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Talenti Gelato and Sorbet (2003), Frozen Desserts Made in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Widely Available - A Subsidiary of Unilever as of 2014


DonRocks

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What do people think of Talenti gelati and sorbets? The first time I ever tried them, I thought they were about as good as any premium brand of ice-cream product on the market, and I *still* think they are, but has anyone noticed that they've become ubiquitous, and that you can even find them at Rite Aid

I suspect the reason for the massive increase in distribution is that the company (which was founded in 2003) was acquired by Unilever, the world's third-largest consumer goods company, with $60 billion in annual revenue, in Dec, 2014. Although Talenti is a subsidiary, they're still accountable - literally accountable - to Unilever, and I'm wondering if anyone has noticed a change (I'm not convinced I have, except for the increase in distribution; although I did just recently notice that they're going out of their way to explain why they're using dextrose). 

My guess is that if they're left alone, they can maintain a high level of quality, but if they're micro-managed, the product will go the way of Häagen-Dazs (General Mills) and Ben & Jerry's (also a subsidiary of Unilever, which, to me, foreshadows The End of Talenti in the next 5-10 years).

If you haven't noticed a precipitous drop in quality in Ben & Jerry's over the past fifteen years, then you're not my target audience.

Cheers,
Rocks

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The weird thing about B&J these days is that so many of the flavors are so similar - white ice cream with some choc and caramel and something that used to be crunchy - and really so boring.  If Talenti goes down that beige road too, I will be sad.  Why don't rich people eat strawberry ice cream any more for pete's sake?

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I used to be a big fan of Talenti. When they first came on the scene, most (if not all) of the varieties they sold had very few ingredients, and ones that clearly made sense given the flavor of ice cream. Lately, the ingredients list is growing, and I recently had their Key Lime Pie flavor and was amazed to find there was no "lime" listed among the ingredients. 

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3 hours ago, JoshNE said:

I used to be a big fan of Talenti. When they first came on the scene, most (if not all) of the varieties they sold had very few ingredients, and ones that clearly made sense given the flavor of ice cream. Lately, the ingredients list is growing, and I recently had their Key Lime Pie flavor and was amazed to find there was no "lime" listed among the ingredients. 

I honestly thought maybe I had imagined this when I last checked the ingredient list, that perhaps they never had a very pure ingredient list and I had simply imagined it because of the price you pay. :P I've stayed away from it more recently though and it's nice to know I wasn't crazy. 

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I've found Talenti to be pretty tasty - I especially like their salted caramel flavor. For those who want basic, simple ingredients in your ice cream - just make your own. Ice cream makers are pretty cheap, super easy to use, and work best with simple recipes and for eating ice cream soon after making (after a short cure period in the freezer).  I use the pretty ubiquitous cusinart ice cream maker.  I've found basic flavors like vanilla or fresh fruits like peach, blackberry, etc work best. Depending on the recipe, you can have a basic vanilla made in a few hours (with only about 30 minutes "cooking" time and 24 hour advance time to pre-chill the mixing container).  With this basic vanilla you can add any baked good, candy, liquid flavoring, etc very easily.  I mostly use the old little red B&J ice cream cookbook for homemade recipes.

When I go to buy store bought ice cream I'm typically looking for more complex flavors/mix ins a la caramels, B&J's with multiple mixed in candies/baked good.

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On May 16, 2016 at 8:47 AM, KeithA said:

I've found Talenti to be pretty tasty - I especially like their salted caramel flavor.

Same here. We were getting it pretty regularly for a while, such that we have a fairly large collection of the containers knocking around our cupboards. I thought it was getting slightly less "salted" with time, and sweeter overall. Maybe I'm not crazy? About this? Haven't bought it in a while…and yes, I've seen it pretty much at All Of The Stores, including the little campus market.

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On 5/18/2016 at 0:50 AM, Sundae in the Park said:

Same here. We were getting it pretty regularly for a while, such that we have a fairly large collection of the containers knocking around our cupboards. I thought it was getting slightly less "salted" with time, and sweeter overall. Maybe I'm not crazy? About this? Haven't bought it in a while…and yes, I've seen it pretty much at All Of The Stores, including the little campus market.

That is my favorite flavor and I agree it is less salty and more sweet.  I attributed that to the fact that the last 2 times we bought it there seems to be a ton more chunks of chocolate in the container then there used to be, which, for some odd reason, disappoints me.  

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On 5/15/2016 at 2:19 PM, DonRocks said:

What do people think of Talenti gelati and sorbets? The first time I ever tried them, I thought they were about as good as any premium brand of ice-cream product on the market, and I *still* think they are, but has anyone noticed that they've become ubiquitous, and that you can even find them at Rite Aid

I suspect the reason for the massive increase in distribution is that the company (which was founded in 2003) was acquired by Unilever, the world's third-largest consumer goods company, with $60 billion in annual revenue, in Dec, 2014. Although Talenti is a subsidiary, they're still accountable - literally accountable - to Unilever ....

On 6/23/2017 at 8:33 AM, DanielK said:

I think the writer, and half the commenters, read this thread first...

Cynic^_^

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On 5/15/2016 at 5:28 PM, Ferhat Yalcin said:

You should give a try to `gelato fiasco`. more expensive but better than what Talenti used to be.

+1 on the Gelato Fiasco.  The blueberry crunch and toasted marshmallow s'mores were interesting.  But definitely more expensive--$6.99 at Giant, but they have gone on sale before.

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So, with the Harris-Teeter buy-one get-one-free sale (= 2 for $5.79), I bought four: salted caramel peanut, vanilla blueberry crumble (?), southern butter pecan, and black raspberry chocolate.  The last one has always been the show-stopper for me, because I adore good raspberry anything.  Thus far, the salted caramel peanut is okay - not great, but certainly decent - and the black raspberry chocolate is only slightly sweeter than it used to be - i.e., still good, any definitely better than the rest of the few raspberry items out there.  I'll stick with the NYT recipe and my Cuisinart ice cream maker for salted caramel ice cream (if you haven't tried that, DO IT NOW).  Will report back on the other two flavors.

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I love the jar- but it's not even top level dishwasher safe. But I find the ice cream flavors too sweet and somewhat mouth coating and "gummy" and I find the consistency doesn't hold the cold like B &J.

My favorite off the topic cold dessert flavor is Ciao Bella blackberry Cabernet-I think the wine keeps it creamier than other sorbets.

 

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On 5/15/2016 at 2:19 PM, DonRocks said:

What do people think of Talenti gelati and sorbets? The first time I ever tried them, I thought they were about as good as any premium brand of ice-cream product on the market, and I *still* think they are, but has anyone noticed that they've become ubiquitous, and that you can even find them at Rite Aid

I suspect the reason for the massive increase in distribution is that the company (which was founded in 2003) was acquired by Unilever, the world's third-largest consumer goods company, with $60 billion in annual revenue, in Dec, 2014. Although Talenti is a subsidiary, they're still accountable - literally accountable - to Unilever, and I'm wondering if anyone has noticed a change (I'm not convinced I have, except for the increase in distribution; although I did just recently notice that they're going out of their way to explain why they're using dextrose). 

My guess is that if they're left alone, they can maintain a high level of quality, but if they're micro-managed, the product will go the way of Häagen-Dazs (General Mills) and Ben & Jerry's (also a subsidiary of Unilever, which, to me, foreshadows The End of Talenti in the next 5-10 years).

If you haven't noticed a precipitous drop in quality in Ben & Jerry's over the past fifteen years, then you're not my target audience.

Cheers,
Rocks

I just saw a commercial for Talenti on ABC World News Tonight, ie, on national network TV.

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On 4/16/2022 at 7:04 PM, DonRocks said:

I just saw a commercial for Talenti on ABC World News Tonight, ie, on national network TV.

I used to like them, but the last time I had a chocolate flavor, I thought it tasted off, so I looked at the ingredients and was surprised to see coconut oil. I don't remember seeing that on earlier containers. Haven't bought any since. 

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