McConnell's - Masala Chai, Dates & Walnuts

Masala Chai Tea Ice Cream Flavored with a Spice Mix of Cardamom, Nutmeg, Cloves, Mace, Peppercorns, Star Anise and Cumin with Salted Walnuts and California Dates

 

Today, we continue with the Melting Pot Collection from McConnell's.  The second pint is Masala Chai, Dates & Walnuts.  This looks like a very interesting flavor.  I think that might be the longest ingredient list that I have typed in.  Dates and Walnuts are the mix-ins and the base ice cream is a masala chai tea.    Masala is the Hindu word for a spice blend.  I have had tikka masala chicken but that is a different blend of spices than used in masala chai tea.  The Wikipedia link  for masala chai tea above lists a similar list of spices that McConnell's uses, so that checks out.  I can't want to try this out, it looks pretty exotic.

The top of the pint shows that the base is a milky off-white color and some of the mix-ins are visible already.  The first spoonful packs quite a punch.  This is quite spicy!  It is not a hot spice, it is more of a baking spice.  I don't know if I can pick out all of the flavors but I can definitely tell it has cloves, nutmeg and cardamom.  It is fairly sweet, but not overly so.  I really like this flavor.  It would make a good flavor for a sweetbread.  The walnuts and dates are distributed throughout the pint.  The walnuts provide some texture and crunch.  The dates are cut into small strip-like pieces.  With all of the other flavors present, I could not specifically taste it but perhaps it contributed to the overall blend of flavors which is quite excellent.  A half an hour after eating it, I did notice an aftertaste of all the spices in my mouth -- I could tell there was star anise and peppercorn in there.  The aftertaste did not detract from the pint at all, just a heads up to be prepared for that.

This was an excellent pint of ice cream -- one of the best that I have had recently.  If you have access to a McConnell's scoop shop and you like spicy desserts, then you have to check this out.