Five ice cream flavors that once filled American freezer aisles have largely vanished from them: Butter Brickle, rum raisin, pink bubblegum, Heavenly Hash and maple walnut. Fox News recently spotlighted the list, reporting that fans still miss these 1970s classics. This guide gives you a practical way to use it: what each flavor is about, what to look for, and how to go hunting for your own taste of the past.
A caveat up front. The reporting says these flavors are fading from mainstream freezers, not that they're gone everywhere. That gap is your opportunity. Smaller shops, scoop counters and home kitchens are where forgotten flavors tend to survive.
Why This Is a Good Moment to Go Looking
Fox News ties the list to a wider trend: brands reviving retro snacks, diner staples and childhood favorites. The term for it is "newstalgia," a blend of comfort, memory and novelty. For you, that means curiosity about old flavors is high, and asking for them at a local shop is a reasonable request, not an odd one.
The Five Flavors, and How to Hunt Each One
1. Butter Brickle
A name that sounds like a candy bar and a scoop at once. Butter Brickle is the flavor to start with if you like buttery, toffee-style sweetness in your ice cream. When you're searching, look at the toffee and brittle-style options on a scoop shop's menu, and ask staff whether anything similar is made in-house. Don't expect an exact match to your memory. Do expect something in the same family.
2. Rum Raisin
This is the grown-up flavor on the list, and probably the one most likely to hide in a specialty case rather than a supermarket tub. Ask at independent creameries and Italian-style gelato counters, where boozy, fruit-studded flavors tend to get more room. Taste a sample first. Raisin ice cream divides people, which may be part of why it faded.
3. Pink Bubblegum
The playful one. Pink bubblegum is pure childhood: bright color, sweet flavor, a novelty factor that kids loved. It's the flavor most worth asking about at a shop that does fun, kid-focused menus. If you have children, it's also the easiest way to share a piece of your own ice cream history with them.
4. Heavenly Hash
A name that promises a lot. Heavenly Hash is the loaded, mixed-in kind of scoop that rewards a big spoon. If you want to approximate it, look for rich, chocolate-forward flavors with plenty of mix-ins, and ask a scoop shop whether they'll build something similar from what they have.
5. Maple Walnut
The most refined of the five and probably the easiest to chase down, since maple and nuts remain familiar flavors in many shops, especially in cooler regions where maple is part of the local food culture. Check seasonal menus, particularly in autumn, and ask whether a shop makes it with real maple.
A Simple Plan for Your Own Taste Test
You don't need a big project. Try this over a weekend:
- Pick two flavors. One you remember and one you never tried. Maple walnut and pink bubblegum make a fun contrast.
- Call or visit independent scoop shops. Ask whether they carry the flavor, or something close, now or seasonally.
- Ask for samples. A tiny spoon tells you whether to commit.
- Compare notes with someone from another generation. The Fox News piece is aimed at Gen X and Baby Boomers, but the fun is in the comparison. Does a younger eater find rum raisin strange? Does an older one find bubblegum too sweet?
- Write down what you'd change. If you were reviving the flavor, what would you keep?
Make a Case for the Comeback
If a shop doesn't have your flavor, say so. Small ice cream makers pay attention to what customers request. A polite suggestion, ideally from several people, is how a forgotten flavor ends up on a chalkboard. Fox News frames these five as flavors fans are begging to see return, and that pressure is the mechanism.
Try Building a Retro Menu at Home
Host a small tasting night. Set out whatever versions of these five flavors you can find, plus plain vanilla as a reset. Ask guests to rank them by how badly each deserves a comeback. You'll learn fast which ones are truly beloved and which are just nostalgic ideas.
The Takeaway
Pick one of these five flavors this week and ask for it by name at a local scoop shop. The worst outcome is a no. The best is a new regular order, and a shop that knows what its neighbors miss.
