2018 - Marks and Spencer - The Collection - 6 Mince Pies

Next up we have Marks and Spencer 'The Collection' Mince Pies - the supposedly more refined and luxurious big brother of the regular M&S mince pies.

2016 - Harrods - Christmas - Alcohol-free Cranberry and Clementine Mince Pies

Most likely my last review of the year, but time to end with a banger! Harrods are back to defend their top spot on our ultimate leader board of all time great mince pies. The mince pies are not quite the same; the addition of clementine to thier mincemeat means these need to be re-assessed.... for you of course.

2016 - Co-op - Irresistible All Butter 6 Luxury Mince Pies

As I sit down to write this, I'd just read that Co-op Energy has just had to fork out £1.8m for customer service failings. Maybe they were busy investing in their mince pie recipe for this ye.... haha sorry I couldn't even finish writing that its so crazy - after all they're energy and food divisions likely to be separate legal entities, but I digress. With negative Co-op news circulating, lets see if their mince pie regains those lost energy customers as food customers.

2016 - Aldi Specially Selected All Butter Cognac Laced 6 Mince Pies

Aldi have returned with what appears to be the same mince pie last previous years, as hawk eyed readers will notice the same pattern on the mince pies. However, eagle eyed (because I'm assuming an eagles eyesight is better than a hawks) will notice that in our last review the mince pies were laced with brandy, now they have cognac. So, now I've publicly justified reviewing them, lets see how they do.

2016 - Tesco's Finest - All Butter Pastry Deep Filled Mince Pies

Next up we have Tesco's finest*. It hasn't always been the finest in the strict definition of the word - I've always wondered where the asterisk next to the finest links to... but I digress. Lets see where this years' entry fit in.

Riverford Farm Shop - Organic Mince Pies

We have a newbie to the blog here today. Riverford! Famous for their wide range of organic groceries and delivering them around the country to thousands of happy people while winning numerous awards for the quality of their produce. They made the claim that their mince pies were the UK's best on twitter recently and after a friendly challenge was proposed by yours truly, they jumped at it and have sent me a box of their finest for us to review. I admire their confidence. Lets see how it does.

Sainsburys - Taste the Difference - 6 All Butter Mince Pies

Sainsbury's have always made a decent regular mince pie. As you can see, we didn't hate it. It's about time we gave their luxury (or as my Canadian colleague says, deluxe) mince pies a taste to see whether they can improve on their base recipe.

Lidl - Snowy Lodge - 6 Luxury Mince Pies

We've been reviewing the posh mince pies and those that come recommended recently; time to get back to the core mince pies from the now household name that is Lidl. We've skipped over their regular mince pies and gone straight for the luxury. I think we've developed a bit of a taste for the rich! Let's hope these can satisfy that craving.

BHS Deep filled Mince Pie

BHS - A great department store with plenty to things to buy like clothes, shoes, bags and mince pies? Yes, BHS have a cafe who are now selling mince pies! This revelation was stumbled upon via BHS' twitter account. We swiftly made our way to a local BHS cafe to pick up some of these little giants. Can these deep filled mince pies measure up and break into to the well established clique formed by the supermarkets?

Walkers - Glenfiddich - 8 Luxury Mincemeat Tarts

When I got the news that we might be able to get our hands on some Costco mince pies, I cannot say I wasn't a little excited. However, when you rely upon someone who takes mince pies for granted, you end up with Walkers Glenfiddich 8 Luxury Mincemeat Tarts! We shall make every effort to get hold of a Costco mince pie this year, but in the meantime, there is no reason to let these go to waste. Let's welcome this unexpected newcomer to the blog.

Waitrose Christmas - 6 Shortcrust Mince Pies

Remember that imaginary hierarchy I spoke about back in the Co-Op review? Well, I'm going to assume Waitrose were at the top of your list too! Waitrose have many different types of mince pies available, from the budget "essentials" range to the organic mince pies (yes, organic - review coming!). In fact, I counted 6 different types, all under the Waitrose name. Lets see how their standard mince pies fair on the blog first.

Tesco Finest* Mini Mince Pies

As an honorary member of the administration it was vital that I had a benchmark to compare these mince pies when producing an overall score. So… according to the master administrator, Greggs (at time of writing) are the leader of the race, so I had to partake in a little taste test of my own to provide comparison.

Marks & Spencer - 6 All Butter Mince Pies

Marks and Spencer mince pies are a firm favourite of the blog. Whenever I have a craving for a good mince pie around this time of year, M&S are on hand to ensure that my needs are fulfilled. Last year saw their inconsistency loose them a few marks. Lets hope this year is different.

The Co-Operative - Loved by Us - 6 Deep Filled Mince Pies

If you were to list supermarkets / stores in order of prestige, most people's list would be remarkably similar. However, The Co-Op is often the store that's missed from that list entirely. In fact, on my list, I really wouldn't know where to place it. Maybe this is a good thing, I won't have any expectations from it and treat it as the humble mince pie that it is. Lets see how this one does.

Mr Kipling Exceedingly Merry 6 Deep Filled Mince Pies

Mr Kipling have long been a British baking powerhouse, producing a whole variety of cakes and pies since 1967. Everybody knows the name and what they do. Their mince pies were very much below average last year. Lets hope they read my blog and made some improvements this year.

Sainsbury's - Christmas by Sainsbury's - 6 Deep Mince Pies

Right, the first pie to touch my lips this year is a Christmas by Sainsbury's Deep Mince Pie. One would expect the first pie after 10 months, regardless of quality, to taste extraordinary; a feeling akin to a mother seeing her newly born baby for the first time! Okay, maybe that's a bit too far, but I was definitely looking forward to sinking my teeth into this one. Lets see how it did.

.... aaaand we're back!

Yes, that's right my little Mincers, the Mince Pie Administration is back. I hope you have had a great year so far, and enjoyed the UK's glorious summer. However, that pie shaped hole in your heart is about to be stuffed once more as this years hunt for the best mince pie has begun.

As the various supermarkets and brands start rolling out their pies, we will be on hand to let you know whether its worth it. By starting in October, this gives us just under 3 months to track down our winner.

This year, we are going to be scoring the pies slightly differently. Last year, I was simply comparing them to other mince pies and slotting them in to various positions on the leader board where I sought fit. This year, we want to be a little fairer, so we will be scoring each mince pie out of 100 points.

Here is how the points will break down.

• 10 points - Presentation
• 10 points - Nutritional content & Price
• 35 points - Pastry
• 35 points - Mincemeat
• 10 points - Satisfaction level

Each mince pie will be tasted by a panel of at least 3 people (including me) and an average score will be taken.

This will hopefully allow the various aspects of the pie to shine through even if other parts of the pie are not that great. The pastry and mincemeat are by far the most important and so will gain the most number of points. After all, we don't want a wonderfully looking mince pie that's really healthy to be at the top of the leader board when it's pastry and mincemeat are rubbish. Right?

Those that have the Great British Bake Off bug will have to keep their mince pies to themselves as, like last year, we will only be reviewing the mass produced pies that everyone can have. 

In addition, we've gone all high-tech and now have a twitter and facebook account! Follow us at @TheMincePieBlog or on facebook for the news on when the latest review drops and general mince pie related gossip! (twitter would not allow me to use "Admin" in our name as they think they are the only administration.. pff)

Are you ready?

... lets begin.

Jamie Oliver - Jamie's Mini Mince Pies

Stumbling across these mince pies was quite a treat. With Jamie Oliver being a household name you would think these mince pies would be everywhere, or more specifically, in your local Sainsbury's. These elusive mince pies were discovered in Boots!

Coles Bundaberg Rum Mince Pies

Our first international review!

Heston Blumenthal (made for Waitrose) - Puff Pastry Mince Pies with Pine Sugar Dusting

After much questioning as to whether I would try "the other Heston mince pie", I have finally made my way to a Waitrose to pick up a box. Can Heston's pies take the top two spots on my leader board?