When I saw this bright orange barrel of Blue Bell ice cream, I was expecting a pumpkin-inspired flavor, but I suppose the approach of Autumn is still a ways off. About the size of a full-grown pumpkin, this glowing half gallon barrel contains one of Blue Bell's new September rotational flavors, Southern Peach Cobbler. Having recently reviewed Ben & Jerry's Peach Cobbler and Spiced Peach Crumble from Häagen-Dazs, my palette is well versed in the realm of peach ice creams.
Boasting the impressive description above, Blue Bell has chocked this offering full of various mix-ins. Their other cobbler offerings, such as Southern Blackberry Cobbler, are usually pretty dependable, so I expect no different with this peach variation. Blue Bell knows the recipe for a successful flavor and they prove it here by including a peach ice cream base, a peach swirl and flaky pie crust pieces for some added texture.
Any ice cream including a capable base, solid swirl and some chewy mix-ins usually bode well on this blog and Blue Bell always seems to follow the same formula. Collecting a big glob of the beige-colored base, this luscious peach ice cream with hints of cinnamon and brown sugar proved more impressive than I had anticipated. Blue Bell enhances their already-sweet peach base with cinnamon and the distinct taste of brown sugar.
The subtle hints of brown sugar and cinnamon come together with the peaches to create a base ice cream better than it's Blackberry counterpart. Not only have they sweetened up the base, but they've also added some sugar to the slivers of peach inside. Not quite as plentiful as other fruits from Blue Bell, I'm not disappointed to see the dwindling amount of peach slices. Even the size of the peaches are smaller than the huge hunks of strawberries I usually run into. The result is a flavor free of any completely-frozen fragments.
The sweetened peaches are a great accompaniment to the already-sweet peach base, but like other fruit-inspired flavors that tend to teeter towards sweetness, Blue Bell adds back a bit of the natural peach tartness with the swirl. Thick and colorful, the bright orange swirl cuts through the sweetness of the ice cream. The crunch and chew are provided by the flaky pie crust pieces. I've previously poked fun at their pitiful excuse for pie crust, but for some reason they work much more effectively in this flavor.
The pie crust pieces in Southern Peach Cobbler actually contribute. The pieces are seemingly bigger, packing more of a punch than prior experiences. Adding a buttery taste and flaky texture, I may be coming around to their pie crust. There's still a lot of room for improvement, but these actually add to the overall ranking, instead of setting a flavor back. Coming into this, I expected average, but encountered something truly refreshing instead.
Where I Found It: Super Wal-Mart
Grade: C
