Upgrade your drink presentation with handcrafted Ice Sphere Cocktails for a stunning “cocktail in a ball” effect.

Whiskey deserves the best, and that includes the ice that chills it. Ditch the regular ice cubes that melt quickly and dilute your drink. Instead, elevate your whiskey experience inside a luxurious ice sphere!

This slow-melting beauty preserves the complex flavors of your whiskey and creates a stunning presentation for a fancy adult party.

I, Colleen first saw a cocktail served not ON ice but IN ice (at The Aviary in Chicago). I knew right away that I wanted to perfect an at-home version for extreme level hosting. Turns out, it’s not particularly hard. And doesn’t require a ton of fancy equipment. But your guests won’t know that!

Cocktail Ice Sphere recipe by Sugar & Cloth, an award winning DIY blog.

Table of Contents

Ingredient and Tools Needed

Sphere ice mold — These are readily available online or at kitchenware stores. Look for a mold made from silicone for easy removal of the ice sphere.
Marinade injector or kitchen syringe — To remove any unfrozen water inside your ice sphere
Drill with thin bit — Optional
Distilled or filtered water
Cocktail of your choice — We like to use a high ABV (alcohol by volume) cocktail like a Christmas Old Fashioned or Negroni so that we can make it and chill it in advance without it freezing. If the cocktail is too warm, it will melt the bottom of your ice sphere when you put it inside, and you will probably cry (speaking from experience here). So we make both the sphere AND cocktail ahead of time and store BOTH in the freezer.

How to Make a Hollow Ice Sphere

1 — Fill the silicone mold with filtered or distilled water. Aim to reach just below the brim, leaving a little space for the water to expand when freezing. Overfilling can cause the mold to crack.

2 — Place the filled mold on a level surface in your freezer. Now here is the important part: You do NOT want the sphere to freeze completely solid because you need to have your cocktail inside.Though making this whole cocktail-in-a-sphere trick isn’t very hard, it IS a little tricky since every freezer is different and freezing time will vary depending on the freezer’s temperature.

The sphere should freeze long enough until the outside wall is 1/4 inch thick but the inside is still liquid. This should take between 3-5 hours. (We recommend testing with 4 hours first).

2 — Flip the ice sphere molds upside down halfway through the freezing process. So at 2 hours if you’re freezing for a total of 4 molds. And try not to open the freezer any other time.

3 — Once you have a 1/4 inch thick shell of ice and liquid in the center, you need to remove the water. Drill a small hole through the top with a thin drill tip. (Most molds have a convenient hole that allows you to do this without removing the lid). If you are worried about the sphere breaking, you can also use your syringe instead. To do, gently rotate the syringe clockwise and counterclockwise to create a hole. We found that a thin drill tip is quicker.

4 — Through the hole, use your syringe to suck up all the unfrozen water from inside the ice sphere. You now have a crystal clear hollow ice ball! Congrats!

5 — VERY CAREFULLY remove your beautiful hollow sphere from the mold. If it isn’t budging, run the mold under COLD water for 30 seconds. Hot water will cause the sphere to crack.

6 — Carefully transfer the ice sphere into a sturdy glass by holding the glass sideways and sliding in the ball with your hands. Store the glass/ball in the freezer until you’re ready to fill it.

How to Fill a Cocktail in an Ice Sphere

1 — When you’re ready to serve, remove the hollow ice sphere and the glass from the freezer. Do we need to say be careful again? Probably not But just for good measure, BE CAREFUL! Don’t let your ice smash against the glass. Stabilize it with your fingers if you have to.

2 — Locate the small hole you made. (It may have closed again depending on how far in advance you made your sphere. If this is the case, you’ll have to reopen it with the needle or drill.) Then, slowly fill your hollow ice sphere with your ice-cold cocktail using the syringe.

3 — Your cocktail is now safely inside your sphere. Arm your guests with some spoons. And instruct them to crack their sphere open.

Tutorial Notes and Tips

Consider a mold with a double-walled construction: This design helps insulate the center, promoting slower freezing and creating a thicker ice shell, ideal for hollow spheres.
For crystal-clear ice spheres: Use boiled and cooled filtered water. Boiling helps remove air bubbles that can cause cloudiness.
Make sure your cocktail is well chilled before filling the ice sphere to prevent rapid melting.
If your ice shell feels thin: You can refreeze the mold for another hour or two to thicken it up.
To add a touch of visual interest: Garnish with herb like a mint leaf or rosemary for a festive Christmas cocktail. Or freeze a small fruit in the center of the sphere by placing it in the mold before filling it with water.
Practice makes perfect: Making hollow ice spheres can take some practice. Don’t get discouraged if your first attempts aren’t perfect. Ss you can see in the photo above, it took us a lot of trial and error. So it’s best to make this well in advance before your party.
Patience is key: The key to a successful hollow sphere is controlled freezing and careful handling. Rushing the process can lead to cracks or a broken sphere.
Serve immediately: Hollow ice spheres will start to melt as soon as you take them out of the freezer. Fill and serve them right away for the best effect.

More Unique Ways to Serve Cocktails

Looking for more fun ways to craft unforgettable cocktails? Check out these other tutorials below to impress your guests —