Ben & Jerry's - What A Cluster

What A Cluster - Peanut Butter Ice Cream with Caramel Cluster Pieces, Marshmallow Swirls & Peanut Buttery Swirls

What A Cluster is a flavor introduced by Ben & Jerry's in 2011 and it asks the question "What is a cluster?"  Just seeing the flavor title, it could be a cluster of anything.  My first guess from just the name would have included nuts or some sort of granola-like concoction, but here, the clusters are actually something quite simple.  They small clumps of chewy caramel about half the size of a pea.  Those caramel pieces are then contrasted against a primarily peanut butter base and swirls.

Opening the pint, I see the golden color of the peanut butter base with some clusters visible on the top.  Peanut butter makes for a thick and slow melting base which you can tell by how much the ice cream sticks to the lid when you take it off.  Eating my way into the pint, the peanut butter and peanut butter swirls provide a heavy peanut buttery flavor while the caramel clusters provide the occasional chewy sweetness.  One thing I did not notice was the marshmallow swirl.  If it was there it it was the thicker swirl rather than a gooey swirl.  In other flavors, the thicker marshmallow swirl acts to mute the base flavor and create a taffy-like consistency.  Although I didn't notice it, it might have acted to mute the peanut butter a bit, make it a bit less heavy.  I would have to eat another pint to find out.

All in all a very eclectic flavor.  Its also a fairly difficult flavor to find.  It might be the only flavor with peanut butter & caramel but no chocolate.  If that particular mix interests you, you could give it a try, but otherwise I think there are more interesting plays on peanut butter out there.