Guinness Ice Cream Review

So, I had a chance to taste my ice cream, and I have to say the recipe needs some work. Flavor-wise, there is much too much molasses. Half of the called-for amount would probably still be more than enough. As it is, you wouldn't know the ice cream was supposed to be Guinness Flavored unless you were told.

I knew from the outset that I probably hadn't reduced the Guinness enough, and I was very right. The ice cream had a very icy texture, thanks mostly to the extra water in the beer. Next time around I think I'll use two bottles, and reduce them much further (just like the original recipe suggests). I'm hoping this will also help to intensify the beer flavor. Most of the alcohol will be cooked out during the reduction process, but it's the roasted barley flavor that I really want to preserve. That's what I get for cutting corners.

Also, while this particular recipe didn't call for heating the entire mixture, I think I may do that as well next time. Many ice cream recipes include this step, and I think it helps with the consistency. The ingredients separated slightly in the freezer, resulting in a bottom layer that was much more icy and beer-y than the top layer.

So, batch two will be attempted just as soon as I can procure myself a few spare bottles of the Good Stuff. I'll keep you posted.