I tried supermarket cheddar cheese that’s better and cheaper than Cathedral City

From sandwiches and the humble toastie to lasagnes and macaroni cheese, cheddar remains a supermarket staple that’s an indispensable ingredient in countless dishes. However, not every cheese brand lives up to expectations. Consumer watchdog Which? regularly puts supermarket basics through their paces, and in one of their latest blind tasting of cheddars, expert panellists rated one supermarket cheddar cheese to be the best, with a percentage for 77%.

After evaluating the flavour, aroma, looks and consistency, Which? awarded “best buy” to the Waitrose Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar. I’ve previously tasted an array of supermarket mature cheddar cheese; Waitrose missed out on the top spot, but Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar was not in the mix. After reading the glowing feedback from the taste testers, I was eager to pop to Waitrose to give it a try and compare it against Cathedral City’s mature cheddar.

Retailing for £3.18 for 350g, most tasters thought the Waitrose mature cheddar cheese had “just the right smoothness and creaminess”, as well as “perfect saltiness”.

Two-thirds of the tasters said “the strength of flavour was just right”, and the same proportion were satisfied with this cheddar’s crumbliness.

While it’s not the cheapest supermarket own-brand cheddar cheese, it still beats the price of brand leaders Cathedral City and Pilgrims Choice.

Waitrose’s Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese currently retails for £3.18 for a 350g block.

Cathedral City Mature Cheddar Cheese costs £4.25 for a 350g block, and Pilgrims Choice Mature Cheddar retails for £3.30 for a 350g size, currently at Waitrose.

I am a cheese lover and am obsessed with adding it to my baked potatoes and making cheese toasties. I find that using mature cheese works best, as it adds better flavour.

After opening both cheese packets, the first obvious difference was the smell. The scent of the Waitrose cheese was much stronger than that of Cathedral City.

Going into slicing, the Cathedral City block sliced pretty smoothly, whereas the Waitrose option was far more crumbly – something you want from a mature cheddar.

Taking a bite out of each, I found the Cathedral City cheese to be on the mild side, despite being labelled “mature”. However, it had a smooth texture and a good level of saltiness.

I found the Waitrose Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese far richer, smoother, and creamier, and it lasted in the mouth for a while.

After tasting them both on their own, I decided to make toasties with them. Both of them melted very well and were similar in colour; however, the strong flavour of the Waitrose cheese made it the clear winner.

Given that Waitrose Davidstow Cornish Mature Cheddar Cheese is tastier and cheaper than Cathedral City, I’ll definitely be making the swap.

How did the other supermarket’s mature cheddar cheese perform?

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%