A supermarket's own-brand coffee has been crowned the finest in Britain, pushing established rivals Kenco and Nescafé into second place. Priced at £7.25 for 200g, shoppers save over £1 per jar compared to market-leading brands while also getting more coffee per jar for those hectic mornings.
How the test was conducted
A panel of 68 coffee lovers sampled 12 instant gold-roast-style coffees, working through over 800 test cups throughout the assessment. These included household names such as Nescafé, Douwe Egberts and Kenco, which were measured against nine supermarket own-brand alternatives from Asda, Lidl and Sainsbury's.
Top performers
Two supermarket coffees particularly impressed the testers, while another retailer earned the Great Value accolade, striking the ideal balance between quality and affordability.
Nescafé Gold Blend had a price of £8.35 for 190g, matching the cost of a 195g jar of Kenco. The former scored highly amongst the 68 taste evaluators, falling short of 'Best Buy' status by merely a single point. Roughly half were pleased with the flavour of both Nescafé and Kenco, though a third felt they didn't provide an adequately robust coffee kick.
Which brands came out on top?
The Which? consumer champion study found that two supermarket brands came out on top: M&S and Waitrose. "If you want to upgrade from basic instant, bag yourself a tasty brew with our top-scoring gold blend coffee from M&S," it advised.
The M&S Gold Instant Coffee, priced at £7.25 for 200g, earned top marks for its flavour, aroma and packaging. Nearly two-thirds of testers were happy with the strength of flavour, while almost three-quarters gave the thumbs up to its bitterness level. The product also performed exceptionally well on ethical grounds, being one of just two coffees in the entire test to carry the Fairtrade mark.
Waitrose Gold Roast shared the top spot with M&S, likewise earning the coveted 'Best Buy' accolade. It performed consistently well across the board, making an immediate impact with its appearance and aroma. More than half of those tested felt the coffee's strength was spot on, with nearly two-thirds appreciating its bitter qualities. The Waitrose option was priced at £3.70 for 100g, making it more expensive per gram than the Marks and Spencer alternative.
Best value option
Aldi Barissimo Gold Roast Freeze Dried Coffee was awarded the Great Value recommendation by Which?, at just £2.65 for 200g. Tasters responded warmly to its aroma, with nearly two-thirds approving of its bitterness balance and just under half enjoying the overall taste. A slightly bolder coffee flavour could have made it an even more appealing option.
