Here's Where To Find The Best Ice Cream In Connecticut

WEST HARTFORD, CT — If you're looking for the best ice cream in Connecticut, there's apparently only one place to go, according to "Food & Wine" magazine. And that is to Arethusa Farm in Bantam. It also has satellite shops in West Hartford and New Haven.

The magazine recently named the best ice cream in every state, and the dairy farm and restaurant took the top spot.

"Connecticut has to be one of the luckiest states when it comes to classic ice cream, making this one of the toughest calls on the list. But if you're only going to sample one ice cream while you're here, it's going to have to be Arethusa Farm," the magazine wrote.

The historic Arethusa Farm was first established by the Webster family in 1868; however, the family ultimately sold the property and over the years it had fallen into disrepair and was slated for development.

The current owners didn't want to see that happen, so they purchased it.

"We didn’t know yet how we would use it, but couldn’t bear the thought of Litchfield losing that open space," the owners said on their website.

Following renovations and improvements to the property, the owners said it became apparent that the property should once again return to being a dairy farm. One thing led to another, and before too long Arethusa Farm began churning out delicious ice cream.

The farmstead creamery specializes in plush, high-butterfat ice creams in tasty classic New England flavors like rum raisin and coffee, made with some of the best milk and cream in the state, according to the magazine. Other flavors include coconut with dark chocolate chunks, pistachio and butter pecan.

"With our fresh milk and cream at hand, our dairy plant team crafts unique custom mixes for each flavor, blending careful recipe development with good, old-fashioned taste testing," Arethusa Farm writes on its website.

The ice cream industry has a $13.1 billion impact on the U.S. economy, supports 28,800 direct jobs, and generates $1.8 billion in direct wages, according to IDFA’s Dairy Delivers®.

To see where to get the best ice cream in every state, according "Food & Wine" magazine, click here.