I’ve been an ice geek for 10 years, ever since we got 2 freezers. First with a lunch cooler, used to fill it, then melt off the cloudy part with hot water, then whack the clear ice with a rolling pin to break it into wee icebergs. The cooler cracked and I got a more intentional setup, now it’s big cubes of clear ice, and big globes. I don’t think it tastes better, it looks better and the size does matter. I shake drinks with regular ice, but almost always serve them on big clear ice. Love it.
I had a clear ice phase and it’s kinda nice. Too lazy to do it nowadays. I didn’t want to pay for any overpriced kits so made my own. Made a somewhat big ice block in a box and chopped in to pieces. Chopping them up was always really satisfying. Bubbles were concentrated at the top, but to bottom half turned out nice, and I use the less perfect pieces for other things.