An inventor has developed a machine that turns beers and other alcoholic drinks into a soft scoop ‘ice cream’ that maintains its potency.
The ‘Below Zero’ machine takes any alcoholic beverage and crystallizes it in under 30 minutes for a treat that can, if you’d like, be covered in sprinkles and chocolate sauce.
Developed with WDS Dessert Stations in Hinkley, Illinois, the drink is first de-gassed to remove the carbon dioxide, then it is mixed with a gel, put in the machine, and out comes the ice cream.
Inventor and owner of Below Zero, Will Rogers, said: “The way it truly works… we like to say the gel ‘bear hugs’ the alcohol itself and turns it into ice cream.
“In the beginning days we used liquid nitrogen to make Below Zero, but now with the new machines you put it out in a cone and it’s ready to eat.”
The Nitrogen Ingredient Additive gel allows the alcohol to freeze to a near solid inside the machine as well as adding sugars.
It is FDA-approved and pasteurized, and since the drink contains no dairy products, it’s not technically ice cream.
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The machine itself will cost sweet-toothed breweries $6,000, but will allow them to serve all drinks, from a pint of lager to a strawberry Daiquiri, in a cone.
Inventor Will was inspired to create his machine while running an ice-cream shop and trying to formulate a highly-caffeinated espresso flavour.
He said: “One of our staff made the joke ‘what if we did this with alcohol?’ A light bulb went off in my head.”
He started experimenting with gums and stabilizers from the ice cream industry to create his patented gel.
Once he cracked the crystallization, the machine was born and he started serving boozy delicacies at catering events.
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Will said: “Vodka and lemonade cone is my personal favourite, on a hot day that’s like having an Italian ice-cream.
“We’ve run the Bud Lime through the machine, but your traditional Budweiser or Stella… I’d say sit back and have that on ice!”
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I need one of these!!