I mentioned the lack of peppermint ice cream at DLR this year (and the reason why it's not there) in the Christmas/Holiday Season Superthread after I returned on Friday, 11/15. (See? If you're not following along, you're missing out on important details!

) Everyone in that thread knows I am a huge peppermint ice cream connoisseur, and I've also gotten many of the folks to go out and buy Dreyer's Peppermint Wonderland ice cream at the grocery store --
the Grand/full fat kind, not the Slow Churned variety -- because that is what's sold in the parks (although it used to be called "Peppermint Stick").
So you can believe I sought out the ice cream at DLR and wanted a reason why it was not there!
The reason why there is no peppermint -- at least in the case of Clarabelle's and Gibson Girl this year -- is that Dreyer's would not send "the right size" (carton/package/container) that those places specifically need. Dreyer's sends them the right sizes in the other ice cream flavors but not in this one.
Oddly, the peppermint ice cream was available during the Limited Time Magic Christmas in July event...but just not now, during the holiday season!


However, as
figment_jii mentioned, someone had peppermint ice cream at the BBQ. Now, to me, in the photo that ice cream looks like the Slow Churned variety and not the Grand (in other words, it is not as good), but the fact that they even have it at the BBQ when it is not available at the actual ice cream shops is perplexing. My guess is that the BBQ requires a different size and Dreyer's was able to send what they needed...OR someone behind the scenes at DLR ran out to the local Vons and grabbed some cartons!
In any case, the CM with whom I spoke at Clarabelle's on 11/15 told me that he had already received several inquiries about the ice cream, and he also wrote a "strongly worded letter" to Dreyer's to complain that they didn't give them right size this year. He suggested that I, too, write a strongly worded letter to Dreyer's.
Oh, and don't be fooled by the appealing name of the "Peppermint Bark Dazzler" at Haagen Dazs. That is not actual peppermint ice cream, but rather vanilla ice cream with chunks of bark in it. Not the same as the Dreyer's Peppermint Wonderland (Grand, not Slow Churned), and not nearly as delicious.
I think that Mousewait (or is it MouseWait? Mouse Wait?) reported seeing peppermint ice cream at Ghirardelli, but I suspect it is similar to what Haagen Dazs sells -- white ice cream with bark.