Lifting the lid on our Christmas taste tests

From mince pies and Christmas puddings to champagne and mulled wine, our in-house Which? researchers have spent many months planning and testing to uncover the best-tasting food and drink for Christmas 2024.

We've tested more than 80 products, uncovering brilliant Best Buys for the festive season - and some top cheaper picks too.

Our recommendations are based on hundreds of hours spent researching, planning, buying samples, running tests, and analysing and writing up the results. But have you ever wondered exactly how we do it? And what a 'blind taste test' really means?

Join us for a behind-the-scenes look at our Christmas taste tests, to see the lengths we go to find the best festive food and drink, and why you can trust us to deliver a delicious Christmas. 

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Why you can trust our taste tests

First, the important stuff. We are editorially independent. We're not influenced by third parties, and we don't accept freebies from product manufacturers or retailers - we buy everything we test, where possible, from the shops just like you would. 

Sometimes we have to buy in some things direct from the supermarkets if they aren't out in the shops yet, but we'll always pay for them.

You might not know that Which? is a not-for-profit organisation. The money we make goes directly back into our testing and our efforts to protect consumers and to make their lives simpler, fairer and safer. 

Our charitable arm, the Consumers' Association, works tirelessly to champion the interests of consumers to government, industry and beyond. You can find out more in our guide to how Which? works.

Secondly, we take testing seriously, whether it's a £1,000 gadget or a tin of baked beans. We're always looking to identify what is the most important thing people will want to know and how we can test in a fair and rigorous way to uncover the best.

Which? taste tests on TV

For a proper peek behind the scenes, you can see some of our taste tests in action in Channel 5's 'The Big Taste Test' series, where our olive oil taste tests featured earlier in the year. 

To see our mince pie taste test in action check out the Christmas Special 'Supermarket Own Brands: The Big Taste Test' airing at 8pm on Channel 5 on 18 December.

Christmas food: how we choose what to test

For the Which? food and drink team, Christmas begins in July. 

While many people are thinking about holidays and sunshine, we're busy gathering market insights about Christmas, from wider market trends to what Which? members tell us in our regular member surveys what they're keen to read about.

Once we've narrowed down the list, we get started requesting hundreds of product samples for testing, often ordering direct from the supermarkets so that we can test seasonal products before they hit supermarket shelves. 

Some tests require lots of samples  - this year, we needed 40kg worth of Christmas puddings!  

It doesn't always go to plan. Whether it's receiving products already past their expiry date (the gone-off brie was memorable for all the wrong reasons), or having to dash out in search of samples that didn't turn up in time, we've learned it pays to be prepared for anything.

Lauren Temple, Food & Drink Principal Market Analyst: '

As part of our Christmas planning, I attend supermarket press events to identify any interesting trends we should be covering. 

I then spend months liaising with supermarkets to secure food and drink samples ahead of their launch in-store - this year that involved almost 300 product samples.'

Want to have your say on future taste tests? Which? members can sign up to our Connect research panel here

How our Christmas taste tests work

The basic principle of any of our taste tests is a randomised blind test. 

The people tasting the products are given set criteria to rate each product on, and a standardised rating scale. Products are served 'blind' - without any identifying packaging or branding - for the tasters to try in a randomised order (which is different for each person).

For some products, we'll use an expert judging panel. This is an approach we tend to use for more premium products where additional expert insight is useful to determine the best. 

Our expert panels this year featured a range of leading experts, including pastry chefs, chocolatiers and Masters of Wine.

Sam Caporn MW (Master of Wine), Which? wine expert: 

'The only way to rigorously and fairly judge wine is to taste it blind. I love tasting like this as it is so fascinating. You have no idea what the wines are and the results are always really exciting to see - the Which? tastings are up there as my very favourite tastings, especially as they are also so commercially relevant!'

You may even recognise a few famous faces - Nathan Rave, winner of Bake Off: The Professionals 2022, was our lead mince pie expert, judging alongside well-known bakers Edd Kimber, Dan Lepard and Shaheen Peerbhai.

On the day, each expert tries the products in a different order to avoid any bias, and they don't know which brand they're trying. 

If a product has recognisable branding on the portion being tasted, the experts wear a blindfold to prevent any influence on their scores. 

After all the products have been tasted, the panel discusses any discrepancies in score for each product and agrees on the final scores and which deserve to be Best Buys. Only then do we reveal the brands involved.

Nathan Rave, pastry chef and baking expert: 

'I really enjoyed being part of Which? taste tests and helping people find the best treats for the Christmas season. It's all about finding the mince pie that captures Christmas in a bite - a rich, spiced filling wrapped in beautifully crisp pastry.'

Consumer taste tests

For more 'everyday' products where the most widely acceptable option is the name of the game, we run taste tests with large panels of consumers of at least 60 people. 

Like our expert tests, the products are all tasted blind and in a rotated order to avoid any bias. Each tester has a private tasting booth so that they can’t discuss what they're tasting or be influenced by others. 

Once results are in, our in-house statistics team calculate scores and carry out statistical analysis to identify significant differences in ratings between products. Only the highest-scoring products are awarded our Best Buy recommendation

Rebecca Marcus, Food & Drink lead researcher: 

'All of our independent food and drink recommendations are based on robust blind taste test methodology, so Which? members can be confident they’re getting the best products.

My favourite this year is our chocolate taste test - we haven't tested chocolates for many years, but members' voted for chocs and our tests unearthed some delicious picks, plus I learned lots of interesting chocolate facts from our experts!'

Supermarket Christmas Food 2024 - Our ultimate guide to festive supermarket specials, including starters, sides, mains and desserts

How our reviews can help with your Christmas shopping

Our taste test results are all live on the Which? website, so you have plenty of time to stock up on festive favourites. 

You'll find reviews with detailed tasting notes for all the products we tested, as well as tips and advice from our experts on things like how to make your shop-bought mince pies taste even better.

We've got popular classics covered including mince pies, Christmas pudding, Irish cream liqueur, champagne, sparkling wine and red wine and turkey.

This year we've also tested mulled wine, panettone, dark chocolate, smoked trout and champagne truffles for the first time. 

Our top-rated products get our Best Buy seal of approval, but we know value is important too, so we're always on the lookout for products that taste great and cost less - we highlight these with our Great Value badge. 

This year, we've found lots of great supermarket picks that will help your money go further without compromising on taste.

If you’re not yet a member, you can join Which? today to get instant access to these and all our other product reviews.

Jessica Carson, Which? Food and Health Editor: 

'I love working on our Christmas taste tests, I always learn something new from the expert tests. It's really interesting seeing which products impress and why, and seeing them all lined up for comparison. 

My favourite part is probably trying the leftovers once the experts are finished (we couldn't possibly let them go to waste!). It's good to have first-hand experience of what the experts have found and learn from their vast experience and knowledge.' 

How else Which? can help with Christmas

Of course, we don't just test food and drink. Our vast range of independent tests can help you quickly get through your gift list, and our expert advice always aims to save you money. 

From gift guides to Christmas cost-saving, we've got plenty of other tips and recommendations to see you through the festive season. Here are some to get you started:

• Early Christmas gift ideas for 2024
• Best Christmas gifts for foodies
• Best cheap Christmas gifts under £30
• Christmas 2024: 8 ways to boost your festive funds
• Best supermarket Christmas savings schemes
• Supermarket Christmas delivery slots: when to book

For more Christmas food and drink gift ideas, check out the best premium gin, best champagne truffles and best olive oil. Access all our food and drink reviews in our guide to the best food and drink.