September Winner of Clemmy's "Tasting is Believing!" Essay Contest Announced

Each month, from July until December 2009, Clemmy’s selects an essay that explains a fan’s appreciation for our sugar-free ice cream, and the author wins $1,000. Read this month’s winning essay below.

Lisa Duclo
Vista, CA
Ice cream is one of those foods that brings people together. It is a rare soul who doesn’t enjoy ice cream. But ice cream, being the sweet treat that it is, sometimes gets put on the list of things to avoid, mostly because it usually contains a lot of sugar. Grownup people already have a lot of things on their “not allowed” lists that pair unpleasantly with their looming “must do” lists; things like unclogging the shower drain, chasing down dust’ bunnies, paying the cable bill and visiting the dentist. After all that, putting ice cream on the banned list stinks.

Our large extended family likes to get together often to celebrate holidays, birthdays, graduation parties and other noteworthy events. Several of my relatives have diabetes and that has put a cramp in our family feasting. We’ve avoided serving ice cream at our family gatherings for years, as a vow of solidarity towards the folks who can’t have it. So when I saw an ad in the paper for Clemmy’s sugar-free ice cream last month, I was intrigued. I’ve tried some of the other sugar-free frozen products that are out there and haven’t much cared for the taste of any of them. They’re usually gritty, thin and leave an unpleasant after-taste. Being the type of person who loves to try new things, and attempting to do some altruistic research on behalf of my diabetic aunts and uncles, I decided to give Clemmy’s a try. I couldn’t believe my taste buds! Clemmy’s ice cream has a super rich, creamy texture and the flavor is deliciously fresh and intense. I had to check the package to make sure it was for real. It is.

I’ve called the relatives, told friends, neighbors and even the letter carrier, to let them know that there is some ice cream relief coming their way. It might not be as big as the moon landing, but to people who’ve had to give up ice cream, this is big news. The grownups can act like kids again and that’s sweet.