I have now completed my task of testing this summer’s liquorice/salmiak ice cream cones and I’m happy to say I’ve found a clear winner. But before I reveal it, let’s recap.

First I tried the old classic Pingviini Lakritsi cone. It’s nice as far as ice cream cones go, but it’s not particularly ‘liquoricy’. More like vanilla ice cream with some liquorice sprinkled on top. As pleasant as it is, it doesn’t really satisfy that salmiak craving.

Next I tried the Ingman ISO Lakristi cone (which I could not find a picture of). It was alright, but suffered from the same problem as the previous one. The liquorice was way too tame and sweet and there wasn’t really enough of it. Also, I think it was a bit too big for such a bland taste. Not to mention the wafer wasn’t any good.

I had high hopes for the Jättis Salmiakki cone since it’s had such a big and flamboyant advertising campaign. At first lick/bite it seemed like a winner, but then it got all out of hand… Where as the others had been way too tame, this one is truly only for hard-core salmiak fans, and it might be too much even for them. The ice cream itself is salmiak flavoured as well (and thus an ugly grey colour), which I thought was taking it a bit too far. Especially since it is so huge (way too big) in size, I think the taste is very much too strong. If the ice cream had been vanilla the salmiak in it would have tasted a whole lot better. I actually had trouble finishing this one!

This leaves us with the winner. Just as I was almost giving up hope, I bought the Pepe Original cone. And wow, what perfection! The ice cream is a lovely rich vanilla flavour and the liquorice chunks are satisfyingly salty. The wafer was the thickest one I’ve ever come acros and absolutely scrumptious. Not to mention that the whole thing comes with a delicious liquorice icing as well. (Also, a true testament to it’s salmiakky strength was the fact that Stu had to open the car window as apparently it smelled so bad. :D) 10/10

So there you go. I dare say I’ve saved you a whole lot of trouble right there. 😀