Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Ben & Jerry's Triple Caramel Chunk Ice Cream


[By Nick] I’m starting to run out of old Ben & Jerry’s flavors we’ve yet to review but also have access to. I had all but given up trying to find Triple Caramel Chunk or as our friends up north call it, Caramel Hat Trick, or other countries call it, Caramel Chew Chew. Yeah, the flavor with three caramel components also goes by three different names. Okay, random tangent aside, I finally made my way to Walgreen’s to pick up Truffle Trifecta (Hey look, another triple flavor!)and low and behold, Triple Caramel Chunk was sitting right there next to it. Of course I had to pick it up as well, too bad there wasn’t another interesting flavor because then I could’ve picked up a trinity of pints. Okay, I’m done with all these triple notions; let’s just go straight to the ice cream!

As I stated earlier, this flavor is made up of three caramel components. Those being Caramel ice cream, a caramel swirl and fudge covered caramel chunks. The folks over at Ben & Jerry’s aren’t reinventing the wheel with this flavor but as a caramel lover, I’m excited to try this one.

And that excitement diminished with the pints lackluster first impression. There’s a slight hint of the fudge covered caramel chunks but that’s about it. At least this makes it easier to sample the base alone. The caramel flavor is very light. If I didn’t know it was supposed to be a caramel base, I would’ve thought it was a vanilla with a little something extra to it. Let’s dig a bit deeper and hope the other two components bring a stronger caramel flavor.

I’m not exactly sure why Ben & Jerry’s calls these chunks because they’re mini caramel cups. I didn’t have a coin on me but I’d say they’re a tad bit smaller than the “new” Reese's minis. While small, they pack a serious caramel punch. Think of a simply caramel Milky Way bar just not as cloyingly sweet. The fudge coating is basically an afterthought. It just doesn’t stand a chance against the buttery caramel filling.

As for the caramel swirl, I wish there was a lot more of it. As you can tell from my photos, my pint was quite lacking. The bites that managed to have a decent amount took this flavor to new heights. Think of hot caramel fudge topping and that’s pretty much what Ben & Jerry’s managed to pull off, albeit cold. It has the flavor, texture and is just all around awesome. This is what every caramel swirl should be and it’s a shame my pint didn’t have copious amounts of it. I can’t give this a one a ringing endorsement because of my lack of caramel but if my experience was just an abnormality and there’s regularly more caramel, I can see this one being a good choice for caramel lovers. As is, with flavors like Talenti Sea Salt Caramel out there, you’re not missing much if you can’t find this one.

Vedict?  Needs more caramel swirl!
Buy Again?  Can I just buy the swirl instead?

9 comments:

  1. That's why I still consider Copper Kettle Caramel from 2nd Street Creamery to be the best caramel ice cream.

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  2. Interesting as in the UK we do indeed have "caramel chew chew"....I am slightly bemused at this "fudge covered caramel pieces" as to me the photos look like they are in fact chocolate covered. Am I missing something ?
    Over the mix in looks the same as yours and and they are mini caremel cups, similar to a type of chocolate we have by Nestle called "Rolo's". I agree the swirl is lacking in quantity.
    Any clue why they don't do the "core" pints in the US? Strange that anything they make is not a available in lthe home country. Definitley the most exciting UK ice cream, I would like to know what your opinions would be. It is clearly embracing those of us who long ago took the bowl out of the equation. It's really made to be eaten from the container, the PB & J pint is really something to behold

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  3. You really nailed this one Nick! I bought this flavor about a month ago and was really disappointed. I also had very little in the way of the swirl so I think that's probably standard and not just our pints.

    I was also hoping for more carmel taste in the base.

    Thanks for the recommendation that Talenti's is better. Will give it a try!

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  4. That's my favorite B&J's flavor! You better not make them quit making it, like all the other flavors of theirs I loved, which are now in the flavor graveyard.my favorite B&J's flavor

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  5. TheHollows, I finally ran across a gas station that carries 2nd Street in my area so I'll be picking that one up to try soon!

    Horace, I think B&J's just like refering to things as fudge rather than chocolate.
    We also have rolos here in the US but these were definitely more like caramel cups than a round rolo.
    As for the core flavors, a reader pointed out we di have a few core flavors a long time ago but now we only have Karamel Sutra. I am jealous of the ones you guys have, especially the pb&j one.
    First Anon, that's disappointing. I was really hoping I got a bum pint because there was some serious potential. Definitely give Talenti a go and report back with your thoughts!
    Second Anon,I doubt B&J's takes into consideration my thoughts on keeping a flavor around. With them offering this flavor in basically every country they operate in, I don't think this one will be seeing the graveyard anytime soon.

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  6. Nick - I believe Dubba didn't love it as much as me and it killed a small of my fandom for him.

    Let's see if you pass the caramel test!

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  7. @TheHollows: hahahaha, I can't help that I dont have much luck with 2nd St samples!

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  8. TheHollows, I seem to have the worst luck when it comes to buying ice cream from gas stations so lets hope this is different!

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  9. So dang sweet. The chocolate cant even be tasted against the caramel overload. A good flavor, but very simple.

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