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Velvet Ice Cream Introduces New Flavors; Teams with Max & Erma's for Cookie Favorite

Posted on: Thursday, 25 June 2009, 09:48 CDT

UTICA, Ohio, June 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Velvet Ice Cream has launched three new flavors, including a Chocolate Chip Cookie and Cookie Dough Ice Cream in partnership with Max & Erma's Restaurants.

The other new flavors are Chocolate Lovers Trio and Chocolate Covered Strawberries, which was the creation of 10-year-old Rachel Hankinson, winner of Velvet's 2008 Create-A-Flavor competition.

The teaming with Max & Erma's combines Central Ohio's most famous ice cream manufacturer with Columbus' original casual dining restaurant. The ice cream was created in the Max & Erma's test kitchen by executive chef Bob Davis. It contains chocolate chips, pieces of chocolate chip cookies and bits of cookie dough.

"What a great combination - Velvet's original vanilla and Max & Erma's signature chocolate chip cookies," said Joanne Dager, director of Food Service for Velvet Ice Cream. "This is a unique opportunity to team up with a respected local company and we couldn't be more pleased. What's more, I was a fan of those chocolate chip cookies long before we ever came up with this idea. They're addictive."

Max & Erma's sells more than one million orders of its hot-from-the-oven chocolate chip cookies each year. Also, it serves Velvet Ice Cream at its famous, all-you-can-eat sundae bar, which is housed in an antique bathtub.

"This is Max & Erma's first partnership venture into the retail market, and we're pleased that it's with a brand as recognized as Velvet Ice Cream," said Karri Benishek, senior director of marketing for Max & Erma's. "This is a natural partnership and we're looking forward to seeing it in supermarkets."

The highlights of the other new flavors are:

Chocolate Lovers Trio: Three types of chocolate ice cream - Dark Belgian, Rich Dutch and Indulgent Swiss - are packaged in the container in Neapolitan style.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries: This creation has chucks of chocolate and pieces of strawberry in a strawberry base.

Dager said Velvet has seen increased sales in chocolate ice cream in the past year, due in part to the recognized benefits of chocolate, such as an antioxidant.

Headquartered at Ye Olde' Mill in Utica, Ohio, Velvet Ice Cream has been a family owned and operated business for nearly 100 years. Founded in 1914 by family patriarch Joseph Dager, Velvet has been run by four generations of the Dager family. Velvet produces more than five million gallons of ice cream a year. The landmark Ye Olde' Mill, which houses the company headquarters, an ice cream museum and restaurant, attracts 160,000 visitors a year.

http://www.velveticecream.com

CONTACT: Robin Yocum 614.378.3286

SOURCE Velvet Ice Cream

Source: PR Newswire

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