Aldi Specially Selected Traditional Scottish All Butter Shortbread Asortment

£1.75 for 280g, so a decent price. But when opening the box the biscuits looks very pale and bland. Fair enough. Then when eating them they are very sugary. Too sugary. So I check the sugar content compared to other All Butter Shortbread. Aldi is 29g per 100g. Sainsbury 23.5g. Tesco 16.8g. Walkers 16.5g. Morrison 15.5g. 

Way too much sugar. Never again. If I want to spoon sugar into my mouth, it's cheaper and healthier to do it direct from the sugar bag than to rub it into fat (butter) first.

There's little actual awareness of biscuit, it's mostly sugar and butter. 

Score: 2

Aldi Soupreme Kitchen Creations Broccoli & Stilton Soup

65p for a standard 400g can.  This is nice. All natural ingredients, and a good balance between cheese and broccoli to produce a flavoursome, fresh tasting and satisfying soup. This is not a budget own brand soup - at 65p it is more expensive than Tesco (45p), Sainsbury's (50p)  and is the same as Asda. It is cheaper than Heinz, Baxters and Crosse & Blackwell, which are generally over a £1, but they can sometime be bought on offers at the same or less than Aldi's price.

The more I am looking closely at Aldi's range, the more I am thinking that I am quite happy to shop at the bigger supermarkets, especially Tesco and Asda, which offer a greater range of choice, and overall work out cheaper. I particularly like shopping at Tesco using the loyalty card system, where I scan the products as I shop, and pack them into bags straight away in my trolley so there's no waiting at the checkout, and after paying I simply go straight to the car. The checkout system at Aldi is awkward and slightly stressful because the staff go through very quickly, and there's no space to pack, so if you're not quick you have to simply put everything back into the trolley and move to a shelf where you pack. This favours the company, but does not favour the customer. And I dislike that. It doesn't make me feel good.

I also like the extra discounts I get from the loyalty cards, and the cheap petrol avaialble at the big supermarkets.

At this stage I am wondering what exactly Aldi have got that makes people shop there on a regular basis.

Score: 6

Aldi Holly Lane Bramley Apple Pies

75p for a box of six (355g). I am liking the Holly Lane brand - it's the Aldi equivalent of Mr Kipling, which range from 95p (Asda)  to £1.50 (Morrisons). Tesco's own brand is the same price for about the same weight. These are fairly standard British Bramley apple pies. There is no surprise here. They are sweet and juicy and quite fresh tasting. I have liked all the Holly Lane products I have tried so far.

While I was checking the prices, I looked into the nutrition content (not something I regularly do, but I wondered about the sweetness of these Holly Lane products). It turns out they are not healthy. They contain more fat and sugar than either Mr Kipling or Tesco. And that combination of fat and sugar in a processed food is the main cause of obesity in children.

Much as I like these Holly Lane products, having checked out the facts, I can't see myself buying them again.

Update: I don't know where I got the above information from, but on doing the Apple Pie Taste Test, I looked at the information on all the boxes, and discovered that Aldi is fairly average compared to the others.  Aldi apple pies are tasty and excellent value.


Score: 8

Apple Pie Taste Test

Aldi Soupreme Chunky Soup Vegetable

65p for a standard 400g size can. Soupreme is a dreadful brand name for canned soups. Especially if the packaging is going to be so dour and basic. If the packaging was going to be fun and ironic, then they might get away with the pun, but as it is it looks like they are taking it seriously. I'm also unclear on why, when they have the Corale brand for tinned goods, they create another brand just for soups. Unless it's to give the impression that there is more brand name choice in Aldi than there actually is. After all, they have a different brand name for pretty much every product line they do. I suppose if people went into a supermarket and saw nothing but own brand products on offer, they might feel there was a lack of choice. Personally I'm OK with buying own brand products - that's what we tend to do when shopping at the big supermarkets anyway. But even a dedicated own brand shopper like me might baulk at entering a shop and seeing so little real choice, and having nothing to compare with. In the main supermarkets, such as Tesco, you get the main brands and a selection of own brands. Tesco Everyday Value Vegetable Soup is 25p. Tesco Vegetable Soup is 45p. Tesco Healthy Living Three Bean and Vegetable Soup is 49p. Crosse And Blackwell Hearty Vegetable Soup is normally 79p but is on offer at 50p. Heinz Vegetable Soup is 95p. Baxters Vegetarian Country Garden Soup is £1.10. And there are plenty more. So I have more to try, and can suit my purchase to my budget and personal taste.

This soup tasted thin and watery, and the veg was texture rather than flavour - lumps that dissolved, and tasted of tinned processed veg. Not a pleasant experience, and rather expensive for what it is. If I wanted a basic cheap soup, and didn't care about the price then the Tesco Everyday Value at 25p would work as well. For better flavour and still cheaper than Aldi the standard Heinz Vegetable Soup at 45p is looking something of a bargain. 

Score: 2

Aldi Specially Selected Buffalo Mozzarella & Semi-dried Tomato Pizza

£2.99 for a "hand-stretched" medium sized pizza in Aldi's Specially Selected range. The shape is a little different, and adds to the initial attraction, but was a little awkward to cut as I'm more used to round pizzas. The base is a bit heavy and doughy, which reminded me of why pizzas are round - they are thrown into the air to ensure that excess moisture is removed so the dough doesn't become, well, heavy and doughy..... So, nice shape, shame about the taste!


There's not a lot going on here. There's a lot of dough, and not much in the way of flavour. Yes, there is attractive tomato paste flavour - quite sweet and tomato tasting, and the pats of cheese are nice, but it doesn't add up to much. I'd appreciate some herbs and a bit more seasoning and a bit more cheese. Sometimes we buy cheap cheese and tomato pizzas for around 50p and add our own herbs, olive oil, and topping - that works well. And sometimes, being lazy, we'd just heat up the cheap pizza and eat them without adding anything. They work well enough as a snack, as picnic food, and as part of a larger meal. If paying £2.99 I'd expect the pizza to pretty much stand up for itself. This doesn't.

If you like heavy doughy pizza with some sweetness on top, but not much cheese or flavouring, then this'll work for you.

Score: 3

Aldi Corale Macaroni Cheese

40p for a standard 400g can - price for Heinz is around £1, but can be bought on offers of 50p; own brands are generally 40p - 60p. Corale appears to be Aldi's tinned goods brand - their alternative to Heinz. This is very tasty. Creamy sauce with an attractive sweetness and some decent cheese flavour. I had to add a bit of salt to bring out the flavour, but, to be fair, I always do that with tinned macaroni cheese anyway, I like tinned macaroni cheese as a quick and easy lunch, and this is more creamy and cheesy than budget own brands, and is competitive with the standard own brands which are generally more expensive.

Nice one.


Score: 7

Aldi The Village Bakery Tiger Bread Bloomer

75p for 600g. This is dreadful. I didn't realise it was only part cooked when I bought it. It says you can eat it fresh or bake in the oven for five minutes. I ate it fresh and it's inedible. It's bland and doughy and quite heavy in the mouth. And also fairly dry. So then I baked it, and it now tastes stale. Even toasted it's not enjoyable. Can't finish this. I like my bread, and this is not bread.

Score: 1

Aldi Holly Lane Double Choc Chip Muffins

85p for four decent sized muffins. The Holly Lane brand appears to be used for popular British cakes such as bakewell slices and mince pies.

These are very yummy indeed. Soft and sweet and with lots of chocolate flavour and little bits of chocolate inside. One is not enough! These are a bargain. Really, much too tempting!

   I just bought four muffins from a 99p shop for, yes, 99p. They were small and dry and less tasty. But they were healthier as they had less sugar.


Score: 8

Aldi Instant Noodles

Snack Noodle Chicken & Mushroom Flavour

Score: 8

Snack Noodle Spicy Curry Flavour

Score: 6

Make in Minutes Instant Noodles BBQ Beef Flavour

Score:  5

Make in Minutes Instant Noodles Chicken flavour

Score:  3

Make in Minutes Instant Noodles Curry Flavour

Score:  3

Asia Specialities Teriyaki Noodles

Score:  2

Asia Specialities Soy & Sesame Noodles

Score:  2

Make in Minutes Instant Noodles Chow Mein flavour

Score: 1

Aldi Rheinbacher Pilsner

99p for a 500ml bottle of 4.8% abv pale lager. This is drinkable if unremarkable stuff. There are no off flavours and there's an appropriate dose of noble hops, possibly hallertau. Crisp but gentle conditioning (fizz) means that it's easy drinking yet refreshing. The malt is clean with a restrained sweetness and a soft pale malt flavour. There isn't anything profound about the beer, but for the price this is excellent value.

No indication of who brews the beer, though it is likely that it is brewed in Germany.


Score: 6

Aldi Specially Selected Mixed Fruit Hot Cross Buns

99p for two in Aldi's "Specially selected" range. This had a 30% off sticker - not sure if this is a regular thing. These are wonderful. Delicately spiced, full of juicy fruit, and with an attractive sweetness. They are very moreish, and it is easy to find yourself reaching for a second one. They can be eaten as they are, or with some butter. Fresh or toasted. We like hot cross buns in our house, and I'd be happy to buy these again.

Score: 7

Aldi Bilash Bombay Potato

89p for a can. Bilash is Aldi's brand name for Indian products. Looks OK and smells OK, there's a pleasant curry warmth, but the potatoes taste like tinned potatoes, so there's an unpleasant artificial flavour.  There are some very tasty genuine Indian curries available in foil packs for between £1 and £2 from Asian stores which are very tasty, often better than you can get from your local Indian takeaway. I would rather pay the little bit extra and get those than get any more of these. Sometimes it's worth paying a little bit more.


Score: 2

Aldi Shipsterns Draught Original

£2.99 for four 440ml nitro-widget cans of 3.6% bitter. The brewery is unknown, and could be in the UK, France or Holland. The Shipsterns name evolved from Shipstones, a brewery in Nottingham, which through a variety of takeovers, the rights to the name ended up with Carlsberg UK who made the 4% abv Shipstone's Bitter for Aldi. At some point in or before 2012 Shipstone's Bitter was replaced by the 3.8% Shipsterns Original Bitter and Draught Bitter (Smooth Flow) which was replaced around 2015 with the 2.8% Shipsterns Original Bitter and the 3.6% Draught Original,

The nitro-widgit surges the beer, but it doesn't overflow from the can. This has more flavour than anticipated. There’s a reasonable crispness about it, despite the nitro, and a wheaty sweetness, balanced by hops - undistinguished to be sure, but pleasantly bitter. Surprisingly acceptable. Aldi own brand beers may be cheap, but they’re not nasty.

Shipstones Brewery in Nottingham closed in 1991

Score: 5/10

Aldi Holly Lane Blueberry Muffins

85p for four decent sized muffins. The Holly Lane brand appears to be used for popular British cakes such as bakewell slices and mince pies. These are very decent muffins, quite sweet, soft, and fluffy with a rich eggy flavour. There are some chemical notes which means they don't taste freshly baked, but for the price that's a small quibble, and these are good value for money muffins which I would be happy to buy again.

Score: 6

Aldi Cucina Focaccia Cheese & Red Onion

These are 99p for four attached rolls in a plastic wrapper. Cucina appears to be Aldi's brand name for foods associated with Italy such as pasta and, as here, focaccia. They look attractive, and the ingredients are all natural and appear reasonable. But they are not fresh. You have to finish them off for a few minutes in the oven. I ate one of the rosemary flavoured focaccia straight from the packet, and without being warmed in the oven it did taste unfinished and doughy, so these all went in the oven. They are tasty enough, especially if spread with butter and eaten with some mature gruyere cheese, but they are a little way away from an authentic fresh focaccia.

They are cheap and tasty enough, and I ate them quite happily, but the lack of freshness, and the lack of the joy and pleasure you get from eating well made focaccia means I won't be buying them again.

Score: 4

Aldi Cucina Focaccia Rosemary

These are 99p for four attached rolls in a plastic wrapper. Cucina appears to be Aldi's brand name for foods associated with Italy such as pasta and, as here, focaccia. They look good, and the ingredients are all natural, but they don't taste fresh. They taste processed. They are part baked (which I didn't notice at first, and ate one "raw" which revealed a slightly unfinished plastic taste), so you need to pop them in the oven for seven minutes. This warms them up and removes the doughy, plastic, unfinished taste, but doesn't make them taste fresh. The rosemary is hard and inedible and the bread is lacking in the yumminess of a decent focaccia. These are cheap and edible, but are not hugely enjoyable. There is a plastic quality about them that is off-putting.

Score: 4

Aldi tea and coffee

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