Mince Pie Reviews

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Overall Rating: 8.5

The last few times out Tesco’s ‘Finest’ range mince pies have been top notch. The class of 2017 is a cracker too…

A nice design on top giving you a lovely Christmas feeling before you’ve even sunk your teeth currant-deep into the pie. The sugar sprinkle on top is text book – as if they’ve been reading the past reviews!

The only small negative is the bottom of the mince pie – the crust has become a little soggy and there’s a real risk of ‘mincemeat loss’ if it collapses. That would be a real shame as the mincemeat is great – really fruity and full, with a hint of the Courvoisier Brand Cognac too.

This mince pie just shows how important it is for all the elements to be perfect in their own way – a ‘perfect’ mincemeat on its own is too ‘juicy’ for the perfect pastry. So you either need a slightly thicker or drier pastry, or a slightly less juicy mincemeat. #mincepieproblems

A mighty effort from Tesco – but, can it beat their standard pie? That’s up next so keep your eyes peeled…

 

Overall Rating: 8/10

“How!?”, I hear you cry. “How can the standard Tesco pie score the same as the Finest?” You’re angry, it’s understandable. Calm down and read on mince pie lover…

I don’t take this ‘job’ lightly, nor do I ignore the costs or hierarchy that have become so entrenched in the UK mince pie market (surely the world’s most mature?) A ‘Finest’ or ‘Extra Special’ pie is judged more harshly than a standard pie. Simple. I expect more from them.

Back to the task at hand. This is a great little mince pie. Very slightly smaller than its Finest cousin, but the taste from the pastry is great. A definite buttery after taste. Probably not enough sugar on top and the star isn’t as fancy as the design on the Finest range. But that’s nit picking.

The mincemeat is almost indistinguishable from the Finest mince pie – which makes me wonder if only the pastry and size differ here?

The whole pie tastes great and I can see many families sitting round the TV demolishing multiple packs post Turkey et al. Nice work Tesco – a pie for the people in my book.

 

Overall Rating: 8.5

The last few times out Tesco’s ‘Finest’ range mince pies have been top notch. The class of 2017 is a cracker too…

A nice design on top giving you a lovely Christmas feeling before you’ve even sunk your teeth currant-deep into the pie. The sugar sprinkle on top is text book – as if they’ve been reading the past reviews!

The only small negative is the bottom of the mince pie – the crust has become a little soggy and there’s a real risk of ‘mincemeat loss’ if it collapses. That would be a real shame as the mincemeat is great – really fruity and full, with a hint of the Courvoisier Brand Cognac too.

This mince pie just shows how important it is for all the elements to be perfect in their own way – a ‘perfect’ mincemeat on its own is too ‘juicy’ for the perfect pastry. So you either need a slightly thicker or drier pastry, or a slightly less juicy mincemeat. #mincepieproblems

A mighty effort from Tesco – but, can it beat their standard pie? That’s up next so keep your eyes peeled…

 

Overall Rating: 7/10

Mr Kipling. The master of cakes and baking for what seems like forever. But, what are his mince pies like this year?

Pretty good actually. You expect a decent product from Mr K and he delivers, the overall experience is very pleasant. But, with that praise comes a slight tinge of criticism. I think he’s played it safe. The rest of the year he’s got the small cake and pie market pretty sewn up. He doesn’t need to fight tooth and nail for a slice of thispie (of the mince variety). So what does he do? Puts out a pie that pleases but doesn’t wow. Safe.

The pastry may be slightly on the dry and crumbly side and the mincemeat filling is a couple of degrees to ‘paste-like’. I think there’s some ‘blended mincemeat plus some whole fruits going on. It’s not very spiced or sweet but the flavour it does have is nice.

Decent sprinkle of sugar on the top and you have a solid 7/10 mince pie. Won’t disappoint, but if you want some ‘mmmmm’ at the table plump for one of the others.

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Overall Rating: 8.5/10

This is a big one. Heston. Equal parts inventive and bat shit crazy.

Heston turns his attention to the mince pie for Waitrose once again. This year’s offering has a ‘lemon twist’. What he’s actually done is mix a mince pie with a lemony Sussex pond pudding (no, I’ve never heard of that either).

The result is…extremely tasty and lemony. The crumble on top and the base are both exceptionally well made and perfectly crumbly, flavoursome, spiced and sweet. The filling, or least the lemon part, is perfect too – super lemony as described on the box, but what this means is that the humble mincemeat is a little lost. In fact you could serve this to someone at any point in the year without telling them it was a ‘mince pie’ and they might not guess it contained any mincemeat at all.

That’s not a bad thing. Other than the fact this is meant to be a mince pie. There’s no doubt the Heston offering is amazing – the ingredients appear top notch and it’s really unusual and rich – but as a mince pie it falls short. Not too far short, and it should certainly be something you consider purchasing to serve alongside a traditional mince pie.

Thanks Heston.

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Overall Rating: 7/10

Greggs mince pies have been suggested multiple times since I started on this currant-filled journey last month. Finally I found some and I’m pleasantly surprised.

Whilst the pastry is maybe very slightly on the drier side, the moist vine fruits, apple and flavours inside the mincemeat bring it all together nicely.

For me the mincemeat is tipping more towards tart than sweet (as advertised) but they’re still a really nice pie. A wide and flat ‘form factor’ gives them a nice point of difference and makes them feel bigger too.

If you want to avoid the supermarket pies the Greggs option is completely sound.

 

Overall Rating: 8.5/10

This is a big one. Heston. Equal parts inventive and bat shit crazy.

Heston turns his attention to the mince pie for Waitrose once again. This year’s offering has a ‘lemon twist’. What he’s actually done is mix a mince pie with a lemony Sussex pond pudding (no, I’ve never heard of that either).

The result is…extremely tasty and lemony. The crumble on top and the base are both exceptionally well made and perfectly crumbly, flavoursome, spiced and sweet. The filling, or least the lemon part, is perfect too – super lemony as described on the box, but what this means is that the humble mincemeat is a little lost. In fact you could serve this to someone at any point in the year without telling them it was a ‘mince pie’ and they might not guess it contained any mincemeat at all.

That’s not a bad thing. Other than the fact this is meant to be a mince pie. There’s no doubt the Heston offering is amazing – the ingredients appear top notch and it’s really unusual and rich – but as a mince pie it falls short. Not too far short, and it should certainly be something you consider purchasing to serve alongside a traditional mince pie.

Thanks Heston.

 

Overall Rating: 7/10

Greggs mince pies have been suggested multiple times since I started on this currant-filled journey last month. Finally I found some and I’m pleasantly surprised.

Whilst the pastry is maybe very slightly on the drier side, the moist vine fruits, apple and flavours inside the mincemeat bring it all together nicely.

For me the mincemeat is tipping more towards tart than sweet (as advertised) but they’re still a really nice pie. A wide and flat ‘form factor’ gives them a nice point of difference and makes them feel bigger too.

If you want to avoid the supermarket pies the Greggs option is completely sound.

 

Overall Score: 6/10

Such promise from the festive green box, the lovely photos and promise of ‘vostizza’ currants! It’s a shame that the contents of said festive green box are a disappointment.

I do like a puff pastry mince pie – the Co-op did a particularly good one last year – but this offering from M&S has multiple issues.

The pastry is too dry – puff pastry is crumbly and dry by its very nature – but this is too much. There’s also too much of it and not enough filling – which compounds the dryness.

The filling isn’t as good as it sounds on the box either – those ‘vostizza’ currants don’t seem to make any impact, apart from on the price I imagine. Save your money and buy a traditional mince pie or the Co-op version (not yet tested but comes from good stock).

 

Overall Rating: 8/10

The mighty M&S strides into battle. This isn’t their ‘extra special’ pie – it’s a standard pie, but expectations are still high…

The mincemeat is the star here, just sweet enough with some lovely plump fruit too. Just how a mince pie should taste in my opinion.

The pastry is nice and buttery but I think just a little too soft. The soft fruity mincemeat seems to be the culprit here, which is a shame.

I’m being harsh because it’s M&S, but this is still a very good choice. I’d still rather have the Aldi or Lidl pie though…