Symrise Flavor North America surveyed 10,000 consumers across the United States to determine America's most beloved ice cream flavor. In the proper fashion of a March Madness styled bracket, we started with 64 flavor "teams" and narrowed it down to one championing flavor.

1. NATURAL
GOODNESS
Vanilla
Salted Caramel
Coffee
Tiramisu
Vanilla Caramel
Mint
Caramel Pecan
Mixed Berry
Pineapple
Triple Fudge Crunch
Creamcheese
Vanilla Cardamom
Vanilla Shiso Mint
Caramel Latte
Ginger Bread
Saffron Honey Lemon
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2
3
4
5
6
7
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9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
HEALTHY
LIFESTYLE
Cookies & Cream
Cherry
Horchata
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Pistachio
S'mores
Hazelnut
Dark Chocolate
Guava
Black Sesame
Dulce De Leche
Pistachio Cardamom
Blueberry Fig
Maple Bacon
Pineapple Coconut
Black Walnut
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2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
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12
13
14
15
16
PREMIUM
INDULGENCE
Chocolate
Vanilla Bean
Mango
Fudge
Chocolate Peanut Butter Caramel
Raspberry
Chocolate Fudge Brownie
Strawberry Banana
Peanut Butter Caramel Pretzel
Pumpkin Spice
Acai Berry
Vanilla Orange Blossom
Churro
Spiced Chai
Rose Cinnamon
Passionfruit Rose
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2
3
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5
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7
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10
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16
EMOTIONAL
DISCOVERIES
Strawberry
Mint Chocolate
Peanut Butter
Rocky Road
Coconut
Strawberry Cheesecake
Birthday Cake
Vanilla Rainbow Sprinkle
Banana
Cinnamon
Avocado
Raspberry Cheesecake
Mango Chipotle
Ginger Chai
Hibiscus
French Toast
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2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
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12
13
14
15
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The Full Flavor Line-Up by Region
If you are interested in learning more about Symrise’s capabilities to quickly validate
consumer concepts, our Marketing and Consumer Insights approach, or about our dairy
application experience, please reach out to your account manager for more information.
Both of the
flavors in the final
round has proven to be battle
tested; defeating #1 seeds, taking down trendy
flavors to show that the prime classics are
not going anywhere and even
surviving the peanut butter craze!
51% VS 49%35% VS 65%
Our data shows that
new textures would
encourage 34% of
category consumers to
try a new product.
Whether it is a chocolate
chip, a crispy crunch,
brownie chunks or fruit
inclusions, these extras are
giving consumers the
textual experiences
they crave.
A striking similarity
with the Flavorful Four
flavors: they all have
inclusions of some sort.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Last
Scoop
Standing
WINNER BY A CONSUMER
VOTE OF 53%
CLASSIC VANILLA BASE
HEARTY CHUNKS OF
COOKIE DOUGH
Vanilla
Caramel
Triple Fudge
Crunch
Chocolate Chip
Cookie Dough
S'mores Peanut Butter
Caramel Pretzel
Chocolate
Fudge Brownie
Raspberry
Cheesecake
Strawberry
Cheesecake
After the first three rounds, the competition was down to the
final 8 flavors or as we call it “The Eatin’ Eight.”
NATURAL GOODNESS
This region celebrates flavor with a focus on
simple, pure and minimalist ingredients.
Vanilla and Vanilla Caramel face-off in the Round
of Super Sweet 16 in what some have called a clash
of the titans – ending with a nail biting buzzer
beater and Vanilla Caramel’s 51% win.
Cream Cheese beats Coffee. Not a surprise:
our 2019 Top Trends Report predicted Cheese
Expands and our 2018 report called out Cheese
in Ice Cream.
51%49%
HEALTHY LIFESTYLE
This high-quality region sticks to the standard
of a guilt-free and nutritious flavor experience.
Pineapple Coconut upsets Cherry. This can be
explained by the trend of bold and funky hybrid
flavors and flavor transitions.
In the round of Super Sweet 16, Chocolate Chip
Cookie Dough and Cookies & Cream’s flavor
face-off did not disappoint. The 10,000
consumers voted for Chocolate Chip Cookie
Dough to move on the Eatin’ Eight defeating
Cookies & Cream by a mere 4 votes!
EMOTIONAL DISCOVERIES
This adventurous region invites consumers
to explore both authentic-ethnic and
nostalgic flavors.
Raspberry Cheesecake is handing out upsets
scoop by scoop. When facing off Strawberry, it
takes the win by 52%.
Bakeries and desserts continue to inspire flavors
in ice cream. One notable representative of this
group, Raspberry Cheesecake, defeats
Coconut in the first round.
52% 48%
PREMIUM INDULGENCE
This small-batch region is embraced for its love
for detail and uniqueness with premium flavors
that deliver an exciting and exquisite experience.
Churro upsets traditional fan favorite Fudge.
Our Sabor in America Initiative explored Latino
influence of flavors in North America and
showed that Hispanic households are on the
rise in the U.S. at a rate of 150%.
Peanut Butter Caramel Pretzel upsets overall
Chocolate by a slim 40 votes.
The flavor match-ups were selected by 10.000 ice cream consumers
across the U.S. on our online consumer intelligence platform. These are
some of the most notable marquee matchups from the four regions.
64
Our competitive bracket is based on the top 50 flavors
in retail ice cream products, the top flavors across food
service, the fastest growing flavors in food service plus
additional exciting flavors from our proprietary
TrendScope® research.
The Result
The Eatin’ Eight
The Final Four
Regional Marquee Match-ups
The Teams
AMERICA’S FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR
ICE CREAM FLAVOR MADNESS 2020
Symrise North America