Halo Top Creamery has had its share of controversy. Their ice cream is marketed as low calorie, high protein, and low sugar, and they recently became the best-selling pint in America's grocery stores. Some nutritionists find this to be troubling and counter that it's still, you know, ice cream. Their concerns range from the brand's use of erythritol (their chosen sugar substitute) to the lack of moderation the brand encourages—aka lids printed with slogans like "stop when you hit the bottom."

Regardless of your personal opinion, Halo Top is enjoying an overwhelmingly steep climb to the top of the ice cream market, and they're keeping up to pace by releasing seven new flavors. So purely for research and not at all personal curiosity (read: I'm lying, I was so hype about doing this), I was lucky enough to taste test the new flavors pre-release. Here's what I thought about all seven:

Cinnamon Roll

sweet, chocolate, cappuccino, espresso, milk, coffee
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

This flavor contains chunks of cinnamon roll dough, surrounded by cinnamon icing swirls and a super sweet ice cream base. It tasted like frozen icing, and I was into it. That being said, I know that not everyone is as big of a sugar-addict as myself—if you wouldn't be willing to eat a spoonful of icing, this one might not be for you.

Mochi Green Tea

milk, sweet
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

Mochi and green tea have become increasingly popular in the United States over the past few years, so it only makes sense that a brand as up to date as Halo Top would adopt the flavors. The green tea base wasn't as strong as I expected, but I appreciated the mochi chunks for the added texture. The concept here was cute, but the execution could've been more successful as I was hoping for a stronger punch of flavor. 

Rainbow Swirl

cream, coffee, milk
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

Rainbow food is everywhere this summer and now the craze has infected the ice cream aisle. I'm not loving it. The rainbow swirl ice cream tasted more like a sorbet. It would have been fine if the signature fresh-fruit taste of sorbet carried over into this pint, but unfortunately the flavor wasn't as refreshing as it should have been. Despite all of this, the rainbow swirl is definitely worth it for the Insta. 

Chocolate Covered Banana

coffee, cream, chocolate, sweet, milk
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

Frozen banana dipped in dark chocolate is my go-to summer dessert, so you can imagine my excitement when I found out chocolate covered banana made the cut for Halo Top's new flavors. This flavor was as straightforward as the name. Imagine eating a frozen Banana Laffy Taffy with some chocolate to cut through the strong taste, and you have chocolate covered banana Halo Top. I enjoyed the flavor, however, this pint might not be for everyone.

Pancakes & Waffles

chocolate, cream, milk, coffee, sweet
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

This is definitely the ice cream that I was most intrigued by from the flavor names, but to be honest, I'm not sure I understand it even after sampling. It basically tasted like straight maple syrup with some waffle cone pieces in the middle. I wanted to love it, but it made my mouth a little tingly, and not in a fun way.

Candy Bar

cappuccino, espresso, cream, sweet, milk, coffee, chocolate
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

The candy bar flavor tasted more like an traditional pint of ice cream than any of the others. The chocolate base, with crunchy peanuts and ribbons of caramel, was satisfying without being overwhelmingly sweet. If you like Snickers bars, you'll like this one a lot.

Caramel Macchiato

milk, tea, sweet, caramel, coffee
Photo courtesy of Halo Top Creamery

Caramel macchiato was my favorite by a long shot. The coffee ice cream base had the perfect combination of strong flavor and smooth texture, and the caramel swirls were wonderfully thick and decadent. I could've easily eaten the whole thing in one sitting, but I restrained myself.

Overall, Halo Top's new flavors seem true to the brand—trendy, light, and low calorie. Although the line doesn't officially launch until mid-August, die-hard fans can get early access to the pints here.

So go ahead and order yourself a treat, or wait until you can buy them all in stores. I know I'll be getting myself some more of that caramel macchiato ASAP.