When it comes to store-bought pistachio ice creams, caution is a must. With Carte D'Or and its "Affogato al Pistacchio", the hope was to find at least a perceptible hint, but the tasting unfortunately tells a different story.
The label doesn't lie (unfortunately)
Just by reading the ingredients, you realize the battle is lost from the start: the pistachio cream contains just 1.5% pistachio. It's a symbolic figure, included more to justify the name on the tub than to actually give the product any character. As often happens in this market segment, the color and the name do the heavy lifting, while the flavor is left behind.
The tasting: just vanilla
Bringing the spoon to your mouth, the confirmation is immediate and, for those looking for pistachio, quite disappointing. You don't perceive any note of pistachio, neither toasted nor natural. What remains is a very basic vanilla ice cream, typical of mass-market products, made slightly more interesting by a variegation that adds an extra touch of sweetness, but without any aromatic identity of its own.
The result is a product dominated by vanilla. The variegation, while present, fails to impart that characteristic flavor one would expect from an "affogato" or a pistachio-themed offering. It's a shame, because the ice cream base is decent for its category, but it completely lacks the soul promised by the title.
Final verdict
If you are looking for a simple, sweet vanilla ice cream, this might do. But if your goal is to taste pistachio, don't bother: the star ingredient here is practically invisible. We hope that in the future Algida might revise the percentages, thus offering a more intense product.
