Why do we like ice?

by Stefani Pollack, Posted Apr 4th 2008 @ 6:00PM

I'm always cold. My mom worries that this is do to some circulatory problem. I think this it is due to me being a woman.

I have often wondered why ice comes in every drink I order. In the winter I've typically just come in from the outdoors and I'm freezing. The last thing I want is ice. In the summer, air conditioning is often so strong that I'm freezing indoors and again I don't want ice.

I'll tell you when I want ice - when it's hot! I like ice when I'm working or playing outside and sweating.

Mark Twain was quoted as saying, "The only distinguishing characteristic of the American character I've been able to discover is a fondness for ice water."

Do you like ice? Why do you think Americans like their ice so much?

Filed Under: Drink Recipes
Tags: america, ice, ice cube, IceCube, water

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Reader comments (Page 2 of 2)

4-07-2008 @4:26PM Baron said... Two people more or less nailed it on the head (maybe three, but I wasn't counting very well)... One, in restaurants, quick server and other, an iced drink uses less of the costly (relative to the ice) materials than if there was no ice. This makes more money for the company.

The other part is that ice tends to eliminate a certain part of the taste. You can "disguise" mineral heavy or drinks that lack (or add) to the taste in a certain, sometimes undesirable way, if you get it cold enough. While I'm no scientist (well, I am, but not in the biological field), I think that if something is cold enough on your taste buds, it is going to mask/hide a bit of the taste. I personally find this appealing when I'm drinking from the tap. Our water here has a bit of a processed taste and it doesn't help that our pipes are quite old so there can sometimes be a bit of sediment that shows up. If it is cold enough, it tastes just like Fuji. :)
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4-10-2008 @10:03AM Adriane said... I've always put ice in my water-- I guess since my parents always did it I do now out of habit. Even in winter when it's cold, a nice glass of ice water is refreshing and wakes me up. With other drinks that are already in the fridge? No big deal if there is ice or not-- so long as it's cold.

And super hot drinks aren't just an American convention-- North Africa is the land of boiling [literally] hot tea.
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