It’s the middle of winter in St. Louis. The 7-day forecast calls for temperatures near 70 degrees. Break out the flip flops and sunnies. Who knew that February would be…ice cream season?
To celebrate, Clementine’s Naughty & Nice Creamery has rolled out five new spring flavors a little early, including one that’s truly unique. For Black Cherry Ash, owner Tamara Keefe uses Amarena cherries infused with activated charcoal to create a color as black as Flicka and a glossy sheen to match. Clementine’s is the first micro-creamery in the country to use the natural ingredient in an ice cream flavor, but the idea makes sense. When ingested, activated charcoal traps toxins and chemicals in the body like a magnet, so Keefe is justified when she boasts the ice cream’s “awesome health benefits as well.” The charcoal is the consistency of a super fine powder, so there’s a faint trace of grittiness on the back end (that’s only perceptible when one learns the secret ingredient).
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The intense cherry flavor comes from Amarena cherries, a wild Italian variety traditionally packed in sweet syrup. Anyone who’s tasted this cherry will want another, but the cost per cherry (.38 cents each) often negates such a request (which is why you never see a mixologist-issued Manhattan containing more than one).
Keefe has never been one to skimp on ingredients, however, regardless of cost. We tasted the Black Cherry Ash, and found Keefe’s claims to be true: the cherries are abundant throughout and the dark cherry flavor as intense as the color.
Black foods can be off-putting (an indication that something’s been burned), which is why so few are ever encountered. In the past, some ice creams (like the legendary Velvet Freeze flavor, Gold Coast Chocolate) have been dark in color, but nothing approaching the true black of Black Cherry Ash.
Keefe is known for creating adventurous flavors, so hearing that Beet Strawberry Sorbet (pictured at right) is also in the ice cream case this spring comes as no surprise. It’s a smooth blend of fresh strawberries and organic, cold pressed beet juice (supplied by Simon Lusky’s Revel Kitchen) that tastes far more of berry than beet.
Rounding out the spring roster are Blackberry Buttermilk (local Missouri organic blackberries, scratch-made buttermilk, and sweet cream), and a boozy flavor conjuring the B-52 shooter (made with Kahlua, Irish Crème, and Triple Sec), a nod to the celebration of Mardi Gras.
Vegan ice cream was an unexpectedly huge seller at Clementine’s in 2016, accounting for a whopping 25 percent of by-the-pint sales. In response, Keefe rolled out Vegan Salted Caramel, made from cashews, coconut milk, and a caramel sauce made from dates. No further explanation is necessary, Ms. Keefe: you had us at salted caramel.
Twenty-four flavors are currently on the ice cream rail at Clementine’s (including two vegan and a vegan sorbet), with more available as grab-and-go pints.
