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What happens when you take a storied Auckland gelato shop, and throw in a touch of stardust from one of the most legendary popstars of the 20th and 21st centuries?
Cherlato, that’s what. And no, it’s not some random portmanteau. It’s a real thing, a real gelato truck from which you can buy real gelato (if you’re living in Los Angeles). And it’s all the brainchild of Giapo founder Gianpaolo Grazioli.
“(It began) one fine day in 2018, a phone call”, Grazioli tells Stuff’s daily podcast Newsable, speaking from Los Angeles.
“It was a funny phone call – it took me 20 minutes to say, alright, I think I’m talking to Cher.
“The story that no-one really knows is: this happened during the days my mum died.
“I was in a very confused state … we had news from the doctors, she probably had a few days left. And I was so far away – you never know when is the right time to leave, if she’s got another month, if she’s got five days.
“I remember those days with confusion – but a phone call came, it was from LA … I put it on speaker phone, my wife and I, we couldn’t believe (it).”
It wasn’t entirely out of the blue: Cher had tried Giapo’s gelato when she was touring New Zealand earlier in 2018.
Supplied
Gianpaolo Grazioli, owner of gelato shop Giapo.
“We knew she loved it, because she came twice in 24 hours”, Grazioli says.
And there was further evidence: when asked on Australian TV whether New Zealand or Australia had better ice-cream, Cher was unequivocal.
“She said, there’s no comparison. New Zealand ice-cream wins everything.”
And that’s not an idle endorsement: as Grazioli explains, the 77-year-old popstar knows her ice-cream.
“She has no vice, she doesn’t drink. The only vice she has, everywhere she goes, is just to have ice-cream.
“If you go to her home, you look in their freezer, it’s full of ice-cream … she’s fundamentally an ice-cream lover. It brings her happiness.”
The initial phone call happened in September 2018. Cherlato, at long last, launched in July 2023 – nearly five years later. In the meantime we’ve had a pandemic, and the central city – where Giapo is located – has changed dramatically.
Paris Fashion Week
Cher at Paris Fashion Week
It also delayed the launch of Cherlato. Grazioli found himself stuck in the USA for four months. But, he says, all’s well that ends well.
So, what about the flavours Cherlato offers? The first one he cites is unusual to say the least.
“Avocado”, says Grazioli, with a smile.
You know, LA really lives on avocado. Everyone eats avocado every day. Avocado is their number one food deal, all California.
“And so I made an avocado on toast. So we buy some bread with breadcrumbs, we toast it, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper. We season it and we toast it, and then we make avocado ice cream.
“I will not say this is Cher’s favourite!”
There are also more conventional flavours: chocolate with toasted coconut and frozen raspberries; kefir and cardamom; coffee and donuts; and the Italian classic stracciatella.
Kiwi devotees won’t miss out on trying them either: Grazioli has plans for a special event at Giapo in the near future to celebrate the collaboration.
It’s been a long time coming, and Grazioli gets emotional speaking about the trials and tribulations along the way.
“I’ve been crying for 10 days straight”, he says.
“Covid has not been nice for us. My wife and I sold the house. We’ve been going through everything. Downtown Auckland has been smashed. And hopefully now … I see this with the World Cup, things are coming back the way we like: there are more people going on and there is a different vibe.
“I thank god or whoever, the universe, that gave us the strength to be resilient.”
Newsable is Stuff’s daily news podcast, wrapping up what’s worth talking about in a short package every weekday morning. You can find new episodes and more detail on our stories here or in our newsletter. Make sure to like and follow us wherever you get your podcasts and across Instagram and TikTok.
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