It’s easy to assume the big, well-known brand will always taste better, but a blind taste test just proved that isn’t always true.
Consumer group Which? put supermarket own brand cheddar cheeses up against household names like Cathedral City and Davidstow, and the results actually surprised a lot of shoppers. Working from the bottom of the table up to the eventual winner, here’s exactly how every cheese performed, and which one is actually worth buying.
Co-op finished at the very bottom of the table.
Co-op’s Irresistible Somerset Mature Cheddar Cheese ended up last in the entire ranking, despite costing four pounds fifty for three hundred and forty grams, making it one of the pricier options tested. Unfortunately, the higher price tag didn’t translate into a stronger result in this particular comparison.
It’s a useful reminder that a premium sounding name or higher price doesn’t automatically guarantee the best tasting product. Blind testing strips away all of that branding, leaving only the actual taste and texture to speak for itself.
Sainsbury’s and Aldi tied for sixth place.
Sainsbury’s Barber’s Mature Cruncher Cheese and Aldi’s Specially Selected West Country Mature Cheddar both landed in a tied sixth place finish. Aldi’s version stood out as the cheapest cheese in the entire line up, priced at just £2.99 for 350g.
Given its noticeably lower price point compared to almost every other cheese tested, Aldi’s result suggests good value for anyone watching their budget without wanting to sacrifice too much on taste. Sainsbury’s own version, priced at £4 for the same size, sat right alongside it in the final rankings.
Cathedral City only managed a mid-table finish.
Despite being one of the most recognisable cheddar brands in the UK, Cathedral City Mature Cheddar could only manage joint fifth place in the ranking, tied alongside Pilgrim’s Choice Mature Cheddar. This result surprised plenty of people, given how dominant Cathedral City tends to be on supermarket shelves.
Priced at £3.50 for 350g, it remained one of the more affordable options in the test, but its mid-table finish shows that brand recognition alone doesn’t guarantee the best taste. Pilgrim’s Choice, priced slightly higher at £4.20 matched it exactly in the final scoring.
M&S and Castello rounded out the middle of the table.
M&S Cornish Cove Mature Cheddar took fourth place, priced at £4.25 for 350g, offering a solid middle ground between price and quality. Castello Tickler Mature Cheddar followed closely behind in fifth, priced at £4.75 for a slightly smaller 300g block.
Both cheeses performed well enough to sit comfortably in the upper half of the rankings, though neither quite matched the flavour and texture combination further up the table. For shoppers wanting a reliable middle tier option, either would be a sensible pick.
Davidstow claimed second place, despite a higher price.
Davidstow Classic Cheddar landed in second place with a score of 75%, just narrowly behind the eventual winner. It was also one of the pricier options tested, coming in at £4.75 for the same 350g size. Despite the higher cost, Davidstow still earned a best buy recommendation from Which?, suggesting the extra spend reflects the quality on offer. For anyone happy to pay a bit more, this remains a solid choice based on the results.
A Tesco cheddar took the top spot.
Tesco Finest Mature English Cheddar scored 78% overall, winning over testers with what was described as a firm, smooth texture and a satisfying depth of flavour. Reviewers particularly praised how well balanced the salt levels were throughout.
Several testers also described the cheese as pleasingly crumbly and creamy at the same time, a combination that’s hard to get right. At £4 for 350g, it wasn’t the cheapest option in the line-up, but it was considered roughly average when compared to the other cheeses tested.
This isn’t the first time own brand products have outperformed big names.
Cheese isn’t the only category where supermarket own label products have quietly outperformed household names. In a separate blind taste test conducted earlier this year, both M&S and Waitrose managed to beat well-known coffee brands including Nescafé, Kenco, and Douwe Egberts.
M&S Gold Instant Coffee and Waitrose Gold Roast tied for the top spot, each scoring seventy percent based on flavour, appearance, aroma and overall mouthfeel. Since testing was done blind, price wasn’t a factor in how shoppers rated each coffee, making the results a fair reflection of taste alone.
What made the winning coffees stand out
The Marks & Spencer coffee particularly impressed testers with its flavour, aroma, and appearance all working well together. Almost two thirds of participants were happy with how strong the flavour came through, while nearly three quarters approved of its bitterness levels specifically.
Waitrose performed impressively across every single category tested, making a strong first impression through its appearance and smell before backing it up with solid flavour. Well over half of testers felt the strength was pitched exactly right, while close to two thirds appreciated its particular level of bitterness.
It’s always worth trying the cheaper option.
These results reinforce a pattern that keeps showing up across different blind taste tests, brand recognition and higher prices don’t automatically translate into better taste. Supermarket own label products regularly hold their own against far more established names once packaging and branding are taken completely out of the equation.
Whether you’re shopping for cheese, coffee, or countless other everyday products, it’s worth giving the supermarket’s own version a try rather than automatically reaching for the big brand out of habit. You might end up saving money while getting a product you prefer.
