We Tried Häagen-Dazs' New Artisan Collection Ice Creams

With Ben & Jerry's leading the charge into crazy-flavor territory land with cookie cores and, uh, possibly other substances, other ice cream companies can sometimes get lost in the cloud of smoke (ahem) they leave behind. Solid competitor Häagen-Dazs has been around since 1960, was founded on the principles of artisanship, and has decided to leverage its pedigree into a new lineup of Artisan Collection ice creams: Tres Leches Brigadeiro, Banana Rum Jam, Chocolate Caramelized Oat, Spiced Pecan Turtle, and Ginger Molasses Cookie.

To make them, they paired with local food artisans across the US (in places like San Diego, Brooklyn, and Kansas City) to come up with some new, inspired flavors "using the finest ingredients." Naturally, we got a bunch of people from our office to try them.

Here's what they thought about each one.

Häagen-Dazs says:
“Based in New York City, Paula Barbosa of My Sweet Brigadeiro™ teamed up with the Häagen-Dazs brand to deconstruct her Happy Couple™ brigadeiro -- a modern spin on a traditional, celebratory sweet from her native Brazil -- to make a decadent sauce and swirl it into creamy tres leches ice cream.”

The tasters say:
“Tastes just like a chocolate-and-vanilla Hoodsie cup.”
“It seems like it came straight out of a caramel-colored cow.”
“Super creamy!”

Rating: 3 out of 5

Häagen-Dazs says:
“After a cold winter in Brooklyn, New York, friends Sabrina Valle and Jessica Quon of The Jam Stand® were determined to create a homemade jam, despite many fresh fruits being out-of-season. After some experimentation, they prepared their first jam called Drunken Monkey™, a new play on the classic Bananas Foster. Inspired by their homemade classic, Banana Rum Jam ingredients are swirled into a decadent vanilla bean ice cream.”

The tasters say:
“One more scoop and I’ll need to sit down.”
“It tastes like someone poured 99 Bananas in vanilla ice cream.”
“Good for making a rum float.”
“Nilla Wafers would taste great with this.”

Rating: 2 out of 5

Häagen-Dazs says:
“Offering an international twist on classic chocolate turtles, Christopher Elbow of Christopher Elbow Artisanal Chocolate™ in Kansas City, Missouri, co-created this new artisanal flavor to include roasted pecans with cinnamon and chilies and swirls of caramel sauce with rich chocolate ice cream.”

The tasters say:
“It tastes like I ate ice cream and then stepped into a craft store.”
“I imagine Johnny Depp would taste like this.”
“Chocolate Christmas!”

Rating: 3 out of 5

Häagen-Dazs says:
“Claire Keane of Clairesquares® in San Francisco has been crafting delicious flapjacks -- a traditional Irish treat of caramelized, buttery oat bars drizzled in chocolate -- from her own recipe since she was twelve years old. Inspired by her Irish treats, the Häagen-Dazs brand took chocolate caramelized oat clusters and blended them into a rich caramel ice cream.”

The tasters say:
“It tastes literally just like a Heath bar.”
“This is like eating at Cold Stone without having them sing to you.”
“It’s like someone developed this while trying to get a kid into healthy ice cream. Small hints of Heath and oats.”

Rating: 4 out of 5

Häagen-Dazs says:
“Taking on an American classic, Anna Gordon of The Good Batch® in Brooklyn, New York, worked with the Häagen-Dazs brand to craft a vanilla cinnamon ice cream infused with the sweet, warm flavors of her soft-baked ginger molasses cookies.”

The tasters say:
“It’s a pretty spicy molasses ginger cookie.”
“So many crunchies!”
“It’s like someone added a ginger snap to Ben & Jerry’s Cinnamon Buns.”

Rating: 5 out of 5
 

Most of the people we were able to convince to eat free ice cream liked the Ginger Molasses Cookie flavor the most, and agreed that its textural differences made it stand out. The other varieties had a couple adherents each, with a few tasters bemoaning the overall lack of "crunchies" in the rest of the lineup.

Häagen-Dazs is venturing into some intriguing territory with the Artisan Collection, and we're excited to see what they can craft next. The collection hits grocery store shelves this April.

Adam Lapetina is a Food/Drink staff writer for Thrillist, and also enjoyed the Ginger Molasses Cookie flavor. Read his musings at @adamlapetina.