2020 - Heston from Waitrose - 4 Spiced Shortcrust Mince Pies with a Lemon Twist

Most mince pies come with a foil base. These don't. I like the foil base. It's like a mini plate to reduce spillage and to catch precious pieces of shortcrust pastry. I lost a lot of topping eating these.

Morrisons Festive Mince Pies

Okay, so I've already done one from Morrison's but I saw this eye catching box and just couldn't resist. I love mince pies don't you know!

Harrods - Walnut and Honey Mince Pies

I was in London yesterday attending a friends birthday celebrations. I don't venture into London very often, so took the opportunity to visit Harrods and pick up some of their mince pies. Now, you will notice that I did not buy last year's winners, the alcohol free cranberry mince pies as they were exactly the same; from box design to ingredients.

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

The moment I saw these on the shelves I know this was going to be a short review. So, lets not waste any more time than I have to.

Aldi - Specially Selected - 6 Mince Pies

Last year's very close runner up is back to see if they can take over that top spot from Harrods. Have Aldi kept with the same recipe, or have they tried something new. Lets find out.

Better late than never, right?

It may be the large bowl of habanero popcorn I've just eaten, but for the start of November it is still worryingly warm. 

Pret A Manger - Mince Pie

This was another mince pie that was hard for me to get my hands on with a store not being either where I live or where I work. Fortunately, a avid reader of the blog (my mother), was heading into London where she was kind enough to pick up a couple of these in one of the many stores dotted around the capital. A deeper mince pie than last year, but has that improved it?

Aldi - Specially Selected - 6 Luxury Mince Pies

It's here. The one that has made headlines by coming top in Which? Magazines blind taste test of mince pies of 2013. Aldi was always on our "to do" list, but unfortunately they do not have a store near my home or my place of work or along the 40 mile commute in between the two, so it has taken longer than usual to get hold of these. However, here they are. Ready for us to find out whether they really are that good.

Krispy Kreme - Mince Pie Doughnut

Now, this isn't strictly a mince pie, it is most certainly a doughnut. But since we have heard a lot about this, we thought we had to give it a try and see what all the fuss was about in our first unofficial review!

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?

Harrods Alcohol-Free Cranberry Mince Pies

Last year you were all treated to the review of a puff pastry mince pie from Harrods' in-store bakery. They were good, but we didn't get to try their standard, boxed mince pies. This year, I am pleased to say I braved the Saturday morning tourist and Christmas shopper traffic and squeezed into one of the busiest stores I have been to in a long time. Not being a regular Harrods shopper, I had no idea where I was going and with some general directions given to me by staff, I eventually emerged (20 mins later) with a box of these alcohol-free mince pies. I'm not sure whether there were other types of mince pies around, but due to the sheer number of people I had to negotiate around, I picked the first thing that said mince pies, paid and left.

Heston Blumenthal 6 Spiced Shortcrust Mince Pies

Returning to fight for the top spot on the Administration’s leader board is the controversial is-it-or-isn’t-it-a-mince pie from the man who was clearly never told not to play with his food as a child, Heston Blumenthal. While this debate rages on within the Administration, once these turned up, silence fell, as we were all eager to sink our teeth into one.

Fortnum & Mason - Six Traditional Christmas Mince Pies

Yes, that's right mincers, the (non-existent) revenue generated from reviewing mince pies has resulted in the Administration being able to splash out on some very posh mince pies for your viewing pleasure. We braved the gale force winds and torrential rain and arrived at the doors of the most well decorated supermarket in the country. You know you have walked into an upper class world when their staff are better dressed than you are. With the worry of being thrown out for wearing trainers, jeans and a rain jacket, I quickly found the mince pies and left. Let's see if you really do get better quality when you spend more.

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.

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.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Please have one less roast potato to ensure you have room for this year's winning mince pie. I certainly will be.

We'll hopefully be back towards the end of 2013 to start this all over again! I also hope it will be the year I taste the exclusive Costco mince pie. If you cannot wait until next year, be sure to have a read of fellow blogger Andy Savage's review on this pie.

http://derbyphotoscouk.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/costco-mince-pies-are-best-mince-pies.html

From everyone at the Mince Pie Administration, we would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year.

See you all in about 10 months.

:-)

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!