Izzy's - Cookies N' Cream

Cookies N' Cream - Bourbon and Bourbon-Indonesian Vanilla Ice Cream with Oreo Cookies

I was at the Saint Paul-based Izzy's Ice Cream a  a couple of weeks ago and they had a sale on pints.  So I picked up a pint or two.  Most of their pre-packaged pints are the simple or 'everyday' flavors.  I haven't had their Cookies N' Cream yet, so I figured I'd give it a try.

Removing the lid, the top of the pint looks like a classic cookies and cream implementation.  The base is white and there are lots of cookie chunks of various sizes.  Oreo-brand sandwich cookies are used here.  Oreos make powdery crumbs when crushed and you can see some of that here.  The otherwise bright-white vanilla base becomes speckled with Oreo dust.  Digging in, I can really taste the vanilla in the base.  My palate is not super-sensitive to vanilla and often I don't specifically taste it if there are other ingredients present, but I do taste it here.  The side of the pint mentions they blend Bourbon and Bourbon-Indonesian vanillas here.  I know 'Bourbon' is another name for 'Madagascar' vanilla (the Réunion island off the coast of Madagascar was once called 'Île Bourbon'), but I was unfamiliar with Indonesian vanilla.  I googled and found a site that says that is basically Madagascar variety of beans but harvested in a different way which creates a 'sharper, woodier flavor profile' and that these beans are often blended with other beans as is done here.  I can certainly taste it, even with all the Oreos in the mix.  The Oreos themselves taste good.  They are chocolatey and crunchy and occasionally there is a larger piece where you can notice the creamy filling in between.  Overall, the texture of the pint was a bit 'dry'.  I noticed this once before with Izzy's and their Mint Chocolate Chip flavor.  The flavors were all there but there was an overall chalky feeling to ice cream in my mouth rather a melting/creamy feeling that I usually get when I eat ice cream.  I have only noticed it with these two flavors and not any other flavors from Izzy's.  I wonder if the pre-packaged pints are made differently?

This is a decent implementation of the classic Cookies N Cream flavor -- with genuine Oreo-brand sandwich cookies used for the mix-ins!  That said, the dry and almost chalky consistency keeps me from loving this, though.  I'm thinking this one likely tastes better in the scoop shop than as a pre-packaged pint.