I Tried Cannabis-Infused Ice Cream — Here's What Happened

Is there ever a bad time to eat ice cream? We savor scoops of the creamy dessert when we’re happy, when we’re sad, when we’re celebrating, when we want to get a little … high? Yup, it’s true: Cannabis-infused ice cream has been steadily gaining steam in the edibles space, providing both first-time and longtime marijuana users with a new way to consume cannabis. But for those who live in one of the 19 states (and Washington, D.C.) that currently allow recreational marijuana use, don’t go buying that pint just yet. I tried it first to see what the buzz was all about, sampling a couple flavors from Massachusetts-based Cloud Creamery.

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While there’s a small-but-growing selection of cannabis ice cream out there, this taste test focuses on Cloud Creamery, an ice cream and sorbet brand under the artisan edibles company Plant Jam based in Framingham, Massachusetts. Chef David Yusefzadeh launched Cloud Creamery in 2021, and the sweet treat was soon named Best Cannabis Innovation in the New England Canna Community awards competition. Since its inception, Cloud Creamery has released a number of signature and seasonal flavors, including Tanzanian vanilla, chocolate truffle, and apple crisp ice creams, as well as mango yuzu, chamomile lemonade, and cranberry ginger sorbets, with many of the ingredients sourced from local farmers. The newest flavors in 2022 include mint chip and strawberry shortcake, as well as orange whip and java chip — both part of a Blues Brothers-themed collaboration with Belushi’s Farm.

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So far, these ice creams and sorbets sound like your typical sweet treat, right? Not so fast: Each 8-ounce container of ice cream or sorbet is infused with five milligrams of THC, the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis. Various cannabis strains are used depending on the flavor — Tanzanian vanilla, for example, uses a strain called Ghost Train Haze. But it’s not like Cloud Creamery is chopping up marijuana leaves and dumping them into the ice cream batter: The company's recipes use a type of resin oil in order to easily infuse each ice cream with a strain.

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Cloud Creamery is currently only available in Massachusetts, and offers its products at two dozen dispensaries across the state with a focus on smaller dispensaries. For this review, I visited Native Sun in Hudson, a dispensary that had three Cloud Creamery products in stock: Tanzanian vanilla ice cream, apple crisp ice cream, and cranberry ginger sorbet. Products can be pre-ordered online, and when I arrived at the dispensary to pick up my order, I asked one of the Native Sun employees if the ice cream was popular. “Well,” he said, “there’s a girl who comes in here once a week and picks up an order to eat while she binge-watches 'Criminal Minds.'” Fair enough!

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Cannabis ice cream doesn’t come cheap, and Cloud Creamery is no exception: Each 8-ounce serving is around $10. A pint (16 ounces) of generic ice cream you can find at the grocery store hovers around $5, while a pint of artisanal ice cream — think Jeni’s, Van Leeuwen, or McConnell’s — costs anywhere up to $12. Cloud Creamery’s ice cream is also labeled as a single serving, meaning you’re paying $10 for a few big scoops. But it’s also not just ice cream, and if you consider the fact that you’re also enjoying cannabis, the price tag could be justified.

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For this review, I tried two Cloud Creamery products: the Tanzanian vanilla ice cream and the cranberry ginger sorbet. In addition to the Ghost Train Haze, the Tanzanian vanilla lists milk, cream, sugar, nonfat dry milk, guar gum, locust bean gum, and Tanzanian vanilla bean as ingredients, and comes in at 422 calories per serving. The vegan cranberry ginger sorbet uses a strain called Cindy 99, along with fresh and frozen cranberries, cranberry juice, water, sugar, freshly grated ginger, sage, and a sorbet stabilizer, and is 120 calories per serving.

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A driving concern about edibles is that the product, whether it’s a piece of chocolate, a gummy, or a cookie, will taste too much like weed, taking away from the experience of enjoying a delicious treat (unless you like the taste of weed, in which case, it’s a win-win!). Thankfully, the cannabis taste in Cloud Creamery’s ice cream was faint and almost negligible; when I did taste it, it was more like a slight aftertaste that complemented the ice cream. The Tanzanian vanilla was smooth, creamy instead of oily, and held its own when compared to other excellent artisanal vanilla ice creams I’ve had. I really enjoyed the cranberry ginger sorbet, too; the ginger was particularly pronounced and left an almost spicy aftertaste. The cannabis and ginger seamlessly blended together because of their earthy notes, and the sorbet’s refreshing and bright flavors had me wishing it was summer. Overall, they were both top-notch desserts, and something I would reach for in my freezer even if they weren’t infused with cannabis.

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Edibles are known for being unpredictable in terms of their effects, and a lot of it has to do with an individual’s tolerance. For someone who doesn’t consume weed on a regular basis, 5 milligrams — or an entire container of Cloud Creamery ice cream or sorbet — was a little more than I wanted to ingest on an average night. So I took a few bites of both the ice cream and sorbet, and estimated that I had around 3.5 to 4 milligrams of cannabis. An hour or so later, as I relaxed on the couch watching a movie, I certainly felt extra calm and, well, kind of high. Nothing that sent me into a giggling fit or gave me the munchies and had me craving more ice cream, but enough that I felt especially relaxed until I went to bed. Had I eaten the entire container, I’m sure the effects would have been more pronounced. But for those who consume cannabis regularly, I don’t think an entire container would have had much of an effect at all. And for $10, that’s kind of a bummer.

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Judging by my experience, I’d say Cloud Creamery’s products would primarily appeal to anyone dipping their toes into the world of cannabis (but worried about consuming it in more traditional ways) as well as sporadic cannabis users who aren’t looking to get super high. At 5 milligrams per serving, frequent cannabis users with a high tolerance would have to eat quite a bit of ice cream to feel the effects, and $10 per serving would quickly add up. But if you’re curious about edibles and looking for a delicious way to try them out, these ice creams and sorbets could be a great entry point.

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I really enjoyed both the Tanzanian vanilla ice cream and the cranberry ginger sorbet, and would be interested in trying some of the other flavors Cloud Creamery has to offer. That being said, I enjoyed them more as a dessert and less as a vehicle for consuming THC — mostly because it takes a considerable amount of ice cream to feel any effect, and I’m not usually one to pound a ton of ice cream in one sitting. It’s also pretty pricey! I can see enjoying this a few times a year, but for more frequent cannabis consumption, I’d look elsewhere.

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While the edibles market is fairly saturated, cannabis-infused ice cream is still a new-ish entry and not yet widely available. Jane and Mary’s Ice Cream offers ice cream and sorbet in Chicago, with flavors ranging from cookies and cream and caramel latte to piña colada sorbet and peach sorbet. In Colorado, you can find 3Js Hice Cream for sale in dispensaries around the state, with flavors like strawberry shortcake and caramel apple pie. And Boston-based ice cream brand Emack & Bolio’s recently partnered with cannabis company MariMed to craft cannabis-infused vegan and dairy ice cream, which will be available in Massachusetts first before expanding to additional legal cannabis states.

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