Top 10 Weirdest Ben and Jerry’s Flavors

You wouldn’t think that an ice-cream company would be controversial, would you? I mean, it’s just ice-cream…isn’t it? Well, Ben & Jerry’s seem to be out to prove that they’re a little bit rebellious. In 1982, the company got into trouble with the police when it was suggested that they supported the defense of Mumia Abu-Jamal, who was convicted of killing a police officer. The company denied any connection but not before a suggested boycott from the Fraternal Order of Police. Since then, you’d think they would have trod carefully and not offended anyone but no, they continue to push the boundaries…
Boundary-pushing goes for their flavors too. If there’s a wacky combination to be made, you can bet that Vermont’s finest will try it. Their ice-cream festivals regularly features “flavor graveyards”, where they mourn the loss of those flavors that didn’t quite make it into the main range. So, here we salute the most controversial, unusual and downright weird flavors that Ben & Jerry’s have ever produced.

10. Black & Tan

How do you manage to be both controversial and a bit disgusting in the one ice-cream? Black & Tan might be the answer! Basing a flavor on a drink that itself is a bit gross is a good start – the Black & Tan is a mixture of pale ale and a darker stout, like Guinness. The stout sits at the top, while the pale ale sits at the bottom, creating a kind of beery tequila-sunset effect. Why anyone feels the need to mix their beers up is one question and why Ben & Jerry’s would choose to mimic it in ice-cream form is another.
But the real controversy came from the choice of name. While Black & Tans are drunk in the US, they are not popular in Ireland. The reason for that is that “Black and Tan” was the name given to the brutal British paramilitary force that made up part of the Royal Irish Constabulary. Their vicious attacks against Irish civilians meant that the name Black & Tan stirred up some very unwelcome memories in the Irish markets. Surprisingly, it wasn’t popular!

9. Pumpkin Cheesecake

From the cringe-inducingly inappropriate to the just-slightly-strange. For many people, this was a few steps too far. Outside the States, pumpkin isn’t hugely popular but most people understand that pumpkin pie is a popular autumn treat. But pumpkin cheesecake? That’s a bit odd. And pumpkin cheesecake ice-cream? Too weird! Throw a few graham crackers in and you have the recipe for a limited run only. Still, US-based food bloggers like Junk Food Guy loved it!

8. Peanut Butter and Jelly

Another American classic that didn’t quite translate to a tasty ice-cream. As the gravestone says above it managed to “flop in a cone”.  Why is it that something that works so well in a sandwich is just strange in ice-cream? It featured strawberry jelly and peanut butter chunks, but sadly only featured in the Ben & Jerry’s range for a year.

7. Hubby Hubby

There’s more peanut butter in this controversial entry. The flavor itself was a long-established B&J’s classic called “Chubby Hubby”, but was renamed in 2009 to celebrate the legalization of gay marriage in Vermont. It’s a brave move to make, when much of big business in America is controlled by right-wing, anti-gay marriage lobbyists. But Ben & Jerry are ex-hippies and it comes as no surprise that they’re in favor of equal rights for all. Their chief exective, Walt Freese, explained it like this: “At the core of Ben & Jerry’s values, we believe that social justice can and should be something that every human being is entitled to”.
An admirable stand, but you’ve gotta snigger at the choice of peanuts in this ice-cream. Just me? OK then….

6. Tennessee Mud

Ben & Jerry’s certainly aren’t afraid to take American institutions and incorporate them into their flavors. Sadly, it doesn’t always work. Like the PB&J example above, this attempt to ice-cream-ify iconic whiskey brand Jack Daniels didn’t quite work. I’m in awe of the fact that they even managed to manufacture it – the very low freezing point of alcohol means that making alcoholic ice-cream is a tricky business. But they did it, and Ol’ Jack stood in the freezer compartments unloved for a year. Maybe the name wasn’t that appealing either?

5. Economic Crunch

Current affairs and ice-cream aren’t natural bed-fellows. True, Ben & Jerry’s renamed one of their flavors “Yes Pecan” in honor of Obama, but I mean, for most people the two don’t mix. Which is probably why this flavor to commemorate the 1987 stock market crash never really took off. Bitter stockbrokers who had lost everything weren’t in the mood to buy topical ice-cream, even one with chocolate covered almonds, pecans and walnuts. Strangely enough, they didn’t reissue it for the 2008 credit crunch!

4. Dave Matthews Band Magic Brownies

Just a random one, this. As hippies, music would have been very important to Ben and Jerry (see the famous “Cherry Garcia” flavor that references Jerry Garcia), so I get that they want to do a music-related link up every now and then. Dave Matthews Band just seems like a bit of a random choice! And as hippies, they definitely would have been aware of the connatation of “Magic Brownies”. I assume these are just magic because they taste really good but you never know, with these sneaky hippy types! I’m aamzed they didn’t get into more trouble with the anti-drugs lobbies over this. Leading our impressionable youth astray and all that…

3. Taste the Lin-sanity

This one, meanwhile, created a whole bunch of controversy when it was released in scoop shops last year. It was created in honor of Asian-American basketball player Jeremy Lin and contained lychee honey pieces and fortune cookies. There was instant outrage, with the media branding the company racist, and the fortune crackers were swiftly replaced with waffle cookies. At first, the company said that this was because the fortune cookies got soggy, but they later apologized and said they were “swept up” in the Harvard graduate’s success in the NBA. The flavor was only ever intended to be a Boston scoop-shop release, but it’s not surprising that they didn’t decide to add it to the main range.  Despite the controversy, it still sold out at the Harvard branch, so maybe all publicity is good publicity after all?

2.  Vermonty Python

Now, this is barely a controversy as controversies go but it was still an unusual choice. Monty Python were a British comedy troupe of the 1970s, who created widespread outrage with their film “Life of Brian”, as Brian portrayed a Christ-like character in first century Galilee. For this and many other reason, they have never been popular with the Christians of Middle America. So naming an ice-cream after them in the US is a pretty bold step, especially with the Python-esque graphics and the “fudge cows” in-joke. In Britain, it would barely have raised an eyebrow but it was never going to be mainstream enough to be widely popular.

1. Schweddy Balls

And at the number one spot, we find an ice-cream that’s both controversial and mildly disgusting. Schweddy Balls caused widespread outrage when it hit stores in 2011. OneMillionMoms, who are affiliated with the American Family Association branded it “vulgar” and “repulsive” and called for a boycott of Ben and Jerry’s as a result. The ice-cream contained fudge-covered rum balls and malt balls, which OneMillionMoms suggested “sexualised” ice-cream.
The problem was – as it often is with these things – that they didn’t get the joke. It came from a Saturday Night Live skit where Alec Baldwin, in the guise of Pete Schweddy tries to pitch his various “balls” – rum balls, cheese balls, popcorn balls – and concludes “No one can resist my Schweddy Balls”. Audiences loved it, and Ben & Jerry’s flavor was simply a tribute to the skit.
Try telling that to outraged Moms though! Though no-one forced them to buy Schweddy Balls, the very notion that it might be available in their local grocery store thoroughly enraged them. Of course, most kids wouldn’t think twice about the name and those who are old enough to get it – i.e. teenagers – would find it funny. Ben & Jerry’s defended themselves by saying that their customers too would get the joke.
The last line has to go to Pete Schweddy creator Alec Baldwin, who said of the dessert: “For a long time, I thought that ‘Here Lies Pete Schweddy’ would end up on my tombstone. Now, thanks to Ben & Jerry’s, the goodness of the Schweddy family recipe won’t go with me to the great beyond. It is immortalized here, right now, and it’s an ice cream. Ben & Jerry’s and Schweddy. Two great names in American dessert, together at last”.
So, if Schweddy Balls are good enough for Pete Schweddy himself, they must be good enough for the American public, hey?