Budget supermarket chain Spar beats posh rivals to gain the honour of this year’s best Christmas mince pie in blind taste tests
- Spar had best mince pies in 2020 Christmas Taste Awards, costing just £2
- Judges praised the ‘crumbly, buttery pastry’ and said the filling was ‘sweet’
- M&S notched up eight wins including best vegan main and Christmas cake
Upmarket supermarkets have often tried out fancy new ingredients or flavours in an attempt to produce the ultimate mince pie.
But this year the best are made by… Spar. The budget chain beat its posh rivals to record its first win in BBC Good Food magazine’s blind taste tests for the finest festive offerings.
Other low-cost grocers took home top gongs too. Aldi won best Christmas pudding, Asda scooped best cranberry sauce and Tesco was awarded best gammon.
But the most surprising triumph was Spar’s pack of Luxury Mince Pies at £2.
The most surprising triumph at the 2020 Christmas Taste Awards was Spar’s pack of Luxury Mince Pies at £2
Judges praised the ‘crumbly, buttery pastry’, adding: ‘The filling is sweet and jammy, with nice big chunks of plump, soaked fruit and a good hit of citrus.’
Morrisons’ £2 ‘The Best’ Deep Filled Mince Pies – which came first in the past two years – and Aldi’s Specially Selected Mince Pies at £1.49 were highly commended.
The 2020 Christmas Taste Awards saw judges test more than 150 products from 13 of the leading supermarkets. With 75 days still to go until Christmas, posher rivals still dominated the 20 different categories.
Marks & Spencer notched up eight wins including best vegan main and Christmas cake. Waitrose came second, taking first place in four categories including best beef Wellington and best pigs in blankets.
Judges praised the ‘crumbly, buttery pastry’, adding: ‘The filling is sweet and jammy, with nice big chunks of plump, soaked fruit and a good hit of citrus’ (stock picture)
| Supermarket | Wins |
|---|---|
| Marks & Spencer | Eight – including best vegan main, best gravy and Christmas cake |
| Waitrose | Four – including best beef Wellington and best pigs in blankets |
| Booths | Best turkey |
| Spar | Best mince pie |
| Asda | Best cranberry sauce |
| Tesco | Best gammon |
| Aldi | Best Christmas pudding |
| Sainsburys | Highly commended in three categories |
| Morrisons | Highly commended in three categories |
Booths – the high-end supermarket of choice for those in the North – scooped the Best Turkey Centrepiece award for its £85 offering. while Morrisons and Sainsbury’s were highly commended in three categories each.
Christine Hayes, BBC Good Food editor in chief, said: ‘Getting the most for your money will be more important than ever this Christmas so be sure to check our winners before planning your big shop. It’s good to see some great-value wins.’
The full list will be published at the end of October in the Christmas edition of BBC Good Food.