RECOMMENDATION: Choctal Ice Cream

Holy cripes, this ice cream is good.

I don't know about any of you, but I'm always disappointed when I try certain high-end ice creams. Häagen-Dazs has its Reserve line of ice cream, which includes the Amazon Chocolate. They have the arrogance to list "flavor notes" on the front of package, as though it's a fine wine, and when I eat it, the texture is too icy, and the chocolate flavor that I think should be hitting me in the face with a rush of chocolate heaven is MIA. Godiva is a similar disappointment, almost as though they forgot they're a chocolate company.

If you feel similarly to me, do I have the ice cream for you. Choctal is the best chocolate ice cream I've ever had. Without a doubt in my mind. It is so dense... you know how Ben & Jerry's usually has four servings, with calorie counts anywhere between 180 and 300-ish. Well Choctal has FIVE servings per container. It's so dense they wedged in another serving. The texture is, at times, other worldly. It's almost gummy, yet creamy and smooth. It is the most satisfying ice cream to chew that I've ever eaten.

The taste is intense. It is that knock-you-in-the-face chocolate that I was seeking. It's dark, rich, and subtly sweet. There's an almost grainy, but not in a bad way, texture to it. Almost as though there's finely ground cocoa nibs directly in the ice cream. Let it melt on your tongue and it bathes your taste buds in an exceptionally smooth flavor. I love it.

I've only tried the Dominican Chocolate, and as you can see on the website, there's three more single origin locations to try. It's available at Dave's Markets (And is available at all Trader Joe's locations, apparently) and may be pricey at six bucks per pint, but it's oh so worth it.

UPDATE 3/19/09: I've tried the Kalimantan variety. It's richer and darker than the Dominican. It's almost like chocolate pudding. I prefer the Dominican because it's brighter, with a bit more bitterness to it. It's texture is also a bit grainier which, I think, adds to the chocolatey-ness.


UPDATE 3/24/09: I tried the Ghana chocolate variety. It's color is far and away the lightest of three. It's flavor is, I think, the most traditional-tasting, as far as chocolate ice cream goes. It's not as fudgey as the Kalimantan, and not as bright as the San Dominican. A little more bitter than the other two, but it has more punch to it than the Kalimantan. I still prefer the San Dominican, personally.

http://www.choctal.com/
.