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community weblog
Ice Cream Experts Blind Taste Test Every Vanilla Ice Cream
3 ice cream professionals taste test a bunch of vanilla ice creams. Criteria are vanilla flavor, dairy richness, texture, and sweetness. A number of national brands are tried, and some specialty ones.
Häagen-Dazs Vanilla
Breyer's Natural Vanilla
Van Leeuwen Vanilla Bean
Edy's (Dryer's) Vanilla
Ben & Jerry's Vanilla
Turkey Hill Original Vanilla
Talenti Gelato Madagascan Vanilla Bean
Trader Joe's French Vanilla
Jeni's Honey Vanilla Bean
Halo Top Vanilla Bean
Alec's Tahitian Vanilla Bean
Friendly's Vanilla
365 by Whole Foods Market Vanilla
Adirondack Creamery Vanilla
McConnell's Vanilla Bean
Tillamook Vanilla Bean
Favorite Day (Target) Homemade Vanilla
posted by Carillon on Jun 03, 2026 at 7:56 PM
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Winners ended up being Aidirondack, which I hadn't heard of, McConnell's, Jeni's, and Van Leeuwen. It'll certainly make me look for a few of them as I know I've seen McConnell's around. Some of the commenters were saying that there are more than a few Häagen-Dazs's Vanilla, and the one they tried was the lowest level. It certainly didn't match own understanding of the vanilla flavor you get from them.
posted by Carillon at 8:00 PM
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I felt like they didn't really love any of them, but settled on the best of the worst.
Made me sad. Vanilla is going away. We've already seen the articles about how climate change is affecting the crop. And there are more of us wanting to eat it every day, while the amount we produce stays relatively the same (or less). It's no wonder quality is falling off.
This one hit me in a more tangible way than I expected.
posted by keep_evolving at 8:27 PM
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hot tip add angostura bitters to trash vanilla ice cream to make it good
doesn't solve the environment but it's tasty
posted by crime online at 10:26 PM
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They completely lost all credibility for me with their Breyers review. When Breyers was bought out by Unilever they changed the ingredients to include gum, for shipping purposes, so that the product would be uniformly horrible however distantly it was shipped or how many freeze thaw cycles it endured. Before that it used to be great, specifically because of its airiness and clean flavor. Now it is gummy crap. This nonsense about using gum instead of egg yolks is just pretending to expertise, as is the "over running" or whatever bs pseudo technical gibberish that lady used to pad her snobbery. If they can't tell right off the bat that it is unmeltable slop gelatin they have no taste in icecream.
(And the bean flakes.....seriously?)
posted by Pembquist at 10:38 PM
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METAFILTER: doesn't solve the environment but it's tasty
posted by philip-random at 11:22 PM
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My whole life I've been disappointed by store bought ice cream, but the vanilla situation has always been particularly dire. I grew up eating Blue Bell, a brand more memorable for its name than its dry ass cream. Finally, I just started making my own. A rich, creamy French vanilla. It's also the base for any other flavors I make. You can make superior homemade ice cream with even the most basic ice cream machine. I highly recommend giving it a whirl. If you're going to indulge, make it worth it.
posted by guiseroom at 12:31 AM
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>They completely lost all credibility for me...
I thought their explanations of the technical aspects were pretty great (especially the stuff about inverted sugar) and their qualifications to talk at length about what they do and don't like in an ice cream are as solid as anyone's.
[Full disclosure: I know Caroline Schiff ("that lady") through mutual friends and I've been fortunate to sample some of the amazing desserts at her former workplace. She and the other two testers I'm pretty sure do actually know their stuff and aren't just padding out their comments with bullshit.]
Anyway, yeah, overrun is a term used in the food industry when measuring air incorporated into a product. And I agree with you that Breyer's isn't a decent ice cream anymore largely because it's way too airy and not enough dairy. And the testers... didn't seem to care for it either? My impression was the editor made an effort to cobble together semi-complimentary remarks for each, but ultimately it was pretty clear they'd be on the same page with you re: Breyer's selling airy guar gum instead of ice cream.
The ones they loved are the same US national brands that other reviewers frequently give top marks to (Jeni's, McConnell's, Van Leeuwen) plus Adirondack, which is only on the East Coast. I'd be happy to have Jeni's or Van Leeuwen every day of the week, but I'm not spending that much on ice cream most of the time so my daily driver vanilla is Trader Joe's.
A criticism I was expecting people might raise is that Costco wasn't included in the blind test. I don't know which Costco-brand foods are good, but obviously lots of people shop there and for that reason testers should always try to include them. I suspect NYC-based media often leave them out because it takes forever to get there from many parts of the city so they just can't be bothered.
posted by theory at 2:14 AM
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That's certainly not even near "every" national ice cream brand, let alone regional brands. Blue Bunny? Homemade? Bryer's (not Dryer's.) Not that I think they're necessarily exceptional, mind you, I'm just thinking of brands I see at my local supermarket.
posted by Thorzdad at 3:41 AM
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This nonsense about using gum instead of egg yolks is just pretending to expertise, as is the "over running" or whatever bs pseudo technical gibberish that lady used to pad her snobbery.
So, you don't know what overrun is in the context of ice cream manufacturing but you so feel qualified to criticize the expertise of others? That's a choice.
posted by jacquilynne at 5:04 AM
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now i want to go back to Paris and get some ice cream at Berthillon where i had the best vanilla in my life.
posted by alchemist at 5:44 AM
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I felt like they didn't really love any of them, but settled on the best of the worst.
This is pretty much the case with all of the Epicurious "blind taste" series. Almost all commerically-available food is mid-at-best. Which has probably always been the case, but now it's also just more expensive than ever. $8+ a pint for best-of-the-mid ice cream? Come on.
Personally I do prefer a bunch-of-stuff in my ice cream, so I tend toward B&J (whose chocolate base is TERRIBLE but usually has good stuff mixed in) or Häägen-Dazs, which at least usually has an okay base with a few decent things in it, and neither will break the bank.
I also HATE Talenti gelato, which my in-laws buy all the time. It's flavorless and textureless at a semi-premium price. But I guess at least it comes in a reusable container.
posted by uncleozzy at 6:29 AM
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They were pretty upbeat and effusive about the 4 winners. I don't understand how people came away with the impression they were meh about everything.
But yeah it's definitely true there are numerous local and regional manufacturers — and of course many, many restaurants everywhere making small batches in their kitchens — all churning out ice creams that would easily be as good or better than the best of this list. This is mainly because they'll be fresher and not transported very far.
Great ice cream isn't super hard to make. During Covid lockdown I tried making a few of my favorite Jeni's flavors from her recipes and I was pretty happy with the results compared to the store-bought versions. If you don't need to ship your ice cream across the country and expect it to sit in a freezer for potentially weeks, you're really only limited by the quality of your ingredients.
posted by theory at 7:16 AM
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I felt like they didn't really love any of them, but settled on the best of the worst.
Vanilla is going away because the proliferation of toppings and flavors have increased the number of flavors of ice cream. 'Vanilla' has been a euphemism for boring for who knows how long.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:17 AM
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I just had the Van Leeuwen yesterday, and I was hoping for better. I'm sure it's fine (especially comparatively) but I was hoping for more flavor. Well, guess it's time I got an ice cream maker and tried my hand. At making ice cream. Get your mind out of the cannibalistic gutter.
posted by evilDoug at 9:53 AM
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There's a new (to me at least) ice cream maker called Mavens. They have a lot of very cool/fun flavors, like pandan coconut, and black seasame. But their vietnamese coffee ice cream is a star, it is very, very good, one of the most coffee ice creams I think I've ever had. The condensed milk also helps create a very fun texture. It is so good and they now sell to Costco, which is nice!
posted by Carillon at 10:07 AM
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I have a couple of good ice cream shops near me so weeeee.. but of course the ice creams they picked are the ones that are the dearest at the store!
posted by drewbage1847 at 11:43 AM
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We get a couple of the big names here in London (Ben and Jerry's, Häagen-Dazs) but I'm quite happy with the vanilla gelato from my local Oddono's.
posted by 43rdAnd9th at 12:47 PM
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UW Madison's Dairy Research FarmBabcock Hall Vanilla Ice Cream. (you can even buy the deep 3 gallon tubs Ice Cream Stores use)
And "about" Babcock Hall Dairy Plant (the source of this Ice Cream) and its mission (to help fund further research in the dairy industry). It's really good and creamy is all I'm gonna say.
posted by symbioid at 2:05 PM
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'Vanilla' has been a euphemism for boring for who knows how long.
And yet, when I try a new ice cream place, I always get their vanilla first. Because, if their vanilla is good, it bodes well for everything else they have in the cooler. It's kind of amazing how many places "proudly" sell a really flavorless vanilla. A really well-made vanilla is far from boring.
Honestly, I consider any place that features umpteen inclusions to likely be covering up their mid vanilla.
posted by Thorzdad at 2:09 PM
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Ice cream capitalism sucks amirite
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 2:15 PM
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They utterly missed the very best vanilla, which is Costco's. That alone is worth the price of membership.
posted by Dashy at 5:16 PM
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I will never understand the appeal of ice cream. A tiny little piece on top of something can be nice, and I suppose molten "french" vanilla ice cream on top of a pie is the American version of custard.
But in my experience, the first taste of the ice cream has some flavour, and then after that my tongue is frozen to abject insensitivity. Absolute empty calories from then on with nothing to enjoy about the experience that I couldn't get from some ice cubes. I used to scrape the peanuts and chocolate sauce off of sundaes, as a kid, and leave the rest to melt.
I will say that I can enjoy gelato, which is typically served at a much higher temperature than ice cream, but even then it's still a weird sort of battle between sensation and anaesthetic.
This is, incidentally, the same reason I refuse to drink sweet drinks. Most of that sugar never even reaches my tongue, and is just being swallowed whole! The exception being hot chocolate. So here's how I make it:- Heat the milk up in a double-boiler
- No matter what mix or hand-ground chocolate you use, put your spoonful or other portion in the bottom of your mug
- Mix the chocolate with a shot or two of Irish cream (or kahlua, tia maria, amaretto, or whatever you want), until it's a paste
- Stir in the hot milk
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 1:44 AM
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the first taste of the ice cream has some flavour, and then after that my tongue is frozen to abject insensitivity.
I don't mean to diagnose you, but ice cream does not 'freeze' my tongue when I eat it. That's not even close to how anyone experiences it.
You may want to get that checked out.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:35 AM
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McConnell's "Sweet Cream "
The un vanilla.
posted by hortense at 2:25 PM
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Of the commercial ice cream available locally here the only decent one is Haagen-Dazs. I get vanilla 95% of the time.
Good rule of thumb for screening ice cream without tasting is just look at the ingredients list. If it has anything more in it than fresh cream, milk, sugar, egg yolk and flavour, and maybe salt, then it is starting to drop down the quality scale.
posted by Pouteria at 7:56 PM
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Ended up doing a little taste test ourselves and McConnells and Strauss were two of our favorites.
posted by Carillon at 10:37 PM
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