NEW WAVERLY, TX — Red Bird Creamery, a local ice cream business in New Waverly, has earned recognition at the 2024 North American Ice Cream Association’s Ice Cream Awards, receiving a red ribbon for its Red Bird Vanilla flavor. The award was the result of a rigorous testing and evaluation process, highlighting the best in flavor and quality from across the nation.
The annual conference, held this year at The Savannah Convention Center in Savannah, Georgia, brings together hundreds of ice cream professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs. It includes a highly anticipated competition to identify the top ice cream makers based on various factors such as taste, texture, and overall quality.
Red Bird Creamery, which opened in March 2023, entered its Red Bird Vanilla flavor to compete with other popular choices like chocolate and strawberry. As part of the judging process, samples of the ice cream were sent to Cornell University, where dairy scientists conducted sensory testing to measure bacteria levels, iciness, and the chemical composition of the product. The ice cream received a perfect score of 10 for its scientific attributes, meaning it met the highest standards in terms of its chemical makeup and was free of detectable bacteria.
“I was absolutely floored to see that we got a red ribbon,” said Bobbie Jehle, owner of Red Bird Creamery. “I knew our score, but I didn’t know what level of ribbon that meant.”
The red ribbon, awarded to the second-best ice cream in the competition, is a significant achievement for the mobile ice cream business, which operates out of a concession trailer located at New Waverly Feed and Farm Supply. Red Bird Creamery also caters parties, festivals, and local events, offering up to 26 different flavors of ice cream and Italian ices each Friday.
“I’ve always loved ice cream and thought it would be fun to have an ice cream business,” Jehle said. “Ice cream puts a smile on everybody’s face.”
The Jehle family’s dedication to the business is evident in the hands-on involvement of Bobbie’s husband, Blake, her daughter, Becca, and her sister, Cindy. Cindy helps prepare the ice cream each week, allowing the family to produce every batch by hand with high-quality ingredients.
Looking ahead, Red Bird Creamery is planning to expand by opening a freestanding storefront in New Waverly next spring, while continuing to use the trailer for community events.
“We pride ourselves on using good ingredients because we like having the very best,” Jehle explained. “Our customers come in, and we know their favorites. We take pride in building that customer and community connection.”
As the holiday season approaches, Red Bird Creamery is rolling out festive flavors, including White Christmas—a blend of white chocolate and peppermint—and O Christmas Tree, which combines the award-winning Red Bird Vanilla with Little Debbie’s Christmas Tree Cakes. The creamery plans to release new Christmas-inspired flavors every week throughout the holidays.
For Jehle, the award and the growing success of Red Bird Creamery is a reflection of the strong sense of community in New Waverly. “New Waverly is so small, and hopefully this will put us on the map,” she said. “It’s a great reflection of New Waverly’s small-town charm, and it’s something that you can’t get in a lot of other places with our connections and community. New Waverly has completely embraced us.”
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