olive summer supermarket awards 2026

Prepare to spice up your summer with a diverse range of new supermarket BBQ essentials, innovative spins on picnic classics and a sharing bread for the perfect spread. From king-sized kebabs to fish skewers and honey-glazed pork belly, we have everything you need for a summer of exciting entertaining.

olive Summer Awards 2026 winners

Best sharing bread

Winner: Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Herby Focaccia

This versatile focaccia is a great summer staple. It's fragrant with a basil and parsley dressing, while the bread has the classic comforting focaccia texture and pleasing chew. A generous sharing bread to serve alongside dips, salads and BBQ feasts.

Available from:
Sainsbury's (£3.50)

Runner up: Aldi Specially Selected Caramelised Red Onion & Extra Mature Cheddar Flatbread

This cheesy caramelised onion flatbread is sure to be a crowdpleaser. Served warm, it has sweetness from the caramelised red onions and tang from mature cheddar. The bread has a pillowy, bouncy texture that kept judges coming back for more. Perfect for alfresco meals in the garden.

Available from:
Aldi (£1.99)

Best antipasti platter

Winner: Waitrose No 1 Italian Grazing Platter

This grazing platter is a great one-stop buy to ensure your picnic has variety, saving you buying lots of different pots and tubs. It has a well-curated selection of tastes and textures for everyone to enjoy. The high-quality meat selection is a highlight with pork salami and garlicky coppa. Unusual additions include large caper berries and pickled onions that make this platter stand out from others.

Available from:
Waitrose (£12/380g)

Runner up: Tesco Finest Spanish Meat & Cheese Selection

This impressed with good quality meats and produce. The iberico cheese is mild and creamy, with a varied selection of Spanish hams including chorizo and serrano.

Available from:
Tesco (£6)

Best aperitif

Joint winner: Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Orange Spritz

A quick shortcut for Aperol fans. This ready to drink cocktail is made with sparkling wine and natural orange flavourings. It has a distinct citrussy flavour with a good element of bitter orange notes so it is not too sweet. Serve well chilled for a refreshing spritz.

Available from:
Sainsbury's (£6.50)

Joint winner: Morrisons The Best Fino Sherry

If you're looking for an aperitif that doesn't go down the spritz or cocktail route, a good sherry is not to be overlooked. This is a very high quality fino sherry: lovely almondy flavour and saline, umami notes. Would be great with salty snacks.

Available from:
Morrisons (£9)

Best gin for summer

Joint winner: Co-op Irresistible London Dry Gin

A classic London dry gin that is a brilliant all-rounder to add to your drinks cupboard. Botanicals of juniper, citrus (in the form of lemon verbena) and coriander make for a smooth, well-balanced drink.

Available from:
Co-op (£20)

Joint winner: Lidl Hortus Pink Grapefruit Gin

For a flavoured gin, this is perfectly refreshing for summer. It has bold grapefruit aromas and elegant flavour – it would even work well in a twist on a negroni. Well suited for those who don't want a super sweet flavoured gin.

Available from:
Lidl (£16.99)

Best premixed cocktail

Joint winner: Sainsbury's Mojito

While many canned cocktails veer too sweet, this is well balanced. It is pleasantly minty, clean tasting and just lightly sweetened for a refreshing classic mojito. Serve well chilled if possible.

Available from:
Sainsbury's (£1.40)

Joint winner: Asda The Distiller Raspberry Mojito

The bright pink hue of this raspberry mojito suggests it is going to be sweet, but in fact there's plenty of tangy fruity raspberry notes to keep this balanced. It's got a gentle fizz.

Available from:
Asda (£1.22)

Best burger

Winner: Aldi Specially Selected Wagyu Smash Burger

Recreate the crispy, juicy smash burgers you've tried in all the latest trending burger spots. These Aldi burgers caramelised well for crispy edges, while the centres stayed juicy – perfect for stacking.

Available from:
Aldi (£3.99, available in store)

Best vegan burger

Winner: Lidl Chef Select Moroccan Style Burger

This good-sized burger has a deep brown crust once cooked and appetising golden colour inside. A good alternative if you don't like vegan meat alternatives – this reminded judges of a well-spiced falafel, with hints of lemon and chilli.

Available from:
Lidl (£1.89)

Best hummus

Winner: Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Extra Smooth Houmous

This classic hummus makes an easy shortcut when entertaining – whether served with crudités for dipping, or swirled onto a platter and layered with meatballs and toppings. It has a smooth, light texture with simple notes of olive oil and tahini coming through.

Available from:
Sainsbury's (£3.25)

Best picnic range

Winner: Tesco

We tried six products from Tesco’s picnic range for an impressive alfresco feast. The salty focaccia is a highlight – crisp, perfect for sharing and dunking into dips. Entertaining is made easy by the savoury pastel de nata (essentially a rich and creamy quiche with good pastry) for a centrepiece, while good quality salami and burrata are crowd-pleasing summer staples that are always good to have on standby. The tabbouleh with whipped feta is a nice lighter touch that would work equally well for a midweek lunch as a picnic sharing dish, with fresh, colourful grains on top of salty feta.

How we chose the winners

The olive team chose 10 categories to cover all the summer essentials. We invited all the big supermarkets to select the products they wanted to nominate (just one entry per category, so they had to choose carefully). Our expert panel of judges blind-tested them, rating each on taste, texture and appearance. We then awarded winner accolades to our favourites.