Infinite Possibilities of Ice Cream 15
“Mocha has a sweet and fruity aroma, while Espresso has a fragrant and lingering bitterness. Unfortunately, I’m not very familiar with the specific types of coffee beans used, so I can’t tell you the exact varieties for each.”
“Just knowing that much is impressive.”
“Most likely, the Mocha flavor aims to be closer to the standard coffee flavor for ice cream. It’s sweet and milky, suitable for both adults and children. Roughly speaking, it’s like a flavor set that leans toward coffee-flavored milk.”
“On the other hand, Espresso is clearly targeted at adults. It has a lingering aftertaste similar to drinking black coffee.”
“I see, so they prepared different coffee-flavored ice creams to cater to different target audiences.”
Different ages and genders naturally lead to different preferences.
Children would likely prefer sweet cakes with plenty of whipped cream, while the elderly might prefer cakes with moderate sweetness that use plenty of matcha.
Even with ice cream, there are generations that prefer sweetness and generations that prefer less sweetness.
It’s important to create confectionery that suits the customer base.
If Sōma ends up opening a shop in the future, he’ll need to consider such things properly.
“I’ve learned something new again. Thank you.”
Sōma said, expressing his gratitude by bowing his head. Chika smiled happily in response.
“I’m glad I could be of help to you, Sōma-san.”
“Chika, try this ice cream too.”
Sōma said, scooping his own ice cream and bringing it close to her mouth.
“Um, is it okay?”
Chika looked a bit shyly at the spoon filled with ice cream.
“You wanted to try it, right? I’d appreciate it if you could also give your opinion on the taste.”
“Y-Yes, you’re right! In that case, let me try it.”
With both hands flapping like a penguin, Chika put the offered spoon into her mouth.
“How is it?”
“Can, can I have another one, please?”
She made the request while her cheeks turned red for some reason.
“Is it hard to tell?”
“Um, yes! That’s it! Maybe the coffee-flavored ice cream is affecting my taste buds.”
“Oh, I see. Too bad, if you drink some water, it might reset your palate.”
“It’s okay. But more importantly, could I have another bite, please?”
“Sure.”
Encouraged, she took a second bite of the ice cream with a happy expression.
“…the Mixed Sherbet flavor is orange, raspberry, and pineapple. It’s a sherbet with a lot of fruit juice and less sugar. It’s quite refreshing. I’m not sure if this analogy is appropriate, but you know that sherbet they serve at yakiniku restaurants at the end, right? In terms of sweetness, I think it’s similar to that.”
“Some people like the refreshing taste.”
“Yeah, having only overly sweet things would get boring. And then the Triple Berry flavor consists of cranberry, raspberry, and strawberry—three kinds, but there’s no blueberry in it. This one is more of a classic flavor. Among all the flavors I’ve tried so far, this one is the sweetest, and kids would probably like it.”
“For kids, huh? I see.”
Not only does Chika have a keen sense of taste, but perhaps being the daughter of a patissier, she can even guess the intentions behind the sweets.
I once again realized that she is a very reliable taste tester.
“That’s right. Soma-san, why don’t you try comparing the coffee flavors too? Pay attention to the differences I mentioned earlier when you taste them.”
Chika brought her spoon to Soma’s mouth.
“Yeah, I’ll give it a try.”
It’s not a bad idea to rely on her, but it’s also good to study with my own taste buds.
“Here you go.”
Soma slowly tries the Mocha and Espresso ice creams, one after the other.
“…Now that you mention it, the amount of milk is quite different. The Espresso one really brings out the coffee flavor. Mocha is more approachable, but coffee lovers would probably prefer the Espresso.”
“Yes, I think so too.”
Chika agrees and feeds him another spoonful of ice cream.
“I’m not sure if the types of beans are different. Chika, you have a good palate. It’s impressive.”
“Ehehe.”
Feeling happy about the compliment, Chika feeds herself some ice cream.
“Coffee and confectionery are inseparable. I think it’s worth studying.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Maybe next time, we should go on a journey to visit famous coffee shops.”
“That sounds great. It would be interesting. Please let me join you too. Actually, I’d love to be involved from the stage of researching the shops.”
“Is that so? If you want to, then count me in.”
“Leave it to me!”
With that, Chika fed Soma another spoonful of ice cream.
“Ah, you two…”
While the two were feeding each other ice cream and talking,
Miki, holding an ice cream cup, had somehow appeared next to them.
She seemed to be looking at them with eyes as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing, or rather, with a slightly hesitant expression.
This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.
‘Was it just my imagination?’
“What are you both doing?”
Her voice trembled slightly as she asked.
“We’re doing an ice cream tasting.”
“Right~.”
Both Soma and Chika answered naturally and nodded.
“Ah, Soma-san, now I want to try that ice cream too.”
“If you have only coffee-flavored ones, you’ll get tired of them. Here.”
In response to her request, he offered his marble-colored ice cream and strawberry-colored ice cream to try.
“These two are quite refreshing and sweet. Soma-san, which one do you prefer?”
“I think I like the Triple Berry more. I like that it has fruit chunks and a strong fruity taste.”
Using the spoon that Chika used to feed him, Soma also fed himself.
“Yeah, it’s a classic. I like this kind of thing.”
“Soma-san, you seem to like traditional and classic flavors, don’t you?”
“I believe in the importance of fundamentals.”
With Chika’s mouth still open, he fed her another spoonful of ice cream.