A quality bag of crisps can transform your lunch break and serve as an ideal snack. Salt and vinegar flavoured crisps remain a popular choice amongst consumers who appreciate their distinctive tang.
The market offers extensive choice, ranging from supermarket premium ranges to established brands such as Kettle, Piper and Tyrrells. A blind tasting was conducted to determine which salt and vinegar crisps would emerge victorious. In a surprising outcome, supermarket own-label crisps outperformed all branded alternatives.
Consumer website Which? enlisted 72 crisp enthusiasts to sample 10 premium salt and vinegar varieties. The selection featured Kettle, Pipers, Tyrrells, Aldi, Asda, Sainsbury's, Tesco and others, with scoring based on flavour (50%), texture (20%), aroma (20%) and appearance (10%), reports the Mirror.
Following the tasting session, supermarket own-label salt and vinegar crisps emerged as clear winners.
Asda and Co-op's offerings claimed the top positions. Asda Extra Special Sea Salt and Chardonnay Wine Vinegar Hand Cooked Crisps secured the best buy accolade and represented excellent value, though they appear to have been discontinued.
Priced at £1.34 for 150g, the crisps were praised for their ideal crunch, golden appearance and pronounced vinegar flavour. Numerous testers felt the salt content and aroma were perfectly balanced, awarding the product a 78% rating.
Second place went to Co-op's Irresistible Hand Cooked Sea Salt and Chardonnay Wine Vinegar Crisps with 75%. Retailing at £1.70 for 150g, it also received a best buy recommendation.
The testers felt the crisps had just the right thickness and crunch. Many remarked that the saltiness was spot-on and the vinegar delivered a sharp tang.
A few suggested the vinegar was marginally excessive, meaning these crisps would suit those who enjoy a robust flavour.
Following closely behind were Aldi Specially Selected Sea Salt and Chardonnay Vinegar Hand Cooked Crisps at 69%, then Morrisons The Best Hand Cooked Sea Salt and Suffolk Cider Vinegar Crisps at 67%.
The three branded options - Tyrrells, Kettle and Pipers - all landed at the bottom of the rankings. Which? elaborated: "The three brands that market themselves as more premium or artisanal-style snacks ended up with the lowest scores overall - with Pipers crisps rated the least popular by our tasters."
Tyrrells disappointed as the crisps were characterised as "pale-looking and bland-tasting," whilst Kettle was deemed "bland". At the foot of the table, Pipers didn't achieve the tasters' desired balance of salt and vinegar.
Salt and vinegar crisps ranked
