Cheese is a staple item on most shopping lists in the UK. In fact, experts have said that cheese is bought by 98% of UK households, with the average Brit eating 30g a day - and for Rebecca Astill, it's no different.
According to the Birmingham Live reporter, if you asked her when she was younger what her favourite food was, the answer "would always be cheese. Cheddar, Emmental, red Leicester, brie, Camembert, mozzarella, you name it, I loved it."
And whilst there are hundreds of varieties of cheeses, there is one clear favourite: cheddar. Cheddar is, by far, the most popular cheese in the UK, with sales of this particular cheese accounting for about half of sales.
However, like most of us, as Rebecca grew up and started paying for her own food, she realised that cheese is actually rather expensive: "Nobody warns you about that. It was a huge shock to the system when I first lived away from home and expected to be able to feed myself the same luxuries as I enjoyed at home, living with my parents. But it turned out, I could not go through a pack of Cathedral City weekly because I simply could not afford to."
On a mission not to sacrifice the quality of good cheddar, Rebecca instead went on a mission to find the best supermarket cheese for the cheapest price. To make sure her answers were as accurate as possible, she bought supermarket cheese from seven supermarkets, including Lidl , Tesco , Aldi , Sainsbury’s , Waitrose , M&S and Asda and compared them all to Cathedral City to see which was the closest alternative. Here's how she got on:
Cathedral City
I had to rescue a thin sliver from the mouths of my family to complete this review, because Cathedral City is such a family favourite. I love Cathedral City and it hits the spot in terms of strength, taste and creaminess.
My only gripe is the waxy sheen put on the outside of the cheese, which I assume is for aesthetic reasons. It makes the cheese a little sweaty.
9/10
M&S
The M&S cheese was just under £1 cheaper than Cathedral City, which is sure to add up over weeks of regular purchases. It also matches Cathedral City on creaminess.
However, it lacks the strength I expect from a cheese advertised as “mature”, and was a bit salty. I would not substitute my Cathedral City just yet.
7/10
Aldi
Aldi’s cheese is cheaper and you get 50g more than the Cathedral City block, but does it taste as good? Not quite, unfortunately.
The cheddar was much less creamy than both Cathedral City and M&S, and fell apart easily as soon as I cut a slice. Again, it lacked the strength of Cathedral City.
5/10
Tesco
The Tesco cheese was the closest I found strength wise to Cathedral City. It was strong, creamy and held its structure.
I do wish it came in a resealable bag, like the Cathedral City, but based on the actual cheese this was my favourite. It actually tasted like luxury cheese you might buy from a deli counter or farmer’s market.
10/10
Waitrose
The Waitrose cheddar was creamy and had a good texture but tasting it straight after Tesco’s strong cheddar probably put it at a disadvantage. Again, it lacked strength.
It would be perfect for anyone who likes a mild to strong cheese, but not if you are looking for anything stronger.
7/10
Lidl
The Lidl cheese was extremely creamy, perhaps the creamiest of the lot, but unfortunately lacked the strength like so many of the other supermarket cheeses. I can say this because I tasted them all side by side and next to Cathedral City, I think on its own the Lidl cheese is perfectly fine.
The pack is resealable and pretty identical to the Cathedral City pack, and I think if you were looking for a cheaper option Lidl is probably not a bad shout.
8/10
Sainsbury’s
I will just preface this by saying I know this is a taste test, but I liked the Sainsbury’s packaging best. It is pretty.
Unfortunately, the taste was not so good. It was bland, crumbly, and actually tasted more like plastic American burger cheese than cheddar.
2/10
Asda
The Asda cheese was a good block to finish on. Although the taste was more mild than mature, it was creamy and had a good strong texture for one of the cheapest prices.
Online, this cheddar block has more than 50 five star reviews so do not just go off my opinion. It was not the best, but definitely up there.
8/10
Overall Verdict
Tesco 10/10
Cathedral City 9/10
Lidl 8/10
Asda 8/10
M&S 7/10
Waitrose 7/10
Aldi 5/10
Sainsbury’s 2/10
Overall I found it difficult to separate most of the supermarket cheeses, most were flavoursome and creamy but just slightly lacked the strength of Cathedral City. However there were two standouts, one for being incredible and one for being, frankly, awful.
Tesco was the best by far thanks to its strength of taste, plus it is cheaper to buy than Cathedral City by almost one pound. Sainsbury’s was the worst because it tasted bland and plasticy, like the cheese I would expect to eat in a McDonald’s burger.
Generally though, I would be more than happy to substitute any of the other supermarket cheeses for Cathedral City based on the price. I think the slight difference in strength is a small change to make compared to the money you save.
For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.
