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Best luxury Christmas pudding taste test

How the best Christmas pudding taste test worked

Five members of the olive team conducted a blind taste test to find the most flavoursome luxury original Christmas pudding. We tasted six original Christmas puddings from luxury stores, bakeries and brands including Liberty and Hobbs House. The group choose 1st and 2nd place winners with the rest coming in as overall worthy runners up.

The results for the best luxury Christmas pudding taste test

Winner: Harvey Nichols Christmas pudding

About the Christmas pudding: The Harvey Nichols traditional Christmas pudding is an inexpensive high quality Christmas pudding the whole family will love. It's moist and moreish and packed with plenty of fruit, sultanas, cider and much more.

Comments: This winning Christmas pudding was rich in flavour, had a nice mix of fruit and whole nuts with a dense and sticky texture, and had the ideal amount of booze.

Price: £9.50/454g, harveynichols.com, ocado.com

Second place: The Liberty London Felix and Isabelle Traditional Christmas Pudding

About the Christmas pudding: This luxury Christmas pudding is handmade in Devon by Georgie Porgie’s Puddings using their secret recipe, and comes wrapped in traditional Liberty London print.

Comments: The judges thought this Christmas pudding was slightly less like a traditional Christmas pudding, it was super boozy, cake-like and juicy in flavour. This Christmas pudding had strong spice flavours and was light to taste.

Price: £19.95/907g, libertylondon.com

The Liberty London Felix and Isabelle Traditional Christmas Pudding

Other luxury Christmas puddings that we tried

Organic Christmas pudding Daylesford

About the Christmas pudding: Daylesford has been farming organically for over 35 years straight from the Daylesford estate. This homemade Christmas pudding uses a traditional family recipe and is sphere shaped wrapped in organic muslin.

Comments: This Christmas pudding was soft in texture and was packed with plenty of fruit and nuts. The pudding isn't too boozy so it's ideal for those who aren't into boozy desserts.

Price: £20.00/900g, daylesford.com

Figgy's Christmas pudding

About the Christmas pudding: Figgy's is a family run business down in Devon. All its Christmas puddings are homemade with port stout, Somerset cider and Californian raisins, and they're all steamed in ceramic bowls.

Comments: This Christmas pudding was very well balanced, but not too sweet in overall flavour. It was packed with plenty of fruit, but not many nuts.

Price: £16.95 (medium)/550g, figgys.co.uk

Hobbs House Christmas pudding

About the Christmas pudding: Using leftover sourdough breadcrumbs, their 62 year old sourdough starter and Wiper and True's under carbonated ale, this pudding uses the finest ingredients. Served in a traditional Mason and Cash earthenware pudding basin.

Comments: This Christmas pudding was light in colour and quite tart in flavour, it had herbal and orange notes. This pudding would make a great alternative to the traditional Christmas pudding.

Price: £12.50/hobbshousebakery.co.uk

Burtree Deluxe Christmas pudding

About the Christmas pudding: Burtree is a family-run business creating lots of different puddings. This particular Christmas pudding uses a dark rum, barley wine and stout.

Comments: This Christmas pudding was sweet, boozy and sticky, an all in all good Christmas pudding.

Price: £4.99/ small (225g), burtreepuddings.co.uk

If you're looking for other festive desserts, then check out our mince pie taste test here, too.

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