McConnell's - Olive Oil & Salted Almonds

Olive Oil & Salted Almonds - Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil Ice Cream with Smokey Salt-Roasted Almonds

I have to get an order from McConnell's!  They had an interesting group of fall flavors that I had not had before and their shipping costs seemed reasonable, so I got a five-pint shipment.  McConnell's is headquartered in Santa Barbara but the shipment came from Union City which is in the northern part of the state.  Perhaps this is a sign that they are expanding their distribution.  It could also be why the shipping is now more reasonable.  The first flavor is called Olive Oil & Salted Almonds.  I have heard murmurs that olive oil makes a surprisingly good ice cream base and I have not tried it before.  So, I am anxious to give this pint a try.

Opening the pint, the color of the olive oil base is on off-white yellow and I can see some evidence of almonds right away.  Digging in, the base ice cream is quite thick and dense.  McConnell's is known for that.  There's not a lot a lot of air introduced during the churning process.  The olive oil has made the base perhaps a bit creamier than normal but I must admit that I don't immediately taste olive oil.  Scattered throughout the pint are almond shavings.  These are excellent.  I keep trying to think more about this base.  I do like it and it goes well with the almonds but I'm trying to figure out what the olive oil is bringing into the mix.  I guess it does seem a bit more savory and rich than plain old sweet cream.  Maybe that is it.

I really liked this pint of ice cream.  The almond mix-ins were quite good and the base ice cream goes very well with it though I didn't really specifically taste olive oil.  It is good -- I don't want to scare people away -- but I think I might have gotten a bit too wound up in anticipation of my first ice cream which included olive oil.  I will have to see if I can find more olive oil flavors where the specific effects are more pronounced.  That said, McConnell's makes great ice cream.  This is thick and rich ice cream and the almonds are excellent.