Cheddars
Co-op Irresistible Somerset Mature Cheddar, 340g, £3.10, coop.co.uk
Wow, punchy. Quite nutty with good creaminess. Immediately made me want to reach for the port.
★★★★
Waitrose Extra Mature Cornish Quartz Cheese, 300g, £4, waitrose.com
Nice appearance. Almost a bit of a parmesan-y crystal crunch through it, which I’m a bit of a sucker for.
★★★★
Tesco Finest Extra Mature English Cheddar, 350g, £3, tesco.com
Nutty with a creamy finish. There’s a slightly funny aftertaste, leaves a sort of residue on the palate.
★★★
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Cave Aged Cheddar Truckle, 400g, £4, sainsburys.com
It’s strong. Really nice kick. This took a while to develop but does have good power. Looks a bit too yellow to me.
★★
Potted stiltons
Paxton & Whitfield Stilton Jar, 250g, £19.50 paxtonandwhitfield.co.uk
This one has a butter cap. Smacks you right between the eyes. Oooh! Wow, it’s really strong, which is excellent. I love a good strong stilton. It’s got great acidity. Texturally it’s a little bit smooth for me but it really packs a punch.
★★★★★
Tesco Stilton Jar, 225g, £4, tesco.com
Quite a pale looking stilton… Wow, that is really potent. Lovely creamy finish. The acidity is really good. It starts off strong and then there’s quite an enjoyable mellowness that comes afterwards.
★★★★★
Marks & Spencer Award Winning Blue Stilton, 300g, £5, marksandspencer.com
Nice acidic, stilton punch to it, exactly what you’re looking for. Texturally it’s really nice, with a good clean aftertaste. Sharpness and good creaminess… I like that a lot.
★★★★
Waitrose Cropwell Bishop Potted Blue Stilton, 300g, £11, waitrose.com
This has a crumblier texture – fabulous. A little less powerful in flavour. It’s creamy and delicious again. Once you started eating it, you’ll be still sitting there 20 minutes later.
★★★
Baked cheeses
Morrisons The Best Baking Brie with Cranberries and Sloe Gin Drizzle, 590g, £6, morrisons.com
I love the serving dish. The cheese is pungent – absolutely delicious.
★★★★★
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Baking Camembert with Sloe Gin and Fruit, 290g, £3.50, sainsburys.co.uk
A gooey situation with warmth from the gin.
★★★★
Aldi Specially Selected Normandy Baking Camembert, 290g, £2.79, aldi.co.uk
A bit pappy texturally – a sweet jam on top of liquid cheese. The cheese isn’t strong enough. A bit sickly.
★★
Marks & Spencer Brie En-Croute, 729g, £12, marksandspencer.com
Looks fabulous but it is very salty and overwhelming. Slight egginess actually. There are big cloves of garlic.
★
Salted caramels
Hotel Chocolat Milk Salted Caramel Selector, 55g, £3.95, hotelchocolat.com
I like the size of this one. That caramel tastes a bit different. This chocolate tastes grown-up.
★★★
Chococo Box of Cornish Sea Salt Caramel Chocolates, 100g, £11.50, chococo.co.uk
Nostalgic looking. Very runny caramel. It’s got a weird sourness to the caramel… A bit sickly.
★★
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Belgian Salted Caramels, 140g, £5, sainsburys.com
They look a little cheap. Overly sweet; minimal salt. A bit big. I’m not sure the chocolate is that great.
★★
Lily O’Brien’s Salted Caramels Tree Box, 108g, £4.50, lilyobriens.co.uk
I like the way this looks. More of a fudgey caramel, with a slightly chalky-fudgey texture. I can’t taste any salt. Incredibly sweet.
★★
Chocolate boxes under £10
Co-op Irresistible Luxury Collection, 16 chocolates, £6, coop.co.uk
Nice looking little box of chocs. Tasty chocolate and the fillings are quite good too. The best box.
★★★★
Moser Roth Artisan Collection, 225g, £7.99, aldi.co.uk
Quite kiddy looking. Taste a lot better than they look. Much more chocolatey than I expected and not too sweet. Quite surprising.
★★
Cocoa et Co Festive Collection, 155g, £6, sainsburys.co.uk
These could go on a Christmas tree. Underwhelming, but not too sweet and you can taste the chocolate. Just not very exciting.
★★
Lily O’Brien Winter Desserts Collection, 224g, £7, lilyobriens.co.uk
Big chocolates. Crikey … just sugar. The chocolate does not have much punch. Looks good, but underwhelming flavour, overwhelming sweetness.
★
Chocolate boxes under £20
Selfridges Festive Chocolate Collection, 210g, £14.99, selfridges.com
These look handmade, artisan. The chocolate tastes nice, quite creamy, no waxy aftertaste. A nice present.
★★★★
Marks & Spencer Signature Collection, 390g, £15, marksandspencer.com
Oddly perfumed. The chocolate is better than I thought it would be. Surprising.
★★★
Chococo Christmas Selection Box, 200g, £17.50, chococo.co.uk
The chocolate tastes OK, mid-range. Not sickly. A funny aftertaste. Not exciting but they’ve made an effort.
★★★
Hotel Chocolat The Classic Christmas Chocolate H-box, 160g, £12.95, hotelchocolat.com
Look like they’re straight out of a Christmas stocking. Don’t pack much of a punch, and not a lot of variety.
★★
