Ben and jerrys grape ice cream story

So you've probably read all of the fake stories and speculation about why there isn't a grape ice cream flavor. Actually, I never wondered, because grape reminds me of chewable cold medicine I took as a kid. If you Google search why there's no grape ice cream, though, you'll find plenty of stories about how it's illegal or has to do with girls and dogs…All of that is a bit crazy.

In an interview with Thrillist, Ben and Jerry’s PR lead, Sean Greenwood, discussed this topic in more likely terms. First, he debunked (kind of) the story about how Ben had a crush on Jerry’s sister, and attempted the grape ice cream flavor to impress her, but her dog licked the ice cream and died on the spot. Bro Bible reports that the tale goes as far as to claim that the federal government then banned the making of any grape ice cream or sherbet whether naturally or artificially flavored, because of its harmfulness to dogs. Wow, I’m sure glad chocolate wasn’t banned for this reason…See how crazy that is?

Anyway, the real reason is much simpler. “Grapes are a difficult fruit,” Greenwood explains, “because of the water content.” Cherries have high water content as well, about the same as that of grapes, actually. But the effect of making grapes into ice cream creates chunks of ice throughout the frozen dessert, making a creamy consistency difficult to achieve.  Since no one is really demanding grape-flavored ice cream, Ben and Jerry don’t plan on trying that flavor any time soon.

According to Thrillist, there was one brand who did try a grape ice cream flavor, sort of. Air Heads, better known for chewy candy, tried creating a grape flavor, but it didn’t really take off. According to Instagram, though, someone is figuring it out.

The way I see it? Challenge accepted.

Finally got my grape ice cream! ?? #lumbeehomecoming #lumbeeindian #lumbeehomecoming2016 #grapeicecream #grapesarentjustforwine #backtowork

In April 2015, the web site EM Toast published a humorous (and fictional) article reporting that the FDA had banned the sale of grape-flavored ice cream in the U.S. due to pet related hazards:

Why You Can’t Buy Grape Ice Cream

There is no such thing as grape ice cream. The reason? It has a lot to do with dogs, girls, the 1876 World's Fair, pharmaceutical companies, and its more complicated than you think.

After his successful invention of the ice cream soda in 1874, Philadelphias Robert Green began to tackle a request from his customers.

Green boldly stated, in an 1876 interview with the Pennsylvania Inquirer, "The people are tired of vanilla and chocolate. They want something more. When the children come up from the mines, they are not satisfied with the plain flavors anymore. I will give them grape. The world's fair is coming. The world will have grape ice cream. This I decree."

What Green did not know, is that grapes contain a special molecule Anthocyanin that prevents freezing. Greens every attempt to create grape ice cream only produced one outcome — grape milk. He was destined to fail, but in all the excitement with the fair, no one noticed.

The EM Toast article was only initially shared a few hundreds times on social media, but an Imgur post based off the information contained in this fictional article went viral on 13 April 2015. While neither the Imgur post nor the EM Toast article included a disclaimer to indicate that the claim concerning an FDA ban on grape ice cream was false, several clues pointed to the article's fictional nature.

First, the original article was published in the "Short Fiction" section of EM Toast. Second, although the EM Toast web site did not include a statement specifically declaring its humorous intent, its "About" page simply stated that "We write what we want, when we want." Finally, grape-flavored ice cream is available at several ice cream parlors around the United States. Handel's Homemade Ice Cream and Yogurt, for instance, currently sells grape ice cream.

The EM Toast spoof was based on the notion that the consumption of grapes and raisins has been linked to renal failure in dogs, although it is highly unlikely that phenomenon would ever lead to a ban on grape-flavored human treats by the FDA. Dogs are also problematic consumers of common ingredients such as chocolate, avocados, raisins, and macadamia nuts.

Though there are many products where grape flavoring can be welcome, such as juices, sodas, popsicles, and (of course) the actual fruit, the one place you'll rarely find a grape is in your ice cream.

While many conspiracy theories have been floating around as to why the lowly grape has yet to make its way to the creamery, you might find that the real reason is the simplest of all.

Let's review.

The main idea running rampant around the Internet blames the absence of grape ice cream on the Food and Drug Administration, which banned the flavor because of pet-related hazards.

The legend goes that Ben & Jerry's created a delectable grape ice cream, which was then served to a lucky customer who loved it so much that they fed a bit of it to their beloved dog, who immediately died from ingestion. (Grapes and raisins are extremely toxic to dogs.)

After the incident, the FDA ruled that no ice cream manufacturer may sell grape-flavored ice cream.

The rumor has been spread by humor sites like EM Toast and The Chive, so it comes as no surprise that Snopes.com eventually debunked the claim that the FDA would ever intervene on behalf of grape ice cream. After all, chocolate is also poisonous to pets, and you can still buy it practically anywhere.

The real reason, sadly, is far more mundane. In an interview with Thrillist, Sean Greenwood, Ben & Jerry's director of public relations and communications, cleared up the rumors.

"Making ice cream at home, you can get fruit like grapes pretty close to a puree, but when you are using fruit as a base on a large scale, that's when you run into problems," Greenwood told Thrillist. In other words, grapes have high water content and when manufactured on a large scale, will leave you with unappetizing ice chunks in your ice cream.

Fair enough. But another beloved fruit, cherries, also have high water content, yet they are often used in classic flavor combinations like Ben & Jerry's own Cherry Garcia.

Greenwood had a response for this, too.

"Most people don't even associate grape with ice cream," he said. "People grew up on cherry and vanilla. Grape has not broken through the creme-de-glace ceiling, if you will."

Basically, it all comes down to supply and demand — and no one is demanding grape ice cream.

Greenwood also mentioned some other grape-like flavors that did not end up as part of the Ben & Jerry's family freezer.

"So, we have an actual graveyard of flavors we made and just didn't hit," he said. "One of the most iconic examples is 'Sugar Plum.' A lot of our employees still talk about how it was a fun idea, but not a great flavor."

Small ice cream shops, especially ones that specialize in offbeat flavors, have been known to make their own small batches of grape ice cream for their customers. New York City's Il Laboratorio del Gelato, for example, has four different grape sorbet varieties — concord, black, green, and red — which is close enough.

Even without interference from the FDA, it will be a long time before we see this flavor in the freezer aisle.

Why doesn't Ben and Jerry's make grape ice cream?

In fact, Ben & Jerry's actually did try to make grape ice cream once. But it got mixed reviews from taste-testing guests at the company's Flavor Lab, so the brand never bothered moving forward with it.

Is the grape ice cream real?

Ice cream comes in all sorts of fruit flavors but grape isn't often one of them. Sure, grape ice cream exists.

What is Ben and Jerry's most famous flavor?

7. Cherry Garcia. Perhaps the most iconic and well-known flavor of Ben & Jerry's, this cherry flavored ice cream named after the late founder and frontman of the Grateful Dead has become something of a flagship pint for the company, and a benchmark for the brand's success and popularity.

What flavors did Ben and Jerry's discontinued?

Tell us what flavor you'd like to see back!.

Schweddy Balls..

Wavy Gravy..

Fossil Fuel..

Turtle Soup..

Vermonty Python..

This is Nuts..

Aloha Macadamia..

Chocolate Comfort..