Honeymoon - Strawberry Tarragon

Strawberry Tarragon - Sweet Cream with a Swirl of Strawberry Tarragon Jam

The cute mason jar image above means that we are return to the San Rafael-based Honeymoon brand this week for their Strawberry Tarragon flavor.  I have never had tarragon in an ice cream before -- in fact, I'm not even sure what tarragon is!  It sounds familiar, but I had to google and consult a friend or two to prepare.  I guess tarragon is an herb similar to anise or fennel with a licorice-like aftertaste.  As noted in reviews here before, strawberry is a very strong and sweet flavor which can be overpowering by itself.  So, something is often used to 'cut' the flavor, we've seen cheesecake or balsamic vinegar used before.  It will be interesting to see how tarragon turns out.

Unscrewing the lid of the mason jar reveals a solid white color of the sweet cream base.  Uh oh... it looks like there might be mixing issues.  All of the strawberry visible on through the glass seems to be only on the sides of the jar.  That's a bit worrisome.  Eating my way into the pint, the strawberry jam is quite flavorful, the tarragon mutes the sweetness while the tarragon gives it a bit of an earthy aftertaste.  For some reason, its the same flavor that I'd imagine a strawberry newton would taste like -- although I've never had one of those.  The mixing issue persisted throughout the pint.  In a previous pint this was a big problem because many spoonfuls would only contain the plain base -- which is no fun.  But here, it actually worked out.  The entire lining of the jar contained strawberry tarragon flavor and it didn't take much of it to take over a spoonful.  I think two things help here.  First, the sweet cream base is very soft so it was not tough to slice through it with your spoon.  Second, the jar itself is a bit narrower than most ice cream container -- so it was easier to get a bit of the sides into every spoon.  As a side effect, I got to try some of the plain sweet cream in the middle and it is good.

So, a successful pint.  The mixing issue may be a warning flag for future flavors from this brand but it worked out here.  If you like strawberry and you are curious about how it mixes with tarragon, then you should check this out.