand.
Is it useful if I already have moulds? Yes, and that is the commonest case: moulds give one shape, this lets you fit the piece to the glass you are using.
The more you buy, the less you pay: 4 pieces -5%, 6 -7%, 8 -10%, on the same item.
Dispatched from Rome, Italy. 15-day returns, free of charge. Questions before you order? Message us on WhatsApp on +39 351 929 6937.
The other tools for working ice are in the ice accessories category.
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