In the early 19th century, more than 100 years before electric refrigeration, an entrepreneurial Bostonian named Frederic Tudor landed on an idea: He'd cut blocks of ice from his Massachusetts lake and sell it to places where temperatures were too warm for ice to form naturally. Potential financiers thought this plan was too absurd to work.
Today even a moderately busy bar requires a lot of ice to get through a night. Bartenders are advised never to use the same cube twice when going through the steps of making a single cocktail: chilling glassware, shaking or stirring, and serving the drink. It's a process that requires a significant amount of water and energy.
How much ice does an average bar use? According to Todd Bell, senior energy analyst at energy-efficiency consulting group Frontier Energy, the amount “really depends on the operation.” It might be between 200 and 300 pounds a night or far more. Most bars aren't likely to give up ice altogether anytime soon. And cocktails aren't unsustainable just because of all the ice and water they require; they also tend to rely on ingredients that are shipped from far away, such as lemons and limes and liquors from around the world. But some bartenders are reimagining how ice and other ingredients can be used more sustainably.