Round 2: Ben & Jerry's Class of 2013

Image capture of two pints Ben & Jerry's in their natural habitat.

After last's year's sub-par performance, I questioned whether or not Ben & Jerry's had lost their touch. I am happy to report that, despite the continued usage of corn syrup (though not as high on the list of ingredients as it is in the new Häagen-Dazs Gelato collection), this year's new products actually taste like food. More than that, they were enjoyable to eat! I was also happy to see on the Ben & Jerry's website their pledge regarding GMOs: "We commit to sourcing non-GMO ingredients for all our products everywhere by year-end 2013." This is cause for celebration and celebrate we shall: Free Cone Day is Tuesday, April 9!

Limited Edition Cannoli - The mascarpone ice cream base isn't as strong as I'd like--which makes sense because I prefer a light cannoli ricotta filling--but it is enough to evoke a powdered sugar sprinkled pastry. The cannoli shell pieces are inconsistent in their crunchiness, but the few good ones were enough to keep me digging for more. Overall, the flavor doesn't taste like its namesake as much as, say, Ben & Jerry's Boston Cream Pie ice cream does, but that didn't keep me from enjoying it. Tasty and worth checking out.

Chocolate Peppermint Crunch - This flavor seems purposed to appeal to the different types of mint ice cream enthusiasts. It is chocolate (what I look for), it has cookies (me, again), the chocolate-covered cookies have a substantial crunch to them (halfway appealing to those who like mint candy or candy cane in their ice cream) it has a white mint swirl (for those peppermint patty lovers who like a cool minty aftertaste). Which is the dominant flavor? Good question. Like some of the classic Ben & Jerry's flavors (Phish Food, New York Super Fudge Chunk) and two other usual suspects to my freezer (Half Baked, Everything But The...), the strength of Chocolate Peppermint Crunch is having so many different tastes and textures at once that it almost overwhelms the mouth. I couldn't help but keep eating, wanting more of each individual part. And though the flavor would have benefited from using real mint instead of peppermint oil, it still left me fat and satisfied.

These rookie products are joined by Coffee Coffee BuzzBuzzBuzz, which rises from its plot in the flavor graveyard. I'd review the flavor but it interests me about as much as mud salad. Also available are two new products in Ben & Jerry's Frozen Yogurt collection, which I will review separately.

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This round's winner: Chocolate Peppermint Crunch

The AICM (April Ice Cream Madness) Tournament continues with Round 3: Ben & Jerry's New Greek Frozen Yogurt Flavors...