- Champagnes from Co-op and Aldi have beaten a prestige brand at double price
Famous champagne houses will be feeling flat this Christmas as budget supermarket fizz has come out on top in taste tests.
Champagnes from Co-op and Aldi have beaten a prestige brand at double the price in Christmas testing.
And it’s been an especially good festive season for Co-op, which has also placed first for its mince pies.
The results prove shoppers can celebrate without blowing the budget. Consumer champion Which? asked a panel of four wine experts to blind-taste a selection of fizz.
Following closely behind was Aldi’s Veuve Monsigny Premier Cru Champagne at £21.99, which received a score of 81 per cent and also earned a Best Buy (stock photo)
Co-op’s Les Pionniers Champagne, costing £22.75, proved to be a corker, scoring 85 per cent and named a Best Buy.
The experts praised its smooth creaminess, pleasing freshness and long savoury finish.
Following closely behind was Aldi’s Veuve Monsigny Premier Cru Champagne at £21.99, which received a score of 81 per cent and also earned a Best Buy.
The panel said this fizz showcased fresh fruit flavours against a ‘savoury backbone’.
These bottles were rated higher than the most expensive champagne the panel tasted.
It’s been an especially good festive season for Co-op, which has also placed first for its mince pies (stock image)
The £47 Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut Champagne received a score of 77 per cent.
It had a classy and crisp taste, but the judges said there are plenty of cheaper champagnes that were were just as – if not more – delicious.
Other supermarket offerings were a hit with the experts, such as Asda’s Veuve Olivier & Fils Secret de Cave Champagne (£28) and Waitrose’s Brut Champagne )(£21.99).
Natalie Hitchins, of Which?, said: ‘Our taste tests have found superb supermarket champagnes and cheaper alternatives that deliver on quality and value for money and more than rival a famous champagne house.’
