Last year, I took a Mediterranean cruise with my family where I had some of the best sorbet of my life. It was smooth, flavors were bright, and every batch was fresh. I had it every day, sometimes twice a day, because I knew that when I got back to Manila, I wouldn’t be able to resume eating normal ice cream again.
For a tropical country, our frozen treats are markedly commonplace: chocolate, vanilla, strawberry ice cream; dark chocolate and hazelnut gelato; Magnum; Twin Pops. I craved the lightness of sorbet and begrudged the heaviness of ice cream on my tongue.
In the heat of summer, I rejected ice cream.
Until I discovered Chill Pill. Created by siblings Patricia, Deb, and Christian Flores, along with Christian’s wife, Maris Golez, Chill Pill had a familiar start to most gourmet beginnings: what started out as Christmas presents for friends turned into a full-fledged business. (If only my publisher would do the same with her paté.)
Veering away from traditional flavors in their home kitchen, they produce small batches of conceptual ice cream concepts: whiskey and honey, salt and sugar, green tea and berries, tequila and flowers. Each combination is meant to alleviate specific ruts, like stress, a craving for comfort, or a generally dour disposition.
The packaging, like their flavors is just as hip, having been designed by Deb, a graphic designer based in New York. Copy on the pints is just as cheeky.
They’ve since introduced three more flavors, including Cereal Bowl, Campfire Cloud, and Rosemary’s Bee, and did a pop-up in Ugly Kitchen, on the Lower East Side of New York.
To see my reviews of the first four introductory flavors, click through the slideshow above!
Chill Pill. chillpillicecream@gmail.com. (0917) 574-0788.
Photos by Patrick Segovia