READER REVIEW: Mo's Review of Wegmans PB&J

I have a problem, and it's time to come clean about it: I tend to suffer from ice cream envy. Usually I’m pretty good at keeping the problem under control, but when it comes to Ben & Jerry’s, one of my all-time favorite brands, I find it difficult to keep my cool when new, awesome-sounding flavors come out and I can’t get my hands on them. That’s right, Target exclusives—I’m talking about you. But once I realized I’d evidently have to wait awhile before sampling Peanut Butter Jam Session, I remembered that somewhere in the bottom of my deep freezer was a pint that could potentially give my friends at Ben & Jerry's a run for their money.

A couple of months ago, I decided to buy a few pints of Wegmans premium ice cream, including a fun-looking flavor called PB&J. And so when I found myself dangerously close to succumbing to a particularly harsh bout of ice cream envy after reading yet another review of Peanut Butter Jam Session, I decided the time had come to bust out the Wegmans version.

When I first peeled back the lid, I was pleasantly surprised to find some swirls of purple already peeking through. And as I continued to make my way through the pint, the jelly-flavored swirl did a fine job of making its presence known.

Now this flavor isn’t overly complicated or complex. There are no mix-ins to give it the textural contrast I often crave, and I won’t pretend that as I ate it, I discovered layer upon layer of flavor. What I did find, however, is that Wegmans PB&J is just plain good. Eating this ice cream is basically akin to taking down a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in delicious dessert form. The peanut butter base is rich without being too sweet, and the jelly swirl, while somewhat intense on its own, works wonders when combined with that peanut buttery goodness.

All in all, this flavor’s a winner, and it really takes me back to the days when I’d bust open my lunch box at school and get all excited at the notion of digging into a sandwich loaded with creamy peanut butter and just the right amount of accompanying jelly. Of course, just because I enjoyed my Wegmans PB&J doesn’t mean I’m about to give up on Peanut Butter Jam Session. That’s the thing about ice cream envy—it eventually turns you into a bit of a stalker on the retail front. But in the meantime, I’ll be sure to savor my pint of Wegmans goodness as a very tasty and not so shabby consolation prize.

Where Mo Found It: Wegmans
Mo's Grade: B

READER REVIEW: Bob's Review of Wegmans Scrapin' The Bowl

Wegmans Premium Ice Cream doesn’t get a lot of talk because it’s a Northeast based supermarket chain that originated in Buffalo. The reason I wanted to try this is because not only does the manager endorse it (go figure), but also because he’s pretty diverse in his ice cream taste and has tried flavors from Steve’s, Jeni’s, Graeter’s, Ben & Jerry’s and 2nd Street Creamery. He claims that this sells well and the majority of people seem to favor it over Ben & Jerry’s. Recently they revamped their premium flavor lineup and came out with a few new flavors. I’d already had their Peanut Butter and Jelly, Jamocha Almond Fudge, and Cookie Dough from their previous line and they were much better than the many of the basic flavors out there. This time I decided to go with Wegmans Scrapin’ the Bowl: vanilla and chocolate ice cream with chunks of cookie dough and brownie dough pieces.

I love cookie dough and enjoy brownies, so I figured it was worth a shot to see how this stacked up against the other premium brands on the market. Going into this pint, I had some decent expectations based off what I’d seen in the past, but I was anxious to see if Wegmans was really better than other options. The chocolate and vanilla base ice creams were both better than what I usually find in a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, especially the chocolate. My pint seemed to have more chocolate than vanilla and seemed more along the lines of cake batter as far as taste was concerned. It wasn’t overly sweet like some, but very refreshing overall.

The chunks of cookie dough and brownie dough pieces were both great as well. The cookie dough pieces came into play as soon as I broke the surface and were scattered throughout the entire pint. The brownie dough bits were much smaller and not like the pieces of actual brownie you’d find in some other flavors. Overall, the pint was good and a great change of pace from the premium brands people typically review. After the great combination of ice cream and mix-ins found in Scrapin’ the Bowl, I may check out their Peanut Butter Cup and Banana-a-Peel’n flavor soon.

Where Bob Found It: Wegmans
Bob's Grade: B

READER REVIEW: Bob's Review of Wegmans S'mores

After venturing into Nutter Batter and it having a great taste, I figured why not get the other exclusive in S'mores to see how it stacks up. I have only read one other review and they claimed it was outstanding, so I knew this had to be a scoop!

Upon opening the lid you will see a nice smooth surface of marshmallow ice cream, a small hint of a graham cracker swirl and nice little chips of chocolate which correlate to what the product states as "Marshmallow Ice Cream, Marshmallow Swirls, Graham Cracker Swirls, and Chocolate Pieces". S'mores was everything and above that in this pint. I have to say the base was outstanding, it resembled that of taking a spoon into a jar of fluff and throwing it in your mouth. Wegmans has really stepped up their game.

After the first bite I really started to see the graham cracker swirl and the small brown bits of it run down the middle and sides of the pint. The marshmallow swirls are very hard to pick up on because of the very powerful base which is unique and nothing like I have ever come across before. The small pieces of the chocolate bits you would cram into the middle of a s'mores are a nice texture, not very hard, but still give it a great bite/texture to the overall pint, not to mention the perfect impersonation of a s'mores.

Overall, this pint is everything you could want if you are a s'mores lover. This marshmallow base takes this pint to the next level. It is basically eating a jar of fluff, throw in a nice thick graham cracker swirl, more marshmallow swirl (to add to the overpowering base), and nice little chocolate chunks and that is this pint in a wrap. After the Banana Peel-N and Nutter Batter I have to say Wegmans is giving other big name brands a run for their money. This one ranks up there with one of the best I've had.

Where Bob Found It: Wegmans

Bob's Grade: A

READER REVIEW: Bob's Review of Wegmans Banana Peel-N

Another Wegmans exclusive, Banana Peel-N, is a banana base with fudge ripples, marshmallow swirls with peanut butter cups. At 310kcals a serving I was hoping for something as good as the Nutter Batter which I recently devoured and became one of my favorites! Wegmans does not get a lot of respect as a premium ice cream company, but after this pint and Nutter Batter their bases are solid and mix-ins are not lacking.

Taking my first bite, I was impressed by the rich and flavorful banana base. Hands down the best banana ice cream I have ever had. There is no comparison as it was truly a fresh banana flavor that had a strong after taste. I had a nice big chunk of a fudge ribbon and small hints of a marshmallow like you would find in a true s'mores flavored product.

As I continued to dig down the pint it was surely one of my favorites. The base is top notch, a great banana flavor that is dense and packs an amazing banana aftertaste like a true ripe banana out of the grocery store. Throw in a marshmallow ribbon that is not overpowering, but just enough to complement the pint. The fudge ribbons are dense, very thick and almost like Graeter's chocolate chips at some point due to the richness/thickness in size. As the pint gets lower and lower the thickness of the swirl picks up to the point you are eating chunks of fudge. Not that I mind that, but it just amplifies the more you get towards the bottom. The peanut butter cups were killer, just not as frequent as you would hope. These were not hard as a rock, but on the softer side and had a great peanut butter filling like a peanut butter truffle have. Overall, one of the best pints I have had in a long time and may even crack my top 10 overall. Everything in this pint just went together very well and complemented each other perfectly. Off to pick up S'mores and see how this goes!

Where Bob Found It: Wegmans

Bob's Grade: A

READER REVIEW: Bob's Review of Wegmans Nutter Batter

The last time I was in Wegmans, I noticed they had released two limited flavors, Nutter Batter and S'mores, to their premium line of ice creams. Seeing how both of these are very calorie heavy (300+), my hopes were high that they would pack a lot of flavor and mix-ins. Nutter Batter is “Vanilla Ice Cream with Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, Caramel, and Peanut Butter Swirls” After lifting the lid you get to see everything that the label explains. There is not much of the vanilla base that is shown because of the massive amount of swirls and little globs of peanut butter cookie dough. I found that aspect very neat because I have never seen that in an ice cream before. Picture yourself eating the peanut butter cookie dough; that is the best way to describe the combination.

After the first bite I was blasted with the rich amount of complementary flavors from the peanut butter swirls and globs of peanut butter cookie dough, which had a soft texture and great aftertaste that really combined well with the peanut butter swirl.

As I continued to plow through this pint the vanilla base started to stand out the more I tried. It had a very nice vanilla and cake batter taste to it. The way Wegmans combined the two flavors really made it stand out. The caramel was also a great addition. As a peanut butter ice cream fan, this is one of the better ones I've had.

Where Bob Found It: Wegmans
Bob's Grade: A

NEWS: Wegmans Releases Two New Super Premum Flavors -- Nutter Batter and S'mores

Wegmans has released two new super premium ice cream flavors: Nutter Batter and S'mores. Personally we'd go for the vanilla ice cream with peanut butter cookie dough, caramel and peanut butter swirls found in Nutter Batter, but that's just us.