Vanilla ice-cream

GREEN & BLACK'S
£4.19 (500ml)
This organic ice cream split the panel right down the middle. While some found its smooth texture and "intensely creamy" flavour
"more-ish", others found it "contrived" and "almost too subtle". One panellist remarked that it would be perfect with apple pie, but perhaps not on its own. The "clotted cream", custard-like taste was to some a "perfect, natural" flavour, but to others it was reminiscent of a Milkybar. A luxurious, natural, creamy product that sadly fails to evoke any childhood memories of how ice cream used to taste.
3 stars

HÄAGEN-DAZS
£3.99 (500ml)
This is getting complicated. Are we in search of the natural, creamy taste of eggs, milk and sugar, or do we still crave the synthetic additives of our youth? Häagen-Dazs has gone for a slightly longer list of ingredients than some of the others, but this is hardly a synthetic product: it might not be as creamy as Green & Black's, but it's certainly luxurious. It tastes "expensive", according to one panel member. We're getting closer to that elusive taste of our youth, but not all the panellists seem to want to get there.
3 stars

HILL STATION
£3.79 (500ml)
This has a particularly encouraging texture: straight from the freezer, it is a firm, compact ice cream, but it gives enough to leave a satisfying glob on the spoon. It tastes "extremely fresh", but the initial hit of flavour is closer to cream than pure vanilla. One panellist likens it to a palate cleanser: "A bit boring-it seems to be missing something." All in all, a perfectly decent effort from Hill Station, but an ice cream that might benefit from being paired with "some strawberries or an apple pie to liven it up a bit".
2 stars

LOSELEY
£2.49 (500ml)
Reaching a consensus is going to be tough. "This is the taste of my youth," proclaims one panellist. "Mr Whippy?" suggests another. The texture is quite smooth, but not in an unpleasant way. There is a sense of harmony among the ingredients: not too creamy, just enough vanilla, not too sweet: this is a contender. A glance at the label reveals a few emulsifiers and stabilisers: is this really what we're looking for in an ice cream?
4 stars

M&S MADAGASCAN
£3.49 (500ml)
This is another organic effort, although there seems to be a bit more going on here. "A good balance", says one panellist. "Definitely a lot lighter than some, despite the intensity of the cream." There's also, bizarrely, a faint taste of wood-it's almost as if you can taste the little wooden spoon on the back of your tongue. "Delicious. Full of flavour," says one panellist, who detects notes of caramel. "It sticks to the tongue."
4 stars

M&S CLOTTED VELVET
£3.49 (500ml)
As the first round of spoons dig in, nobody says anything-it appears we are getting somewhere. "Sensational" says one panellist at last. "This has the definitive Cornish taste-fantastic consistency." What M&S has done here is to produce the classic flavour of vanilla-that slightly artificial, childish taste-using only natural ingredients. "Would be even better with a wafer on the beach." We have a winner.
5 stars