Best mince pies to buy for Christmas this year are Marks & Spencer, says Which?
Written by News on 22/11/2019
Marks & Spencer has scooped the prize every supermarket wants when December rolls around.
M&S collection mince pies have been crowned the best on offer from supermarkets this Christmas.
Costing 38p a pie, or £2.25 per pack, the pastries scored 87% in a blind taste test of 11 premium pies organised by Which?, the consumer affairs charity.
The cheaper options of Iceland luxury mince pies (£1.89 or 32p a pie) and Asda extra special all butter luxury mince pies (£1.50 or 25p a pie) got honourable mentions as runners up.
The three brands beat more luxury pies, including the festive offering from Waitrose which cost 4p more per pie than the winner.
Which?’s tasting panel, made up of food industry experts, said the M&S option had a buttery pastry and a “quintessentially Christmassy aroma”.
Iceland lost points for not enough spice, while Asda was let down by slightly dry pastry.
Waitrose’s No. 1 all butter mince pies (£2.50 for six or 42p per pie) was criticised as “claggy” by one expert judge, while Morrisons’ best all butter deep filled mince pies (£2 for six or 33p per pie) were lacking “any distinctive flavour or spicing” as well as undercooked pastry.
At the bottom of the table was Spar’s luxury all butter mince pies, costing £2 for six or 33p per pie. The pies were judged to have “bland and under baked” pastry and and “overly sweet” filling, which was deemed too wet and lacked spice.
(c) Sky News 2019: Best mince pies to buy for Christmas this year are Marks & Spencer, says Which?
