purgeme wrote:This is what is so great about woot. I never would have imagined 5 pages of discussion about rocks.

There were 10 pages about jerky yesterday. I'm waiting for some lab experiments to finish and two patients were no-shows. What's everyone else's excuse?

now how are you supposed to smoke these again?

Bought these last time. Very disappointed in them. Just doesn't chill the drink enough unless you add like all nine at a time.

Just leave the bottle in the fridge.

sarspants wrote:How well do these work for keeping a Jack and Coke cold if I use cold Coke and room temp Jack?

It's probably only good for small amounts of liquid (stuff on the rocks), and really just looks cool.

I put em in coke or something once and it fizzed up like a nuclear reactor meltdown. The beverage was still good though, I just don't think it's made for carbonated beverages.

These stones absolutely DO chill your wiskey..I have tested them ...From the freezer pour wiskey over stones in a glass and from 70deg room temp Crown Royal was instantly 58deg and after 3min was 50 deg ....trust me they work

Might be the last decent option for using the jumbowoot coupon...

jercook wrote:Asbestos can be harmful if ingested, and do you really think that all secondary minerals are removed from talc when it is processed? Are you Canadian?

Harmful? Not in the quantities present in talc. The point is moot because most things are harmful when ingested in abnormal amounts, whether it be wood, soil, salt, water, etc.

And yes, I do think enough asbestos is removed from consumer talc in the US to render it harmless. Do you have a peer reviewed citation showing otherwise?

vipermjb wrote:I would suggest giving these a good wash before use. The first few times around you may find some filmy flakey stuff in your drink.

Be careful with these! I once used them and got so drunk that I started chomping on them like real ice. I had to have 4 crowns the next day!

lstaff wrote:I think the value of serving whiskey "On the rocks" is lost on some of the naysayers here.

That's my sole reason for getting them. The fact that they might actually slightly chill my drink is an added bonus.

tekkitan wrote:People that keep saying these don't work don't know what whiskey stones are supposed to do.

It is taboo to put ice in your whiskey. These will "chill" the whiskey, note that chill does not equal "ice cold". Whiskey is supposed to be drank at room temperature, but some people like a little chill to it, hence these stones.

They are not really meant for anything else and not supposed to make whiskey or any drink of yours ice cold.

*drunk. Whiskey is supposed to be drunk at room temperature. Like your mom!

Scubaraf wrote:If you want cold with out dilution either chill the glass in the freezer or mix -4 degC spirits with room temp spirits in the ratio that gives you the target temperature you want.

The rocks don't do much thermodynamically.

You suggest chilling the glass in the freezer. At that point, you're comparing -4 degC soapstones to -4 degC glass, right? Also, chilled glass most likely WILL dilute your beverage somewhat, since the frost on the glass will melt.

The suggestion to mix freezer-chilled spirits with room temp spirits is a good one, but I keep my drinks on my bar, not in the freezer. I suppose I could change my behavior, but it's way easier to pay $11 after shipping and not have to do anything else, even if it isn't quite as good.

I'm getting these because they don't melt, and keep it cold longer than a chilled glass. Yes, I know it won't stay cold as long as ice, but I'm okay with that.

I made a set of these out of some leftover granite countertop, and they do work but not nearly as well as ice. Where ice changes phase, from solid to liquid (which consumes a lot of energy... energy taken from your drink, thereby making it colder) these only loose heat and can't absorb enough energy to really lower your drinks temperature. I realized, mostly through use, that these are only good for about 2 maybe 3 drinks or 1 full glass of water before they lose their chilling...."strength?"

They are classy and a good conversational piece, so there is a plus side. I like mine. They are a heck of a lot more convenient than ice trays or blocks.

Also granite is not soapstone so these might be a bit better or worse, I'm not quite sure the specific heat of either. Anyone know?

jmsellersutlaw04 wrote:Bought these last time. Very disappointed in them. Just doesn't chill the drink enough unless you add like all nine at a time.

Just leave the bottle in the fridge.

Same here. Also it made my whiskey taste like dirt. I just can't seem to get them completely clean.

teenracer6 wrote:How do these avoid making your drink taste like stones?

I assume that when you taste rocks, you're tasting the dust on the rocks and not the rocks themselves. I'm not sure because it's been a while since I put rocks in my food, drink, or mouth. But I'll bet really clean stones, like polished stones, don't taste like much of anything. *licks shiny marble floor*

57ryk3r wrote:I made a set of these out of some leftover granite countertop, and they do work but not nearly as well as ice. Where ice changes phase, from solid to liquid (which consumes a lot of energy... energy taken from your drink, thereby making it colder) these only loose heat and can't absorb enough energy to really lower your drinks temperature. I realized, mostly through use, that these are only good for about 2 maybe 3 drinks or 1 full glass of water before they lose their chilling...."strength?"

They are classy and a good conversational piece, so there is a plus side. I like mine. They are a heck of a lot more convenient than ice trays or blocks.

Also granite is not soapstone so these might be a bit better or worse, I'm not quite sure the specific heat of either. Anyone know?

So, as hokey as they are, those plastic, liquid-filled reusable ice cubes would cool better while, ostensibly like the stones, not water down your drink? It would be funny to see some of those colored plastic, variously cutely shaped dodads in a glass of expensive scotch.

The other compromise would be those large, spherical ice makers. Of course nice ones cost more than my car, but, damn, those clear ice spheres look great.

I guess it's better than kidney stones, but still not interested.

mikecris wrote:Okay got these for a gift for Dad last time. We put them in the freezer for 24 hrs. They did not chill the whiskey anywhere near as cold as ice. Is it even possible that I'm doing something wrong here?

Put booze, glass, AND these in freezer for 24 hours.

As others here have said, a quality whiskey benefits both from a slight chill and a bit of water to open it up.

I prefer a single ice-cube. It's all you really need. Not saying don't buy these. Go for it. But keeping whiskey free from melt water isn't the reason to get them. Novelty is a great reason.

Not for me, as I enjoy how a little bit of water (which you get as ice melts) opens up most whiskeys and allows the aromatics and flavors to really be appreciated, but I know some people swear by these.

I bought these last time they were up and they work great. I use them to keep tea warm too.

These make for a good gift for a father-in-law type person.

In for 2

adamwaitt wrote:I bought these last time they were up and they work great. I use them to keep tea warm too.

This is what I was waiting for. Will they keep my tea or coffee hot longer?

drink 3 and you won't care anymore.

"generally safe..."

We have a set of these bought from Think Geek, way back. They are fantastic. Chill the whiskey just enough without changing the flavor.

I got these last time they showed up. Worst 9.00 I ever spent, they are useless and added an interesting flavor to the 3 different liquors I added them to.

They only gently chill your drink. It slightly lowers the liquid temperature, which is nice for whiskey. However, these do not function like ice cubes. They seem to be better at sustaining heat rather than changing it. For tea/coffee, it seems to make a decent difference.

In for 3!!! Got some of these for my future father in law for Christmas... the deal wasn't nearly as sweet as this.

Cooling your whiskey ruins the flavor. If you want to ruin it anyway, don't use these rocks-- just throw your whiskey in the fridge or freezer.

I love these so much, I made "Whiskey Stones" my stripper name.

We have a couple sets and love them. As a previous poster mentioned, there's some social value in serving a good whiskey literally on the rocks.

Also, as others have pointed out, whiskey is supposed to be served at room temperature. Chilling it substantially reduces many of the complex flavors and aromas. Still, some people (myself included) want to enjoy something that's a few degrees cooler than room temperature. Ice, frozen glasses, and the refrigerator all chill the drink too much. I've found that 2-3 of these stones is perfect balancing temperature and flavor.

suckblat wrote:Shane MacGowan is from England, not Ireland. But really, would any country want to claim to be the birth place of this guy?

Wrong, MacGowan is from Ireland, The Pogues were from England. Apparently poor taste and a lack of intelligence come hand in hand for you.

Yes. Stones in my Whiskey, please.

captaincolorado wrote:Wrong, MacGowan is from Ireland, The Pogues were from England. Apparently poor taste and a lack of intelligence come hand in hand for you.

Ala Wiki: MacGowan was born in Pembury, Kent, England in 1957

Insults, especially when you're incorrect are really out of style, by the way.

These work great for helping to keep cool things cool, and are claimed to help keep hot things hot as well, but I keep mine in freezer, all three sets.

They have inadequate specific heat to do much heating or cooling, but will do well to keep cool stuff from rapid warming.

Water is 4.19J/gK; ethanol ~2.3J/gK and soapstone 0.98J/gK. Given that, an equal mass ice cube will have ~four times the cooling capacity of a stone, but these will help buffer temperature changes.

Yeah, I like 'em, all 27 stones!

tekkitan wrote:People that keep saying these don't work don't know what whiskey stones are supposed to do.

It is taboo to put ice in your whiskey. These will "chill" the whiskey, note that chill does not equal "ice cold". Whiskey is supposed to be drank at room temperature, but some people like a little chill to it, hence these stones.

It should also be noted that if you keep these "stones" in your kitchen cupboard then, for all you non-chilled whiskey lovers, adding them to your glass will work at keeping your drink at room temperature.

rjquillin wrote:These work great for helping to keep cool things cool, and are claimed to help keep hot things hot as well

Just like the McDLT!

i'm thinking about getting them for my coffee. Put them stones in a pot of boiling water for a minute and then drop them in my coffee cup to keep warm, anyone have any experience w/how these things keep liquid warm?

I don't think whiskey stones are so great. bought some off of groupon and was not impressed

Why can't I buy more than three sets? Don't you know Christmas will be here before we know it?