Ben & Jerry's Cookies & Cream Cheesecake Core Ice Cream
chocolate & cheesecake ice creams with chocolate cookies & a cheesecake core
The core is being shy.
I take a bite and it's chocolate in the front, cheesecake at the very end. I try the cheesecake base and it's... really mild. Hmm, ok, trying the core by itself. Ha, it kind of tastes like boston cream pie filling too. It's more sweet (and pastry-y) than it is cheesy.
I scoop on and I'm not sure I really get this take on cookies & cream. The thing that makes a C&C flavor great is how well the cookies permeate the ice cream. I want cookie crumbs everywhere! That's not happening here. At all.
Ok, trying to eat a little slower to extract more flavor. The chocolate base with a bit of core complexity is nice and all, but I definitely expected this to be stronger. It's fine, but it's not epic.
The problem is once again semantics. The two big parts to this name are "cookies & cream" and "cheesecake". To be harsh, C&C is completely wrong and the cheesecake is too mild. Focusing on it, yeah, I get it, but I didn't plan on having to think about it so hard. Yes I complain when flavors are too strong, but too mild can be frustrating for people as well. Maybe I would have called this one chocolate cheesecake core and gone with cheesecake bits instead of cookie bits. That would have been fun and more in line with what I got.
On Second Scoop: New day, new perspective... maybe. First off, the core died at the halfway mark.... AGAIN. Not Cool. If you can forgive that transgression, I believe this pint suffers that classic B&J's fate of trying to do too much in a small package. The cheesecake flavoring is too mild to have to fight it out in restricted space like this. Yeah, the core is fun and I still think it basically tastes like pastry cream, but it's not given a platform to shine. Just ditch the chocolate side, double (or triple) the cookie factor and this one would be fun. As is, it's debatable if I'll pick it up again.
Verdict? not strong enough
Buy Again? meh
Sorry that this flavor didn't work out as intended. Still will give it a try if/when I see it but with lowered expectations.
ReplyDeleteCookies and Cream seemed like a really weird title for this given the description on the container, and what you said about trying too much makes sense.
Personally, this is where I would have put in the Raspberry from Cake My Day (yes, Cheesecake My Day isn't quite as punny) rather than trying to mix in chocolate and chocolate cookies, given that my perception of cheesecake is a light color (and the raspberry would give some contrast from a straight cheescake ice cream and core) and cookies and cream having a white/vanilla base (yes, I've had Oreo cookies in a chocolate Blizzard, but Google cookies and cream to see the first images that appear).
I get what you mean so this is joking a little, but how could it possibly be an accident to buy two pints of brownie batter core??? Sounds like a great decision!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review, but how disappointing I had such high hopes! I can't wait to see how the new coconut core is... hopefully that one is a lot better! I'm also a bit antsy to try the new dairy free line, although that will definitely be after I try some of these cores for myself!
ReplyDelete@Anon: lots of room to mess with the setup of this one, raspberry and cheesecake could definitely be fun.
ReplyDelete@Deb: We hit Wegmans when it was super busy, plus I was trying to take pictures, got myself all confused I guess!
@Caitlin: Would it be wrong to pawn the coconut for caramel review off on Nick?
My first thouoght upon seeing & reading the picture/description was "good lawd" with emphasis on the "w"
ReplyDeleteThis review doesn't turn me off at all, sorry Dubba. :)
The Core line just doesn't appeal to me and I have pretty much hated every one Ive tried. I wish they would go back to new premium mix in flavors like they used to do. Like Key Lime Pie, or Oatmeal Cookie Chunk etc. These core flavors with gunk in the middle dont qualify
ReplyDeleteIt's time that B&J's moves on from making more core flavors. Maybe some people like it but they never appealed to me. An ice cream doesn't need all of the bells and whistles to be taste great.
ReplyDelete@Stride (& D): I think the problem is increased competition. There is no question that B&J dominates the freezer aisle in my area, but they know they need to constantly innovate to stand apart from HD and Talenti (and a million small upstarts with fancier products and higher price tags). That said, yeah, I've never been a superfan of the cores.
ReplyDeleteGlad I'm not the only one who doesn't enjoy the cores. Like "D" in the comment above, I also really miss Oatmeal Cookie Chunk.
ReplyDeleteDubba, I hope either you or Nick can get a hold of and review the new HD destination pints. Am especially interested in the cream, coffee caramel flavor.
Thanks and hope you have a good, snow free weekend.
Oatmeal Cookie Chunk is my all time favorite too!! The core flavors are way less appealing,especially when the core doesn't go all the way through. I did try all 3 of the new ones and I liked Coconuts for Caramel best. It had good texture from the coconut flakes and I love coconut!
ReplyDeleteI have tried all three. Each is good, but the cheesecake is certainly the least impressive (I think Dubba is spot on with this one; it's just not cheesecake). The brownie batter is good (what's not to like about brownies and brownie batter?), but it's not spectacular/ particularly new. The coconut is awesome - the flavor is more creative and really feels like something new! It reminds me of Samoa cookies. I will definitely buy it again.
ReplyDeleteI, too, am looking forward to the new HD Series. I did try the Belgian Chocolate today. It's really good - and I suspect the other flavors are going to be even better. I can't wait to try the sesame seed brittle and the vanilla, tangerine and shortbread.
The problem with the cores (well, the main problem anyway) is the lack of consistency with the amount/size of the core and how the two flavors are distributed around the core. I've had some where the core stops halfway down, or one of the 2 flavors massively outweigh the other (like with That's my Jam, the last time I got it there was WAY more chocolate than raspberry base, for example).
ReplyDeleteThis was a fine ice cream, at least to the taste buds of someone who doesn't eat much cheesecake.
ReplyDeleteThe cheesecake ice cream tasted how I expect cheesecake to taste while the chocolate was the standard Ben and Jerry's flavor. The core tasted pretty similar (maybe a little stronger than the ice cream) and was fairly gooey (as opposed to being frozen solid or crunchy like a cookie), and the cookie pieces were small, fine, and unremarkable.
This was not a Cookies and Cream flavor but is a good (but perhaps not equal to B&J's high standards) Chocolate Cheesecake Core flavor.