July is National Ice Cream Month, and the St. Louis area is fortunate to have so many choices when it comes to enjoying a cool, creamy, dreamy scoop of everyone’s favorite treat that’s definitely worth screaming for.
Officially signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, National Ice Cream Month has been celebrated since 1984. And as if you needed another excuse to indulge, National Ice Cream Day was also included in the presidential proclamation, falling smack dab in the middle of the month on Sunday, July 17.
One of the sweetest spots in town, Clementine’s Ice Cream, is gearing up for the festivities with an in-store celebration planned for July 17 and the introduction of six new flavors (four “nice” and two “naughty”) this month.
The latest flavor lineup includes four “nice” flavors inspired by everyone’s favorite boy wizard. Fans know that July is Harry Potter’s birthday month and it also marks the 20th anniversary of the first “Harry Potter” movie. To celebrate, Clementine’s has concocted Fizzie Whizzle Bees (vegan coconut, pineapple and other fun flavors flavors, plus pink Poprocks!), Triple Berry Crumpet (vegan mulberry, gooseberry, goji berries, raspberries, sea salt and more), Chocolate Frog (lime and coconut with a chocolate fudge swirl), and Buttered Beer (scratch-made butterscotch ‘beer’ with vanilla, butter, brown sugar and sea salt).
The two new “naughty” flavors are Flirty Shirley and Bourbon Peach Sweet Tea.
Gazelle recently spoke with Clementine’s founder and CEO Tamara Keefe (TK) to get the scoop on the shop’s newest flavors.
GAZELLE: THE WIZARD-THEMED FLAVORS ARE SO MUCH FUN! HOW DID THEY COME ABOUT?
TK: 2022 marks the 20th anniversary of the release of the first movie! After I watched the documentary from earlier this year, I knew this feeling of nostalgia and excitement for the return of our favorite witches and wizards could echo through our ice cream scoop shops. I thought about what iconic food and drink from the books and movies could transform into ice cream. Buttered Beer, Chocolate Frog and Fizzie Whizzle Bees are all treats Harry enjoys on the train to school and in the neighboring village. You don’t have to travel to a faraway land to experience his favorite treats.
GAZELLE: WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THE NEW “NAUGHTY” FLAVORS?
TK: Our Flirty Shirley flavor was inspired by the cocktail of the summer, the Dirty Shirley, which is essentially a Shirley Temple spiked with vodka. Our “naught” flavor uses Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur and fresh Tillen Farms maraschino cherries for a spoonful of the same bright, bubbly taste as our favorite childhood soda.
Peach iced tea in the backyard is a summertime must at my house. Add a splash of bourbon and it’s the drink you can’t get enough of! Our Bourbon Peach Sweet Tea draws inspiration from my summer nights and uses Big Heart Co. Malawi Black Tea with peach, lemon, brown sugar and vanilla extract.
GAZELLE: HOW DO NEW FLAVORS BECOME PART OF THE REGULAR ROTATION? DO YOU HAVE A CRITERIA FOR MAKING THEM PERMANENT MENU OFFERINGS?
TK: We have 14 signature flavors that are available year-round at all of our scoop shops. These include our Clementine’s staples like Gooey Butter Cake and Italian Butter Cookie. For the other nine options in-store, we come up with new flavors and bring back seasonal flavors so you always have a new flavor to try each time you visit us. Every summer, we bring back Honey Lavender, Front Porch Mint Chip and Blue Moon. The only recent flavors that have made the jump from seasonal to signature are Vegan Tahini Chocolate Chip and Salted Caramel Cookies & Cream. We had so many comments and messages about keeping those two flavors available that we knew it would be a loss not to make them available for the remainder of the year.
Beginning at noon on Sunday, July 17, all six St. Louis-area Clementine’s Ice Cream locations will have giveaways, including free limited-edition t-shirts (one per family, while supplies last) and a chance for one lucky customer per store to win ice cream for an entire year.
