In the sweltering heat of colonial Madras, British rulers and the city’s elite raised glasses of Scotch whisky, chilled by ice cubes floating in their drinks.

The huge blocks of ice were naturally formed in the lakes of New England in the U.S. and imported to India. In Madras (now Chennai), the ice bars were brought to the Ice House in Triplicane, where they were stored and cut into smaller pieces for evening drinks.