The Courage to Try Something New

From left to right, Gelato of all descriptions from New York’s Noi Due: An assortment of flavors; Caramel Cookies Dough; Pistachio; even a gelato birthday cake!

Since it is summer and the weather is perfect for gelato, I recently found myself remembering a gelato shop called Noi Due I discovered when I was in New York this spring. I later learned that they were the North American representative at the Gelato Festival World Masters 2026.

Apparently, the world champion at the competition was the Belgian representative, whose creation combined porcini mushrooms, pine aromas, and honey. I cannot even imagine what that combination tastes like! I was particularly surprised by the idea of putting porcini mushrooms into gelato—it is such an unexpected combination.

It also made me think about music, where composers have often experimented with unexpected combinations. Liszt transformed operas into piano works; Beethoven broke away from the conventions of the Classical style and explored new forms of expression; and composers such as Chopin, Liszt, Bartók, and Grieg incorporated elements of folk music into classical music. At the time, some of these experiments must have felt quite revolutionary.

It reminded me once again that when we are willing to venture into something new, we may encounter a result that is far more wonderful than we could have imagined. I think it is important to keep that spirit of curiosity and courage to try something unexpected.