Ice Cream Tester Has a Sweet Job
John Harrison has what must be the most wanted job in America. He’s the official taster for Edys Grand Ice Cream, one of the nation’s best-selling brands.
His taste buds are insured for $1 million. He gets to sample 60 ice creams a day at Edys headquarters in Oakland, California.
(1) But the life of an ice cream taster, I realized after I met him last week, isn’t all Cookies n’ Cream — a flavor which Harrison invented, by the way.
(2) For one thing, he doesn’t swallow on the job. Like a coffee taster, Harrison spits. Using a gold spoon to avoid "off" flavors, he takes a smallish bite, swishes it around to introduce it to all 9,000 or so taste buds, smack-smack-smacks his lips to aerate the sample, and then gently inhales to bring the aroma up through the back of his nose.
(3) Then, no matter how heavenly it is, he deposits it into a trash can.
(4) During the workweek, other sacrifices must be made: no onions, garlic or cayenne pepper; and no caffeine.
(5) But it’s all a small price to pay for what he calls the world’s best job.
(6) Yet, he has never lost his love for its cold, creamy sweetness.
(7) On these occasions, he swallows, consuming about a quart weekly.
Americans eat 23.2 quarts person of ice cream and other frozen diary products annually.
(8) Vanilla, the best-selling variety. You should never call it plain vanilla. It’s a very complex flavor, he says.
The night after we met, I had a plain salad for dinner and sadly thought about my future. I have to either do what Harrison does — learn to spit instead of swallow — or start interviewing more celery growers.
A. Caffeine will block the taste buds, he says, so breakfast is a cup of herbal tea.
B. With each step, he’s evaluating whether the ice cream conveys a harmonious balance of dairy, sweetness and added ingredients — the three flavor components of ice cream.
C. What flavor does the best-trained ice-cream palate in America prefer
D. And when he isn’t doing that, he travels, buying Edys in supermarkets all over the country so that he can spot check for perfect appearance, texture and flavor.
E. He even orders it in restaurants for dessert.
F. A full stomach makes for a dull palate.
G. No, it’s rigorous work, requiring discipline and selflessness.
H. His family has been in the ice cream business in one way or another for four generations, so Harrison has spent his entire life with it.