Magnum Infinity Chocolate Ice Cream Bar

[New for 2014] Up until now, we in the U.S. have only had one magnum bar based on chocolate ice cream (the excellent double chocolate magnum) and only one bar with a dark chocolate coating (magnum dark). Well, all this changes today with three* new additions to the lineup!

Magnum Infinity Chocolate Ice Cream Bar

Dark chocolate ice cream with a chocolate swirl 

dipped in a dark chocolate and cocoa bean nibs

Yeah, things just got very real and very dark. I was so confused at the grocery store because I wanted to buy both this and the new Magnum Infinity Chocolate & Raspberry bar (which replaces the chocolate swirl with a raspberry swirl). Ok, I adore dark chocolate, so let's buy this one first (and then hopefully pick up the other flavor at some place cheaper).

And there it is! I try to take a few photos but the wonderful smell is driving me nuts. 

I can't take it anymore! I need instant gratification!

And it's wonderful! Just wonderful! So dark, so delightful. The dark chocolate coating and the dark chocolate ice cream come together wonderfully. There's that familiar dryness / bitterness to the flavor, but it's just enough to make you think dark chocolate rather than being overpowering and forcing you to chug a bottle of water. Yeah, I like this a lot and this first one is going to disappear quick.

The shell flavor is excellent, though it doesn't melt like the shell of the Talenti dark chocolate bar. Besides personal preference, the only minor downside to this is that it encourages me to crunch rather than savor.

Now, do I understand the somewhat crunchy, cocoa bean nibs? Technically no. This treat tastes and smells wonderful, so I'm not really sure why I need the added textural complexity. They aren't bad, but I can't tell if they're accentuating or distracting. It's not a huge deal, but it's something for me to think about when I have bars 2 and 3.

And it's over too quickly. I want a second one but I should wait 'til tomorrow. This is such a nice, quality, dark chocolate treat, and you know I think the world needs more dark chocolate frozen treats. Congrats to Magnum making a welcome (and necessary) edition to it's U.S. offerings.

Here, this photo has worse color but a better angle

On Second Scoop: Ok, it's the next day and I've calmed down a bit. I pull one of these from the freezer, dig in, and the darkness of this treat is shocking me a bit more than it did yesterday. I think you need to let this one sit for a few minutes so in warms up a little and blends together better (like how it warmed a little while I was taking photos yesterday). I know this might sound dumb, especially for a treat (and not a gelato), but there are times when it's necessary to temper a treat. This bar is unique amongst it's peers, but I was a little blinded by my love of dark chocolate yesterday. [Oh yeah, I'm going to be tasting dark chocolate all the way home.]

On Third Scoop: I waited a few weeks before trying the final bar. It's dark, real dark and I think a little bit of sweetness would help balance this one out. I only see really hard core dark chocolate fans repurchasing this one. Oh, and I still think the nibs aren't necessary.

Verdict?  a true dark chocolate treat
Buy Again?  [waiting to try the other infinity bars]

Note: the Chocolate & Caramel bar is a Target exclusive!