Talenti - Alfonso Mango

Alfonso Mango - Alfonso Mango Sorbet with a hint of Lemon

Today I return to Talenti Gelato for one of their classic sorbet flavors, Alfonso Mango.  This is not one of their original flavors, but it came out relatively soon after in 2013.  Marked "recipe #22" meaning it is their 22nd released flavor.  It is a fruit sorbet -- which are dairy free by design.  I have written before that this flavor along with Roman Raspberry have very bright colors that stick out as you are walking past a freezer case which stocks them.  I bought it at Lunds & Byerly's in Saint Paul's Highland Park neighborhood.  Here, Alfonso describes the cultivar of mango used here, named for Alfonso de Albuquerque who was the Governor of Portuguese India in the early 1500s.  Indeed, the Talenti flavor page linked above describes the mangoes used here as coming from the Maharashtra region of India where the mango tree is listed as one of the regions symbols.  Mangoes are actually the national fruit of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and the Philippines.  This looks like a straightforward flavor.  Talenti mentions that there is a hint of lemon in the mix as well.  I have had mango in ice creams and sorbets a handful of times before.  Surprisingly nothing so simple as a mango sorbet before.  The closest was Milkjam Creamery which had a mango sorbet with a sticky rice mix-in.  I tried Häagen-Dazs mango ice cream flavor -- they do have a mango sorbet but I have not tried it yet.  Other brands have tried mixing mango with spices (Izzy's and Pumphouse) while Sweet Science included mango in a sorbet including multiple tropical fruits.  Let's check out Talenti's simple mango sorbet!

After unscrewing the lid, the sorbet is indeed bright orange.  The first spoonful does indeed have a lot of delicious mango flavor.  Since mango puree can be a bit pulpy, the texture of this sorbet is not as icy as some other fruity sorbets which rely mainly on fruit juice for delivering flavor.  This gives it a smooth and almost creamy texture which I like.  This is a homogeneous pint with no mix-ins.  The mango flavor remains delicious as I continue eating and I have no problems finishing the pint in one sitting.  The twist of lemon blends in very well.

This is a very delicious pint of mango sorbet from Talenti.  Not too much else to say about this simple implementation.  The texture is soft for a sorbet, the flavor is bright and tasty.  If you are in the mood for a tropical sorbet on a hot summer day (or if it's off-season and you want to pretend you are on vacation in the tropics), you can't go wrong here.