** ~ Ice Cream Eating Now Thread -- Round 4 ~ **

[ugasar]

Talenti Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake Layers


As most of you know by now, Talenti has rolled out seven new flavors that are marketed as “layers.” Basically, there are three moves you can make with these pints. A) eat each layer individually, but why would you even want to do that. B) scoop down into each layer, which is similar to a parfait. C) Mix it all together just like ice cream should be eaten.



Kudos to Talenti on the base. They actually nailed the cheesecake flavor. It tastes exactly like a slice of cheesecake. It isn’t really that sweet, but it has the perfect amount of tanginess to it.



The graham cookies are a nice addition for texture because they are fairly chewy. It doesn’t really replicate a crust as much because it's a bit too soft. However, with Talenti calling them cookies, maybe they weren't really going for a crust-like texture.



The graham flavor isn't near as strong as I would have liked since most everything in the pint overpowers it. There is an occasional honey-like flavor, but most importantly, it lacks a lot of the butteriness that would have taken this pint up a notch.



The black cherry sauce is pretty thin and not overly prevalent. This might have been better had I not mixed everything together in the pint. However, when mixed into the gelato it isn't very substantial in terms of consistency.



What really caused me to be torn with this pint was the flavor of the black cherry sauce. As expected, it is mostly sweet. However, there is just a minor hint of tartness on the back end of each bite. This caused me to really enjoy the flavor with the cheesecake gelato, but not much at all with the chocolate chunks.



The chocolate chunks are just that. They are small and shaved thin and provide a crunchy bite with each spoonful. For flavor, it is definitely dark chocolate with quite a bit of bitterness, which is why I wasn't a fan of it being paired with the black cherry sauce.



Despite the good cheesecake flavor, I am just not a fan of these layer pints. It is too hard to scoop down through each layer with just a spoon. So mix it up right? Wrong, this is just as bad because every layer tempers at a different rate. I guess I’m calling this right below average. Decent flavor, but poor execution. B-

[lazymuchacho]

Folks, you'll want to make your way to Ryan's website ASAP.

[AdamWW]

Folks, you'll want to make your way to Ryan's website ASAP.

I'm literally sitting here trying to decide if I can do it... it's $76 for my shipping... the flavors sound so good. I mean, I can afford it... but it's so much. ugh... damn it all.

[AdamWW]

Looks sick, but another one of those short pints. So whack.

I hate you Ryan... why do you have to live in Philly? I need this week's flavors.

[ADD61]

folks, you'll want to make your way to ryan's website asap.

a
s
a
p

[Partyrocking]

Order in.

[ADD61]

And they are gone........

[AdamWW]

I made the decision to limit myself to one order a month.

Almost pulled the trigger (I had all the pints in my cart before they sold out)... but it's a pretty huge amount.

I'll be order during the next wave.

I really, really wanted that potato chip flavor tho... and the blueberry one... siiigh

[ADD61]

Folks, you'll want to make your way to Ryan's website ASAP.

Did you put a Flavor bug in his ear on this week’s chocolate pint?

[lazymuchacho]

Did you put Flavor bug in his hear on this week’s chocolate pint?

Did not. That's his creativity on display from week to week.

But I was happy as fug when I saw it...ordered 3. Sorry y'all.

[ADD61]

Heady play ordering 3.

Have you tried anything from this past week?

[ADD61]

Looks like we are headed towards an epic goof on the Flavor Frenzy Vote.

[SOH11]

Looks like we are headed towards an epic goof on the Flavor Frenzy Vote.

I hate everybody.

Probably the same people who voted to bring back One Love as opposed to Candy Bar Pie

[ugasar]

Looks like we are headed towards an epic goof on the Flavor Frenzy Vote.

It's 100% rigged! There is absolutely now way at all this is possible..

[lazymuchacho]

Looks like we are headed towards an epic goof on the Flavor Frenzy Vote.

I hate everybody.

Probably the same people who voted to bring back One Love as opposed to Candy Bar Pie

It's 100% rigged! There is absolutely now way at all this is possible..

How can these people never have their nature retreats overlap with crucial ice cream voting dates?

[AdamWW]

It's 100% rigged! There is absolutely now way at all this is possible..

im confused... what happened?

[ADD61]

im confused... what happened?

The vote seems sketchy. Flavors that won by laps in round one are likely going down this round.

Seems like the flavors that are easier for mass production got a sudden upshot of support...........

[AdamWW]

The vote seems sketchy. Flavors that won by laps in round one are likely going down this round.

Seems like the flavors that are easier for mass production got a sudden upshot of support...........

Really? Shoot... I never saw the results are. When does voting end?

Also, seems weird S&S hasn't announced flavors yet considering tomorrow is the first...

[ADD61]

Really? Shoot... I never saw the results are. When does voting end?

Also, seems weird S&S hasn't announced flavors yet considering tomorrow is the first...

This round ended at 8PM EST

S&S is scooping the Match flavors until 4/4 I believe. Here are three:

Hibiscus w/ Rosé Lemon Curd
Orange Blossom Sorbet w/ Edible Flowers (v)
Wildflower Honey w/ Ricotta Walnut Lace Cookies

[AdamWW]

This round ended at 8PM EST

S&S is scooping the Match flavors until 4/4 I believe. Here are three:

Hibiscus w/ Rosé Lemon Curd
Orange Blossom Sorbet w/ Edible Flowers (v)
Wildflower Honey w/ Ricotta Walnut Lace Cookies

Interesting.

I have to say... only the Wildflower sounds like it might be good.

[ugasar]

Sorry, but somehow I have managed to delete most of my pictures from this review.

Salt & Straw Peppermint Bark Cocoa
I initially was excited about this pint because it used peppermint bark in cocoa ice cream, where as 2016 & 2017's version utilized peppermint patties in a chocolate ice cream. Right off the bat, I knew I wasn't going to like it near as much. The base was off. It had a really dry cocoa flavor. It was almost like a mix; not milk chocolate, but also not dark chocolate. It wasn't bitter, but it also wasn't sweet. I think the peppermint oil is part of that reason. It just throws things off a little bit. Maybe it's because the peppermint oil is actually natural. Peppermint extract is used in 95% of ice creams, which is much sweeter. The bottom line is that the peppermint oil doesn't gel well with the cocoa ice cream.



Most of the peppermint bits are located on the peppermint bark, although some have separated from them. And let me tell you, they are extremely crispy and crunchy. You have to watch out, because these just might chip a tooth. The positive aspect was that the peppermint flavor was much sweeter. However, it still wasn't really strong enough to stand out amidst the peppermint oil and cocoa base.



The chocolate part of the peppermint bark was another let down. Unlike the usual melt in your mouth chocolate, this was very dry. On top of that, it crumbled apart into many pieces whenever you bit into them. Did you think the white chocolate flavor would stand out amidst everything else in this pint? Not a chance! The peppermint bark has a taste that is much more bitter than the base, due to the dark chocolate.



If you couldn't tell already, I wasn't much a fan of this pint. Although I prefer peppermint bark to peppermint patties when it comes to the actual candy, the flavor of the peppermint bark just doesn't stand out against this base. Next winter, only give this flavor a scoop if they bring the peppermint patties for mixins. C+

[ADD61]

Final Four Prediction:
Breakfast Trash vs. They Scoop Gilmore's Don't They?

Sunday Brunch vs. Gather Round The Campfire

I was right for once. Maybe there is hope for humanity

[AdamWW]

I was right for once. Maybe there is hope for humanity

just cast my votes...

Breakfast Trash and Sunday Brunch



Also, if you all want, I can commit to making sure to try the S&S flavors every month within the first week if they're wanted. If people are only interested in like 3 of the 4-5 new flavors each time, just let me know which I should sample and I'll go in. It's only about a 10min drive.

[Partyrocking]

^ Will let you know if there are any S&S flavors I'm curious about. Probably not any for April (floral-blech).

The Twix ice cream bar is pretty good. I got a single one to try out at 7-11. Also, the sea salt caramel truffle pint is pretty decent. Still in the first third of the pint, but so far, there has been a generous amount of caramel swirl.

[ADD61]

just cast my votes...

Breakfast Trash and Sunday Brunch



Also, if you all want, I can commit to making sure to try the S&S flavors every month within the first week if they're wanted. If people are only interested in like 3 of the 4-5 new flavors each time, just let me know which I should sample and I'll go in. It's only about a 10min drive.

It’s a month away but I’m interested to see what May looks like with the change in the “traditional” line up.

[AdamWW]

I saw this in the store and, as gimmicky as it sounds... I had to see if it sucked or not. It's marked as "Super Premium" so... who knows?


Upside Down Ice Cream -- Serious Seven Layer Bar




















Obviously kind of a random choice here... it was on sale a little, the packaging/storage thing looked 'weird'/interesting, and I do love seven-layer bars.

The mix-in selection was a combination of chocolate and butterscotch chips and small flecks of salty pretzels. I saw barely any of the pecans they said were there... same goes for the streusel... if it's there, maybe the pieces were too small to notice.

The PB and Chocolate chips were, obviously, tasty... that's a fairly easy win no matter what you do. There were also a lot of them, which of course is appreciated in a flavor like this where variety and spoonfuls of mix-ins are an expected quality.

But, speaking of quality, that's the first issue with the brand that I see. What I detected here is a very basic use of common ingredients like PB Chips and Chocolate chips + generic pretzels to execute an easy-win flavor combo. Don't get me wrong, it's not that this tastes bad... it tastes good. The problem is that when I think "super premium", I do NOT see this as fitting that description, at all. Similar to how I love the taste of taco bell, if I went to a fancy Mexican restaurant, I expect something more... much more.

Same kind of goes for the base: a coconut-tinted vanilla... perfectly adequate... though not very creamy at all.. it almost tasted 'light', and didn't strike me as anything unique at all. Could have easily been Breyer's. It tastes fine... but it's just sugar and vanilla.

The end product was basically just 'meh'... especially for the price and description. Even the nutritional info suggest it should taste better given the fat content. I honestly think the Ben and Jerry's Froyo is more satisfying.

So.. yeah.. obviously my ice cream tastes have changed since getting flavors from S&S, 1900/Ryan, and other local shops. This did nothing for me...

My advice: don't buy this if you see it... not worth it. I won't bother with a rating... it's just a no-go.

[lazymuchacho]

Sincerely dislike them for making us turn our backs on the pudding base but sacrifices must be made....

Hope they don't make me buy junky a$$ core flavors to get a 4 pack with one fuarking Bfast Trash pint in it.

[SOH11]

Sincerely dislike them for making us turn our backs on the pudding base but sacrifices must be made....

Hope they don't make me buy junky a$$ core flavors to get a 4 pack with one fuarking Bfast Trash pint in it.

Agreed.

Voted for Bfast Trash and Gather Round.

[ugasar]

Brian Freeze Cookie Catalyst


Extremely flavorful vanilla base that reminds you of a mom and pop ice cream shop. Imagine vanilla that is mildly sweet and at its classiest. There is plenty of flavor, but it also sits back for the rest of the pint to develop around it.



Although the cookie dough wasn't hard, it just wasn't quite as soft as I would have liked. It had a firm chew to it that was both gritty and slightly gooey. On the plus side, there were tons of them littered throughout the pint.



Building off of the texture, it had an average cookie dough flavor. It was nothing special, but nothing bad either. The sweetness of the brown sugar is obviously noticeable.



Surprisingly, the baked cookies were the star of the pint. If you thought the cookie dough had good flavor, just wait until you ate some chunks of these. They are even sweeter than the cookie dough, believe it or not, but have the taste of a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie.



Unlike the cookie dough, the chocolate chunks in the cookies stand out quite a bit so you get an element of chocolate amidst all of the cookie dough and vanilla ice cream. With that, you also notice a much more buttery flavor as compared to the cookie dough.



There weren't as many cookies as cookie dough chunks because they were insanely large. I came across one of the thickest and biggest mixins I have ever scooped in my ice cream career. I was very impressed with their texture too, as they were only slightly harder than the cookie dough, providing a firm chew. They also held up really well in the ice cream.



This is a strong flavor built around classic concepts. The vanilla base acts as the background allowing the cookie dough and cookies to shine fully. It isn't quite as good as my first scoop from Brain Freeze, Big Bang, but it isn't far behind either. B+

[ADD61]

So you ordered a pint of cookies and they threw a little ice cream in?