If there is one spread that we as a nation can collectively agree on, it's the ever simple, but satisfying, jar of jam.
Tired of butter on toast? Pop on some jam. Need a cake filling? Spoon in some jam. Having a scone for lunch? Grab yourself a dollop of jam with that clotted cream.
Alright, so I am pretty sure you get my point by now.
Not to mention, it's incredibly versatile with its range of flavours that will suit any palette. Personally, I'm a sucker for raspberry, but apparently Strawberry is the nations go-to choice. And with the Queen's Platinum Jubilee coming up, there's no better time to enjoy a scone with jam than over the bank holiday weekend celebration.
Of course, there is only one major brand that many jam-lovers across the country will be familiar with, and that would be the iconic Hartley's.
The British food brand has been delighting jam fans since 1871 which has led to them being undeniably the most iconic brand for the sweet stuff.
And, like so many things in life these days, I wondered if I was missing out on a value brand alternative which may offer me the same sweet and tart taste, but for a little less.
Granted, at £1 for a 300g jar, Hartley's is hardly breaking the bank, but considering many supermarket versions cost anywhere between 28p - 31p for a 454g jar, it absolutely can't do any harm to find out.
Which is exactly what I have decided to do. I have taken it upon myself to do the work of the jam gods by finding out if there is a budget jar of jam that could stand as tall as the iconic British brand.
Visiting Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury's, I managed to pick up three own-branded jars of strawberry jam to find out what brand will reign supreme.
Popping on a good dollop of jam onto a scone - because that's who I am - here is how I got on with this taste test.
Hartley's
Starting out this taste test is the ultimate king - or queen - of jam brands, because I needed something to compare the supermarket versions to.
Literally as soon as I spread this on my scone, I was reminded why Hartley's is so popular. As soon as I took of the lid, it smelled like summer in a jar.
The fruity and tart fragrance hits the nose as soon as it is opened, and it's texture was even enough to spread. None of that lumpy mess you can sometimes get.
As for the taste, it's exactly what jam enthusiasts love. As soon as you take a bite, you get that sweetness and tang that comes with strawberry jam.
One thing that did surprise me, and I don't know if I would have noticed this before, but there was not as much fruit pieces or seeds leading it to be a bit smoother. I personally don't tend to go for smooth jam, because it just doesn't taste right, so this was a bit of a let down for me.
Apart from that, an excellent and pleasant jam all around. Now, let's see if one supermarket can dethrone the royal Hartley's?
Price: £1 for a 300g jar.
Rating: 4.5/5
Asda
First up on the supermarket versions was one of the countries biggest supermarkets, Asda. I picked up a 454g jar of Strawberry jam from the chain's budget Smart Price range.
At just 31p, it's already 69p cheaper for an extra 154g of strawberry goodness - so, on that front it is already a winner.
On to the actual jam, though.
Once I had spread this onto my scone, I will admit that it resembled Hartley's quite well. It was almost deep red colour and had a nice thick texture. The jam itself also had that sweet strawberry fragrance that was basically almost as powerful as Hartley's.
As for the taste, it definitely had that punchy strawberry flavour that you need with a good jam, so I really can't complain about this one.
One slight bugbear that I did have, was the fact the texture was on the slightly thicker side, meaning it tasted quite gooey and stuck to the mouth.
Does it ruin the jam? Not entirely, but it's definitely annoying.
Price: 31p for a 454g jar
Rating: 4/5
Morrisons
Next up, I tried out a 454g jar of strawberry jam from Morrisons budget value Savers range and it was definitely just a little bit lacklustre.
While it certainly looked like a nice strawberry red colour from the jar, once it was spread it was rather thin and light, and just not a well balanced jam.
Unlike Hartley's and Asda's, this jam didn't really have that fruit aroma as soon as you opened the lid - it was just a little bit too subtle for my liking.
As for the taste, well it was interesting. While there were definitely notes of strawberry there, I did feel like this thicker jelly like jar of jam was more bitter than sweet.
It also didn't really have any fruit pieces or seeds and just came across bland. This one definitely paled in comparison to the previous two.
Price: 30p for a 454g jar
Rating: 1/5
Sainsbury's
Last up for tasting, was a jar of jam from one of Sainsbury's value brands Hubbard's Foodstore.
At just 28p for the full 454g jar, it was the cheapest out of the whole bunch - but did it taste as cheap as it cost?
The answer to that is yes and no.
The one thing I noticed was that the texture was a lot more gelatinous, but once spread, it was definitely a lot thinner and struggled didn't have that chunky jam texture.
Again, much like Morrisons, it had a very faint fruity aroma that kind of lacked the punchy tartness that comes with a good strawberry jam.
The taste definitely had a pleasant fruitiness to it, but it wasn't bursting with flavour. Not anything like the summer in a jar that Hartley's offers you.
Overall, not bad, but still not a great note to end on.
Price: 28p for a 454g jar
Rating: 2.5/5
Overall verdict
If we're judging this by price, then arguably all of the supermarket own-branded jams win this test by a landslide - but you would mostly be compromising on taste.
If you're wanting a strawberry jam that is punchy, will burst with flavour in the mouth, and that has good spread ability - then Hartley's still reigns supreme. Honestly, at £1, you might be paying more for less in quantity, but definitely not quality.
However, I can't fault Asda's Smart Price strawberry jam, as it was definitely the closest to the iconic brand. It tasted fruity, had a lovely sweet aroma and was thick enough to spread over the scone.
Sainsbury's jellylike substance had a pleasant taste, but the texture was just a little off putting.
As for Morrisons, well the less said the better.
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