Haagen-Dazs Mayan Chocolate Ice Cream

[only four of six destination series made it to 2017, this is not one of them]
[Originally appeared in 2006 sans truffles and tagged as "The Original Chocolate"]
My plan all along was to have Nick review the spiciest member of the destination series. Even though a few of you thought I could handle it, I was still worried. Unfortunately he's been crazy busy, I need a chocolate fix, and I've managed to get the nerve to try this one because, well, I picked it up for just $2.34 with sale and coupon combined. That's right, it's time to try...

Haagen-Dazs Mayan Chocolate Ice Cream

chocolate ice cream balanced with a warming touch of cinnamon spice,
rich fudge, and chocolate truffle chunks

To answer whether I like this one or not, well, I'm going to have to lean towards not at first, but it's not a hard lean mind you. This isn't a straight up spicy chocolate mix going on. The flavor does feel kind of exotic without having a big burn to it. See, I managed to not say weird, though deep down, yeah, it's kind of weird.

This will sound (very) mean, but it kind of reminds me of a cigarette. Another way to say it is that it has that kind of low funk you find in some pumpkin spice flavors. I think what it is though is this mild shock when it first hits your tastebuds but then the chocolate kicks in and you're like "this ain't bad".

The chocolate truffles have a soft thud and are fairly plentiful. Alone they are quite tasty. They have a nice, straight cocoa flavor to them and are very enjoyable. They also leave a nice chocolate aftertaste that helps prepare you for the next bite.

I'm still trying to zone in on the swirl... whoa, cinnamon blast! A definite fireball flavor on that bite. I had put a bunch of swirl on my spoon and then that happened. Oh yeah, it only lists "natural flavor" in the swirl but it definitely brings a punch to it.

Over the course of the afternoon, I've managed to eat about half of the container and take that as you will. It's definitely the rich truffles that help keep this one in check for me. Yes, technically it's on the fringe of check for someone with my particular tastebuds, but it's still a high quality ice cream, it's still a chocolate fix, and while I may not run out to purchase another container, I'm still enjoying it despite a little bit of lingering burn.

On Second Scoop: And now the other half of the pint has magically disappeared. I hope every faux pint has this many truffle bits (and is light on the sauce) because that's what makes this one work for a lightweight like me. Spicy has never been my thing, but the truffles (basically a soft chunk of chocolate) add a ton of chocolate flavor to the excellence that is a Haagen-Dazs ice cream base and it just works. No, I'm not rushing out to try another pint, but I'm glad a few of you encouraged me to try this one.

Verdict?  truffles make it work
Buy Again?  I might actually