# berries and dairy products. and ice cream flavors **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 1, 2008, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468 "2008-08-01T06:28:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ntcrawler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/34f0e0/32.png) [@ntcrawler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ntcrawler)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/1 "2008-08-01T06:28:13Z")
As I was going through my fridge today, I got to wondering: what is it about berries (strawberries, rasberries, blueberries, etc) that they are readily associated as being part of dairy products, such as yogurt, ice cream, smoothies, etc. where other fruits are not. Why don’t we have pear or apple or watermelon flavored ice cream? ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/2 "2008-08-01T06:37:36Z")
Berries & cream… mmmmmmm… But your question: Many fruits have properties which curdle milk products. Kiwi, pineapple, citrus of course, hmmmm. Good question. What is it about apple that does not seem to lend itself to cream? Perhaps it’s the relatively persistent cell walls; i.e., apple or pear or plum don’t really break down and give up the juice in the same way that berries do, so that you wouldn’t get a true meld. I’ll bet plum sorbet would be awesome, though. I love plums. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/3 "2008-08-01T10:12:29Z")
[QUOTE=brujaja] Many fruits have properties which curdle milk products. Kiwi, pineapple, citrus of course, hmmmm. [/QUOTE] A local ice cream stand makes all of their ice cream on-site, and they make a delicious orange pineapple ice cream. And it is not a sherbet or sorbet; this is premium, all-the-fat ice cream. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/4 "2008-08-01T10:19:57Z")
[QUOTE=ntcrawler] AWhy don’t we have pear or apple or watermelon flavored ice cream? [/QUOTE] Actually, pear is a pretty common flavour for dairy products, over here. So, it might be more related with what appeals to local customers than with production issues. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/5 "2008-08-01T11:55:22Z")
I’ve seen apple in ice cream for sale in the grocer’s freezer. I also saw it didn’t sell. ---
**Author:** ![Anaglyph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Anaglyph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaglyph)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/6 "2008-08-01T12:14:00Z")
Italian plum yoghurt is my favorite flavor, apple yoghurt is available at my local supermarket. Acidity causing milk to curdle is no problem for yoghurt. Proteases that might cause a problem (Papaya, Pineapple) are inactivated by cooking the fruit first. Many fruits make better sorbets than dairy ice cream (e.g. water melon, apple). For flavoring dairy products, you need something with rather strong, distinct flavor. So yes, it is mostly a question of what sells locally and what blends well with the milk/yoghurt taste. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/7 "2008-08-01T12:31:02Z")
It’s definitely a matter of what people want to buy. I know that some ice cream flavors that used to be available (Friendly’s Cherry Orchard, for example) just can’t be found any more. Ben and Jerry’s [Flavor Graveyard](http://www.benjerry.com/our_products/flavor_graveyard/departed_flavors.cfm) (they have an actual graveyard at their factory) lists several of the flavors mentioned in the OP. Obviously, there was no technical reason tho prevent apple or pear ice cream from being made, but it just didn’t sell. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/8 "2008-08-01T14:18:57Z")
[QUOTE=clairobscur] Actually, pear is a pretty common flavour for dairy products, over here. So, it might be more related with what appeals to local customers than with production issues. [/QUOTE] Yeah, when I went to Croatia and Bosnia a few years ago, practically every ice-cream stand had green apple. I think it just depends on what people are used to. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/9 "2008-08-01T15:32:04Z")
[QUOTE=RealityChuck] Ben and Jerry’s [Flavor Graveyard](http://www.benjerry.com/our_products/flavor_graveyard/departed_flavors.cfm) (they have an actual graveyard at their factory) lists several of the flavors mentioned in the OP. Obviously, there was no technical reason tho prevent apple or pear ice cream from being made, but it just didn’t sell. [/QUOTE] Man, that’s awesome. How do they stay in business? Is it that they can’t do true market research at an affordable price for such weird flavors? That people like the novelty at first but it wears off quickly? That people expect new flavors from them but go back and rely on old favorites? That different regions have widely different flavor palettes so it doesn’t pay to keep certain flavors national? Now I really want to know. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/10 "2008-08-01T16:06:18Z")
[Hagen Dazs now has caramelized pear and pecan ice cream.](http://www.haagendazs.com/products/product.aspx?id=353) It was the contest winner this year. As for apple, it is so common for apple pie to be served with ice cream that some small makers will make runs flavored like apple pie, or top sundaes with apple pie filling in an ice cream parlor. I’ve seen this done - the filling was just canned filling, but it was warmed, served over vanilla ice cream, and whipped cream and chopped walnuts were added. Nice. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/11 "2008-08-01T18:39:55Z")
[QUOTE=ntcrawler] As I was going through my fridge today, I got to wondering: what is it about berries (strawberries, rasberries, blueberries, etc) that they are readily associated as being part of dairy products, such as yogurt, ice cream, smoothies, etc. where other fruits are not. Why don’t we have pear or apple or watermelon flavored ice cream? [/QUOTE] I make my own ice cream and now I am going to have to figure out how to make watermelon ice cream. I think I am going to have to boil the watermelon down to get a concentrated flavor. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/12 "2008-08-01T19:24:24Z")
[QUOTE=Exapno Mapcase] Man, that’s awesome. How do they stay in business? Is it that they can’t do true market research at an affordable price for such weird flavors? That people like the novelty at first but it wears off quickly? That people expect new flavors from them but go back and rely on old favorites? That different regions have widely different flavor palettes so it doesn’t pay to keep certain flavors national? Now I really want to know. [/QUOTE] They tend to experiment with flavors (I visited their factory a few weeks ago and they gave out samples of a cinnamon bun ice cream they were developing). Their [Top Ten Flavors](http://www.benjerry.com/our_products/top_ten/) do well enough to help cover the development costs. Also, many of the flavors in the list were intended to be a short-term thing. IIRC “American Apple Pie” was a tie-in with the bicentenniel and “Fresh Georgia Peach” was tied in with the Olympics. I’m sure that there are different reasons for each flavor. Some were around for years before being discontinued. Here is a better link to their [ice cream graveyard](http://www.benjerry.com/halloween/flavor_graveyard.cfm), which gives some idea of the reasons for some of them. It’s also relatively easy for them to create a flavor and put it into their stores for testing. If it doesn’t sell, they don’t have to put it into the supermarkets. It helps limit the loss if the flavor fails. ---
**Author:** ![ntcrawler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/34f0e0/32.png) [@ntcrawler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ntcrawler)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/13 "2008-08-01T19:39:49Z")
Interesting! This is as yummy sounding as it is informative! Must resist and continue with my diet and not go for apple pie ice cream, must resist… NNNGGG! haha So there’s no technical or production-related reason why apple or pear ice cream or with other “non-common fruits” would not be possible. The dopers are saying it’s more about regional preferences and palates of consumers, which gets me to thinking further… what is it about the pear then that there are so few products featuring it than with other fruits? Besides ice cream you don’t really see pear bread, pear-flavored soda, pear yogurt, pear pie, or pear sauce. Is it really about taste preferences or do people just not know about them to use them in their cooking? ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/14 "2008-08-01T19:45:52Z")
[QUOTE=ntcrawler] Why don’t we have pear or apple or watermelon flavored ice cream? [/QUOTE] Schwan’s has [watermelon sherbet](http://www.schwans.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=40086&parentCategoryId=2988&categoryId=3004). It’s not bad, but it’s sweeter than I would like, and the candy-like fake watermelon seeds are not great. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/15 "2008-08-01T20:10:49Z")
[QUOTE=CookingWithGas] I make my own ice cream and now I am going to have to figure out how to make watermelon ice cream. I think I am going to have to boil the watermelon down to get a concentrated flavor. 🆒 [/QUOTE] It’s easy to make watermelon sherbet. Collect the juice from the watermelon, and use it in place of the water in the recipe. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/16 "2008-08-01T20:34:53Z")
[QUOTE=ntcrawler] Interesting! This is as yummy sounding as it is informative! Must resist and continue with my diet and not go for apple pie ice cream, must resist… NNNGGG! haha So there’s no technical or production-related reason why apple or pear ice cream or with other “non-common fruits” would not be possible. The dopers are saying it’s more about regional preferences and palates of consumers, which gets me to thinking further… what is it about the pear then that there are so few products featuring it than with other fruits? Besides ice cream you don’t really see pear bread, pear-flavored soda, pear yogurt, pear pie, or pear sauce. Is it really about taste preferences or do people just not know about them to use them in their cooking? [/QUOTE] Yep. Americans just gave up on the pear, I guess. Sad, too, since it is a lovely fruit. My grandparents had a pear tree that seemed to overproduce tear after year, but they never did more than eat the pears out of hand and make a little jelly - which is more than a lot of people would have done with them. If you go to Ikea, you can find and buy pear soda. I didn’t like it much, though regular pear nectar is fine. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/17 "2008-08-01T21:26:01Z")
Nothing wrong with pear or apple with creamy dairy products, but they’re not super-strongly flavored fruits. I think the tart intensity of berries, citrus and tropical fruits does well with ice cream because their edginess “cuts” the richness of the cream and the cream can’t overwhelm their bright flavor. However, I’ll never forget a pear/creamy custard tart I ate in France on a picnic. That thing was heaven on a plate. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2008, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/berries-and-dairy-products-and-ice-cream-flavors/458468/18 "2008-08-01T22:26:11Z")
[QUOTE=ntcrawler] The dopers are saying it’s more about regional preferences and palates of consumers, which gets me to thinking further… what is it about the pear then that there are so few products featuring it than with other fruits? [/QUOTE] Many fruit drinks use pear juice as a base. It’s cheaper than berry juice and doesn’t have a strong flavor so people don’t notice it. It’s also used for canned fruit.