I prefer the taste of supermarket cheese to Cathedral City —

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From sandwiches and simple toasties to lasagnes and macaroni cheese, cheddar remains an essential supermarket staple that features in countless dishes. However, not all cheese brands meet the mark. Consumer watchdog Which? regularly tests supermarket basics, and in one of their recent blind tastings of cheddars, expert panellists rated one supermarket cheddar cheese as the best, scoring it 77%.

After assessing the flavour, aroma, appearance and texture, Which? bestowed the "best buy" accolade on Waitrose's Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar.

I have tried a variety of mature cheddar cheeses from supermarkets before; while Waitrose didn't take the lead, Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar was absent from the selection.

Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar

After reading the glowing reviews from the taste testers, I was keen to pop to Waitrose to give it a try and compare it against Cathedral City's mature cheddar.

Priced at £3.18 for 350g, most tasters believed the Waitrose mature cheddar cheese had "just the right smoothness and creaminess", along with "perfect saltiness".

Two-thirds of the tasters agreed "the strength of flavour was just right", and the same proportion were pleased with this cheddar's crumbliness.

Whilst it's not the cheapest supermarket own-brand cheddar cheese, it still undercuts the price of brand leaders Cathedral City and Pilgrims Choice.

City and Pilgrims Choice

Waitrose's Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese is currently priced at £3.18 for a 350g block.

Cathedral City Mature Cheddar Cheese is priced at £4.25 for a 350g block, whilst Pilgrims Choice Mature Cheddar is currently retailing at £3.30 for a 350g block at Waitrose.

As a cheese enthusiast, I'm passionate about adding it to my jacket potatoes and making cheese toasties. I find that using mature cheese works best as it delivers superior flavour.

Upon opening both cheese packets, the first noticeable difference was the aroma. The scent of the Waitrose cheese was considerably stronger than that of Cathedral City.

Mature Cheddar Cheese

When slicing both blocks of cheese, the Cathedral City one cut fairly smoothly, whereas the Waitrose option was significantly more crumbly - a desirable quality in a mature cheddar cheese.

Sampling each, I found the Cathedral City cheese to be leaning towards the milder side, despite being marketed as "mature". Nevertheless, it possessed a smooth texture and contained a decent level of saltiness.

I found the Waitrose Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese far more robust, smoother and creamier, with a flavour that lingered in the mouth for some time.

After sampling them both separately, I decided to make toasties with them. Both melted exceptionally well and were comparable in colour; however, the bold flavour of the Waitrose cheese made it the obvious winner.

Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese

Given that Waitrose Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese is more flavoursome and more affordable than Cathedral City, I'll certainly be making the switch.

How did the mature cheddar cheese from other supermarkets fare?

M&S Cornish Cove Mature Cheddar - 76%

Aldi Specially Selected West Country Mature Cheddar Cheese - 74%

Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Barber's Mature Cruncher Cheese - 74%

Tesco Finest Mature English Cheddar - 73%

Morrisons The Best Somerset Cheddar Crunch - 72%

Cathedral City Our Mature Cheddar - 71%

Co-op Irresistible Somerset Mature Cheddar - 68%

Pilgrims Choice Mature Cheddar - 68%

just the right smoothness and creaminess

Reading the wider picture

Ingredients matter, but technique matters more: the same butter and flour will produce very different results in different hands.

What to remember

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners
From sandwiches and simple toasties to lasagnes and macaroni cheese, cheddar remains an essential supermarket staple that features in countless dishes
I have tried a variety of mature cheddar cheeses from supermarkets before; while Waitrose didn't take the lead, Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar was absent from the selection
After reading the glowing reviews from the taste testers, I was keen to pop to Waitrose to give it a try and compare it against Cathedral City's mature cheddar
Priced at £3.18 for 350g, most tasters believed the Waitrose mature cheddar cheese had "just the right smoothness and creaminess", along with "perfect saltiness"

The questions it raises

What should you know about Mature Cheddar Cheese?