Jeni's - Claire's Cabinet

Claire's Cabinet - A Tincture of Chamomile, Clove, and Rose with Meadow Berries and Honey

So, I made an unexpected order from Jeni's the other day.  On short notice, they announced the release of a special flavor to commemorate a new season of the Outlander TV series about a WWII-era nurse named Claire who is transported back to the 1700s.  It's an interesting mix of historical fiction, romance and fantasy which has developed a bit of a cult following -- enough to inspire Jeni's to release a special flavor for it!  The result is Claire's Cabinet which is an interesting mix of berries, honey and spices.  The Jeni's website has more about the flavor on a blogpost. 

Anyhow, I got a tweet that a very limited batch was going to go on sale online at noon Eastern the next day.  I remembered that I was in the Central time zone and went there just before 11.  I saw it become available and made a four-pint purchase (three other Jeni's reviews are coming soon!).  Then five minutes later I got another tweet saying that they were sold out online!  Ha ha... it felt like I was buying tickets for a rock concert or something.  Anyhow, the delivery and now I can try it out.  I guess you won't be able to get this but I still have to write up my thoughts.  Who knows, perhaps there will be another run if Outlander has more seasons?  You never know.

I said above that the flavor is a mixture of 'meadow berries' and honey.  Scanning the ingredient list on the side of the carton, I see that this is a blend of strawberries, blackberries and blackcurrants.  Then they mention that a 'tincture' of chamomile, cloves and rose are added to season it.  Tincture is a new word for me!  I guess it means a 'slight taste superadded' to another substance.  Jeni's is usually pretty good with flavor blends, so I'm looking forward to checking this out.

OK, on to the ice cream!  Removing the lid, the top looks gorgeous!  You see these a lot of the reddish purple sauce streaked across the top.  It almost looks like an image of a newly discovered gas planet.  Digging in, the berry sauce is delicious.  I often find it hard to isolate the individual contributions of a berry blend, but I can certainly tell that it has blackberries and blackcurrants.  It doesn't surprise me that this sauce comes from the same company that creates the excellent Brambleberry Crisp flavor.  Not long after I taste the berries, I taste the rose and cloves.  They act as the finish flavor here -- meaning that you taste the berries when the ice cream is on your tongue and you taste the rose and cloves after you swallow.  It's a very unique and interesting effect.  Quite mature I suppose -- this is not a berry flavor for little kids -- but I really like it.  The base ice cream has a mild flavor to it and balances the berry sauce quite well.

This is an interesting, unique and excellent ice cream from Jeni's.  It's too bad it was only available for a few minutes!  Since I've eaten this, I found a salon article which claims to have a recipe for those who know how to make ice cream from scratch.  Who knows, maybe this flavor will return someday.  In the meantime, I am looking forward to the rest of the flavors from my Jeni's shipment in reviews to come.