The scoop on flavors

Ask anyone what his or her favorite flavor of ice cream is and you're bound to get an enthusiastic response.

"Mint chocolate chip," was Cindy Nacson-Schechter's quick answer at Timothy's ice cream parlor on Fairfield Avenue in Bridgeport last Thursday. She and three friends from Stamford, with eight children in tow, had heard about the shop famous for its homemade ice cream and had to check it out.

But her friend, Sheri Jacobson, had trouble deciding. Cookies and cream, chocolate, peanut butter and coffee were all her favorites, she said.

Coffee seemed to be the order of the day, even among the very young.

Just minutes before, Thani Tuminski, 5, of Bridgeport, had come to Timothy's with his babysitter, Kait Torres, 15, and his baby sister, Amaris, 11 months, for a dish of coffee ice cream. Pressing his nose against the glass counter shield, he patiently watched as Brigitte Larkin, 16, daughter of Timothy's owner, Timothy Larkin, expertly scooped his order for him. Putting a creamy spoonful into his mouth, Thani promptly pronounced it "good."

Since starting his business 25 years ago, Larkin has always made his own ice cream. Now son Danny, 18, helps, too, he said. Daily, Timothy's sells between 30 and 50 gallons of ice cream and offers about 12 different flavors, he said. Seven are standards that Larkin tries to have on the menu every day: sweet cream, French vanilla, Dutch chocolate, Oreo cookies, coffee, mint chocolate chip and strawberry.

He, like other

experts we spoke to, said vanilla continues to be the No. 1 flavor among his customers and has been for years. With the trend of more exotic flavors being introduced to consumers over the last few years - from avocado to a zinfandel sorbet - and what may seem like a national obsession with chocolate, why has plain old vanilla reigned in the top spot for so long?

"A lot of people are pretty traditional," he said. "Almost everyone in our business sells vanilla and it's used a lot in sundaes."

And in those famous "mix-ins," vanilla ice cream blended with your choice of fruit, nuts and candies. In fact, Cold Stone Creamery has created an empire with that trend.

At Timothy's, customer Stephanie Cutrone, 25, of Bethel, did go a little unconventional with her choice of chocolate banana, pronouncing it delicious.

"I love experimenting with different foods," said Cutrone, who said her absolute favorite is the pumpkin ice cream Timothy's makes in the fall.

Tony Nascimento, owner of Il Bacio ("the kiss" in Italian) in Danbury, has been making his own ice cream for 21 years. Every day customers can choose from among 50 different flavors, which he is constantly changing so his customers won't get bored, he said. To make great ice cream, you have to start with good cream, he said.

Everything follows after that.

"[Ice cream] should be enjoyable," he said. "The first thing you should taste is the cream and then it should come alive with a nice, lively flavor."

Seniors, he said, like the old favorites - butter pecan, maple walnut, pistachio - while kids like the inventive ones he's created, such as cupcake and Cookie Monster (it's blue and named for you-know-who from "Sesame Street").

Teens like the mix-ins, while men stay pretty traditional, picking vanilla, chocolate and maybe rocky road, he said.

"Women like the exotic side - coconut, mango, tiramisu," he said.

But, the big ice cream giants like Nestle, which also owns Haagen-Dazs, Edy's and Starbucks ice cream, stick to the tried and true flavors, said flavorologist John Harrison, the company's official ice cream taster, probably the best job in the world.

"It's the Willy Wonka job," Harrison agreed. "I get paid to taste ice cream. That's fun. Ice cream is fun."

As the fourth generation in his family to be in the ice cream business and with a background in chemistry, Harrison joined Edy's 25 years ago. (Nestle acquired it three years ago, he said.) He said searching for a star flavor is what drives every ice cream maker. In 1982 he developed one that is still produced and today is ranked No. 5 among his company's top flavors - cookies 'n cream. (Vanilla is No. 1 for Nestle's, too, followed by chocolate, Neapolitan and butter pecan.)

But, the job isn't all sweetness and light. First thing in the morning he has to be careful about what he eats and drinks - no strong foods like onions or peppers - and no slapping on after shave, either, which might affect his sense of taste, he said. Five days a week at the Bakersfield, Calif., plant he tastes about 60 different products and 20 different flavors as part of development and quality control.

His tasting method can be summarized by the three S's, he said: Swirl, smack and spit.

"You don't have to swallow to taste. We use our eyes initially. Then comes the flavor and last is the texture," he continued. "Appearance, flavor and texture. All three have to be orchestrated perfectly to have a good eating experience."

Each year, Nestle Ice Cream introduces 25 new flavors. When Harrison started, there were 16 flavors and one style of ice cream - premium. Today there are more than 200 flavors and 10 different styles, he said.

Edy's sales in 1982 were about $1 million, he said, and today Nestle's sales are $2.5 billion.

American produces about 1.6 billion gallons of ice cream and frozen desserts a year, according to the International Dairy Foods Association. No wonder a whole month - July - is dedicated to ice cream.

At Rich Farm Ice Cream in Oxford, owner Dawn Rich said creating flavors for the family-owned business is a team effort.

"We take ideas from customers, employees and the couple of us who make the ice cream," she said. Like Timothy's, they make seasonal favorites such as strawberry-rhubarb in spring and a rich chocolate concoction whenever there's a full moon.

While consumers are becoming more sophisticated in their tastes, some things, however, stay the same, said Larkin.

"There's a customer who wants to try something new and says, 'I haven't seen that before,' tastes it and says, 'It's good, but I'm going to get what I always get,' " he said.

Nestle Ice Cream is inviting kids to try out for a chance to be a "Flavorologist for a Day." Ten youngsters will be chosen to tour the Nestle Ice Cream factory in California and have the opportunity to taste outlandish flavors like spaghetti and meatball frozen pops.

To enter, submit your idea for the world's coolest frozen pop, including a clever name and unique flavor description and a resume explaining why you are qualified for the position.

Deadline is Friday. Contestants must be between the ages of 6 and 12.

Enter at www.icecream.com or mail submission to: Flavorologist for a Day, Nestle Ice Cream, 5929 College Ave., Oakland CA 94618.

Top 10 ice cream flavors

1. vanilla
2. chocolate
3. strawberry
4. peach
5. banana
6. coffee
7. green tea
8. coconut
9. butter pecan
10. peanut butter

Cool exotic flavors:

Avocado
Chai
Taro root
Sweet corn
Guinness

From online surveys by Yahoo! Buzz