Teaberry Ice Cream

Adam Horvath
Aug 28
2 min read

Back in the “olden days,” when cool guys started every sentence with “yea see” and dames were praised for their gorgeous gams, ice cream parlors across America scooped a flamboyantly pink & minty-tart flavor called Teaberry.

Despite tasting like Ben-Gay stirred into Pepto Bismol, this unique flavor built a loyal following. Makes sense, though considering ice cream was sold behind pharmacy counters, and a scoop of Teaberry with a splash of cola syrup from the soda jerk was practically a prescription.

These days however, if you want your ice cream to double as a breath mint, you’ll have to head to the Lehigh and Schuylkill Valleys or the coal towns of Northeast Pennsylvania—where Teaberry ice cream still lingers like a relic from a bygone era.

Chewing Gum & Ice Cream Socials

The teaberry plant, also known as American wintergreen, is native to Pennsylvania and New England. Its berries produce a natural oil called methyl salicylate—better known as wintergreen oil.

It's the same ingredient found in countless candies and medicines, everything from pink lozenges to the aforementioned Pepto. And that strawberry blush of Teaberry ice cream? It's 100% natural. It comes straight from the berry itself. But don't be fooled—there's nothing fruity about it.

By the early 1900s, the D.L. Clark Company in Pittsburgh had introduced Teaberry chewing gum. It quickly built a cult following among peeps who loved the wintergreen kick, and the fresh breath that came with each chew.

But here's the crazy part, according to my digging on newspapers.com, Teaberry was already showing up as an ice cream flavor in ads by the early 1890's. To put that into perspective, mint chocolate chip didn't debut until 1973, and cookies n cream wasn't a thing until the early 80s. Kinda crazy right?

Back to Obscurity

Popularity of the gum peaked in the 1960's and the ice cream had its heyday even earlier. These days, outside of Pennsylvania, you're more likely to stumble across a pack of Teaberry gum at some retro-candy store than spot the flavor on an ice cream menu board.

But have no fear, if you're in the Northeast and are craving a scoop that'll have you humming "nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach..."— well you know the rest— you're in luck— There's more than a dozen shops in Pennsylvania still scooping Teaberry, the bee's knees of old-timey ice cream flavors.

Check Out (Call first before taking the trip as some of these are serving it seasonally)

Bethlehem Dairy Store- Bethlehem King Kone Whitehall

Claude's Creamery Palmerton Scoop deVille- Birdsboro

Bank Street Creamery Easton Leiby's Dairy- Tamaqua

Goodfellas Ice Cream- Hazleton Heisler's Dairy- Tamaqua

Sleepy Hollow Ice Cream- Drums Scoopendorf's Walnut Port👀

Wood's Ice Cream- Various Locations- Serves Soft Serve