Following 2020’s “Fan Favorite” resurrection of Gimme S’more, Peanut Butter Half Baked, and Cannoli, Ben & Jerry’s has once again taken a trip to its Flavor Graveyard and used ice cream voodoo to summon a heralded classic from the dead. Previously RIP’d in 2012, Dublin Mudslide is Irish cream ice cream with chocolate chocolate chip cookies and a coffee fudge swirl.

Irish cream is one of those flavors that seems to have been around my entire life in various forms, from Milano cookies to (more recently) Starbucks drinks, but I’ve never fully understood what it’s supposed to taste like. In its purest form, it’s a mixture of whiskey and milk, but I’ve had iterations that taste more like vanilla, coffee, or even chocolate. So I went into this pint not knowing what to expect.

The base tastes like a really rich sweet cream with a hint of whiskey. The booziness is mild but it’s definitely there, and adds a faint smoky oak note that brings a little depth and intrigue to the otherwise good but tame ice cream. Its main strength is its silky smooth and dense texture, a result of the mere presence of alcohol in the mixture, and it’s fantastic. I wouldn’t mind more punchiness like I’m taking a straight liqueur swig but I can’t deny the velvety richness of the mouthfeel.

For this reinvented version, Ben & Jerry’s teamed up with Wheyward Spirit, a new liquor derived from whey, the liquid co-product of cheese and other dairy products. By partnering with domestic dairy producers they’re able to reduce waste and lower the environmental footprint of production while simultaneously creating a unique and sip-able booze. The Wheyward’s flavor is like a slightly fruity cross between sake and tequila, but in Dublin Mudslide it does a solid job of conjuring mild whiskey.

The mix-in density is excellent, and I’m really happy with the quality control compared to this year’s Chewy Gooey Cookie. The cookies add a rich chocolate flavor with hints of butter and a perfectly soft chew, accented by the crunchiness of harder chocolate chips.

Bringing some sauciness to the equation, the coffee fudge swirl is abundant and tasty with a 60/40 split of chocolate to coffee that does well to add a touch of bitterness to the succulently smooth and mild ice cream. The two components work well in a coffee-meets-chocolate mocha tandem that tastes perfectly familiar and comfortable next to the alcohol-tinged base.

It became clear to me while scooping this pint that the confusion around what an Irish cream flavored product tastes like stems from the fact that something like Baileys is often mixed with other components. You can drink Irish cream straight, but it feels so much more common in an Irish coffee, White Russian cocktail, or even hot chocolate, so this Ben & Jerry’s creation kind of taps into all the components that could be found with Irish cream and brings them together as one.

This is a well executed flavor that does everything it tries to do as quietly but effectively as possible. There’s a little bit of whiskey, a little bit of coffee, and a little bit more chocolate. I can see why this would be considered a fan favorite, and kudos to Ben & Jerry’s for the excellent quality control. I would personally enjoy a stronger handed boozy flourish but I can’t deny how lovely this one is to scoop.

DISCLOSURE: I originally purchased a pint, but also received a free product sample from Ben & Jerry’s and attended a virtual tasting hosted by the company. Doing so did not influence my review.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: One Pint
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup, 134g) 340 calories, 18 grams of fat, 11 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 65 milligrams of cholesterol, 170 milligrams of sodium, 40 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 34 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.

What is Ben & Jerry’s Chewy Gooey Cookie?

Just in time for Girl Scout Cookie season, Ben & Jerry’s put its own spin on the purple-boxed caramel-y classic Samoas. Chewy Gooey Cookie combines milk chocolate and coconut ice creams with fudge flakes, shortbread cookies, and caramel swirls.

How is it?

It’s good, but not great.

The coconut ice cream is fantastic. I can’t recall the last time B&J’s used this in one of its dairy pints, if ever. It’s sweet and creamy with pieces of shredded coconut that add little pockets of chewiness to the predominately smooth landscape. I really like it. The milk chocolate base was the right choice over the standard, darker chocolate, as its milky sweetness doesn’t overpower the coconut’s gentler fruity and nutty notes. I don’t enjoy the chocolate nearly as much as the coconut on its own, but there’s no denying they’re a dream team when enjoyed in tandem.

The mix-ins do a great job of bringing the Samoas experience full circle when they’re present, but I wish there were more! Most notably, the caramel swirls are pretty thin, and I have to hunt to get some on my spoon. Surprisingly the fudge flakes are also relatively light, and as the least interesting inclusion, I didn’t think I would miss them. But I do wish I had more crunch.

The shortbread cookies are the most prominent of the three, and they’re crucial to realizing the cookie concept. That crumbly floury texture is pivotal to the Samoas, and while I wish their flavor had a bit more of a buttery and salty punch, I overall appreciate what they bring to the pint.

Anything else you need to know?

I know this isn’t Girl Scouts-branded, but I’m fixating on that because the homage jumped out at me when I read the description. Samoas are my favorite Scout cookie, oftentimes overshadowed by Thin Mints. Coincidentally last year, Ben & Jerry’s released an ice cream called Thick Mint, so someone at the company definitely loves these cookies, and I can get behind that.

Conclusion:

Even though the milk chocolate base is good, I would have preferred a fudge swirl for a more interesting texture and dense flavor and to not take any real estate away from the excellent coconut base. There’s a ton of potential in this pint, but it’s lacking the pizazz that some of B&J’s more effective outings, like Phish Food with its legendary dual swirl, bring to the table. Is this ice cream chewy? Absolutely. Is it gooey? Eh, not quite, but it could be exceptional with a couple of tweaks.

Purchased Price: $4.99
Size: One Pint
Purchased at: Safeway
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (2/3 cup, 140g) 360 calories, 20 grams of fat, 13 grams of saturated fat, 0.5 grams of trans fat, 60 milligrams of cholesterol, 150 milligrams of sodium, 41 grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of fiber, 31 grams of sugar, 5 grams of protein.