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A new ice age:
Luxurious gelato
The days are getting longer and the temperatures are rising – time to start thinking about our favourite ice cream ahead of the upcoming warm season!
Founder Hans Merki recalls the beginnings of Bern-based company Giolito: “I somewhat realised that, despite its singular taste, original Italian ice cream is nowhere to be had in Switzerland. So why not act on this myself?”
Spring 2005 saw the introduction of Giolito’s yummy ice cream to the market, and the number of aficionados has been steadily growing ever since.
What makes the ice cream unique? “‘Giòlito’ is old-Italian for joy, indulgence. Both are inherent to our ice cream, its quality and taste. Giolito celebrates the original taste of its ingredients as it doesn’t contain flavour enhancers, powder or additional colour. Our fruit varieties, for example, contain 50 to 70 per cent pure fruit! You won’t find that in any other ice cream. We have made quality our credo and therefore don’t compromise. Our ice cream is manufactured in a small, family-run business in northern Italy, which feels closely linked to the product. The milk, for example, is pasteurised on site, and the ingredients have to meet the highest quality and taste standards. It is, amongst other things, this pronounced care in production and the quality of ingredients that makes our ice cream truly unique.”
Next to classic flavours such as strawberry, chocolate or vanilla, Giolito offers a wide range of some rather unusual varieties. Merki elaborates: “A lot of creativity goes into Giolito as we continue to search for new varieties and improve already existing ones. The results are sometimes exotic flavours such as green tea, litchi or grapefruit. We also cooperate with culinary masterminds who compose taste explosions exclusively for us. One of them is ‘The Witcher’, Stefan Wiesner, who has created the flavour Caffè Bianco, for Giolito.”
And what can we expect in the future? “We introduce three special flavours each spring and autumn. This April, this will be Citronella, Yogurt e Passione and Mara de Bois. We are also working on Oronero, a collection of exclusive ice cream, which will redefine the terms ‘taste’ and ‘luxury’.”