Ciao Bella Chocolate Jalapeño Gelato

I think by now it's safe to say that anyone who has read several of my reviews knows that I am a chili head. I love hot sauce, I love peppers, I love candy with peppers in it. And while I was browsing through Ciao Bella's website, I saw that among all the flavors they offer, one of them is a chocolate jalapeño! So I went on a quest to find it locally...and I came up dry. I finally contacted the nice folks at Ciao Bella, and they were kind enough to pass a pint along to me -- so thank you, Ciao Bella!

This gelato is made with West African chocolate, and it's not merely flavored with jalapeño. No indeed, this gelato is spiked with actual pieces of jalapeño. Clearly, an auspicious omen!



At first glance, the gelato looks like any of the other Ciao Bella chocolate gelatos. It's a dark, rich milky brown. (It's actually a lot darker in color than it appears in these photos. I blame the camera flash.) The aroma is that of a slightly spicy chocolate. As if there might be cinnamon lurking somewhere within.

So now we know what it looks like and smells like...but how does it taste?

It starts off harmless enough. It reminded me of a deep Dutch chocolate. Very strongly cocoa flavored, and a little sweet. It's a really tasty chocolate that would be good even on its own.



After a few moments, you're hit with a peppery spice and then the sweet, slow burn of the jalapeño. And yes, as stated above, there really are little green bits of jalapeño pepper in the gelato. Just little itty bitty tiny pieces, but it adds a unique texture -- it's a little crunchy, and there are even some seeds.



The level of heat varies depending on how many jalapeño bits/seeds you get in your spoonful. The heat is cumulative, though it remained low on my personal scale of hotness. But I loved the combination. The milk mellows the jalapeño burn and keeps it from becoming overwhelming. At the same time, the peppers add depth to the chocolate.

I warn the meek: there is no mistaking the fact that there are jalapeños here. And for those of you who prefer the heat in low doses, it might be a little intense for you.

This surely wouldn't be the gelato of choice for everyone. But if you chase the burn, it is well worth tracking down. Delicious!



PURCHASED FROM:
Sample from company

CALORIES:
230 calories per 1/2 cup serving.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE:
ciaobellagelato.com

Ciao Bella Malted Milk Ball Gelato

Who doesn't love a good malted milk ball? You just gotta feel sorry for all the little malted milk men. (A cookie if you know the source of that one!) I love the airy crunch, the sweetness, and the little hint of vanilla. And how could you not love that in ice cream? Or, in this case, gelato.

Ciao Bella's version has a malted cream flavored gelato base that is studded with ginormous pieces of malted milk balls. There are even whole balls in there! (Oh no...I sense my inner 13-year-old boy emerging yet again...)

If you give the pint a good whiff, you pick up the faintest notes of malt. (It is perfectly normal to smell your ice cream, right?)



The base of the gelato has the taste of a classic malted shake (or a "frappe," if you hail from the land of my birth). It's not as sweet as plain vanilla. It has that nice toasty taste to it.

The malt balls themselves are huge. They are easily twice as bigger as Whoppers or Maltesers (depending on your side of the pond). While I give them points for being covered in actual chocolate -- yes, Whoppers, I am pointing the cold finger of judgment at you -- it is not the best chocolate ever. It's oily, and that's about the strongest flavor it has. Fortunately, the malt center is quite good. It's airy, and it stayed quite crisp -- which added greatly to the texture.



Even with the so-so chocolate, this is seriously good. The texture is blissfully rich and creamy, and the malty flavor was absolutely addicting.

Definitely worth trying.



PURCHASED FROM:
Vons Supermarket

PRICE:
$3.99

CALORIES:
200 calories per half-cup serving.

ADDITIONAL INFO:
Made with equipment that also processes eggs, soy, tree nuts, and peanuts.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE:
ciaobellagelato.com

Ciao Bella Blackberry Cabernet Sorbet

I know that wine sorbets are not exactly new, but with the lone exception of the Cabernet sorbet from Bennett's Ice Cream at the Los Angeles Farmers Market, I have not had the chance to try any other versions.

Mind you, I've seen the pint containers of Ciao Bella Blackberry Cabernet Sorbet in supermarkets for at least a year, and I've kept coming up with reasons not to get it. But I figured, hey -- it's Christmas Eve, and if that isn't as good an excuse to indulge as any, there'll never be a better one. (Well, OK, maybe New Year. But I didn't feel like waiting another week.)



The sorbet is a deep purple. It really does look like frozen Cabernet. It also smells like Cabernet. Yes, I like it when things that are flavored with wine and/or liqueur actually look and taste like the real thing.



So, does it taste like the real thing? YES IT DOES!

The first thing you taste is an explosion of berries. It's very sweet -- kinda like raspberries, cherries, and blueberries had an orgy, followed by the birth of a really purple baby. (I'll otherwise not speculate on what a creature with three biological parents might be like. Suffice to say I live in Southern California, which is entirely weird enough already.)

Just when you start thinking the berries are a little too sweet, the tart, slightly puckering grape emerges.

You know the way good red wine tastes after you've held it in your mouth for a few seconds so that it's warmed slightly from your own body heat, and then you swallow it? That's exactly the flavor that kicks in. If you don't know what that is like, I'm not sure I can do it justice but here goes... It's like slightly sour grapes, there's a little cherry and some currants. It's sort of like a frozen wine cooler -- but I mean that in the best way possible.

Y'know what? Just get some of this!



PURCHASED FROM:
Vons Supermarket

Ciao Bella Key Lime Graham Cracker Gelato

Back when I reviewed the Ben & Jerry's Key Lime Pie ice cream, reader Carrie suggested that I try this gelato.

And how could I possibly deny any of you dear readers a request? Yes, that is just how much I care! I care so deeply and profoundly that I will actually eat gelato for you guys...hey, someone has to do it...I am telling you, I am such a giver...



Now, I do have a favorite gelato -- and that would be any flavor sold by the wonderful folks at Grom Gelato on New York City's Upper West Side.

But I have had Ciao Bella's sorbets and been very impressed. (The Blood Orange is SOOOO good!) And I gotta tell you, for pre-packaged gelato, you will be hard pressed to find better than Ciao Bella.

I would like to thank Carrie for not steering me wrong. When she said that the lime flavor in Ciao Bella's version went KA-POW, she was not kidding. The lime is so vibrant and fresh it's almost like the juice was squeezed directly onto the creamy base.



The gelato is rich and perfectly smooth...except for the soft, delectable crumbs of graham cracker mixed throughout. The base has a light and mild, almost honeyed taste.

There is nothing about this gelato that isn't good. Even if aliens came in the middle of the night and sucked out your taste buds in some freakish experiment worthy of a call to Coast to Coast AM, you would STILL be able to tell how good it tastes.

Now go to the store, get some, and then leave comments telling Carrie how grateful you are to her.



PURCHASED FROM:
Vons Supermarket