Tea time is a special time. Whether doing it up super proper with finger sandwiches and scones garnished with Devonshire cream, or just making a cup at home and cozying up with a good book, the relaxing nature of warmth and caffeine brings joy to my soul. Pair that up with a delicious sweet treat and you have yourself an ultimate recipe for success. The same can be said for a mellow date to the ice cream shop, full of brimming scoops and smiles; few activities top my list of good times like those defined by waffle cones. Once again tugging at my heart strings to combine the best of both worlds into one experience, JC’s Scoops gave the world Tea & Biscuits, which is sweet milk tea ice cream with ribbons of cookie butter and pieces of tea biscuits.

Off the bat I have an immediate love hate relationship with this ice cream. As much as I love tea, I’m not the biggest fan of tea flavored ice cream, and I’m happy to say, but also terribly confused, that this pint doesn’t have a single note of tea flavor. There are none of the tannin-y nuances I would expect from tea, but there is a huge spicy cinnamon flavor that I absolutely love. From my first spoonful in I got a big bold speculoos flavor like I had turned a jar of cookie butter straight into ice cream, and the notes of cinnamon and cloves are demandingly delicious.

The pieces of tea biscuits are ample, so much so that the ice cream actually has a bit more of a bread-y, gritty texture than the smooth and creamy that I anticipated. It isn’t unpleasant though, as the creaminess is still there underneath the biscuits and in the ribbon of cookie butter, which works in tandem with the base to pop a very powerful but well balanced flavor. The biscuits are nice and soft and have somehow maintained their fluffiness, taking on a texture that reminds me of graham crackers that have been completely submerged in milk and beginning to disintegrate with perfection.

I love this pint from JC’s Scoops, but I think it could do with a little revision in its name. While the warm spicy flavors definitely channel the feeling I get from a relaxing tea time, I don’t get any of the flavors that I expect from an ice cream with this name. The base definitely compliments the cookie butter well, but it also eats much more like a speculoos ice cream than a tea one. As a whole it works, I just can’t help but feel like if I wanted a frozen tea experience I might be a little let down. Still, I can’t stop eating this stuff, and it’s one of the best speculoos ice creams I’ve ever had.

Rating: 8.5/10
Found at: Sprouts ($4.99)