Premium-brand ice creams judged poor value for money by tasters

Supermarkets' own-label ice cream is superior to many of the more expensive premium brands, such as Ben & Jerry's and Häagen-Dazs, the consumer magazine Which? says.

Connoisseurs from the magazine, who rated ice cream for taste, texture and appearance, awarded highest marks in five of the eight top categories to supermarkets' own products.

The six judges sampled products in a series of blind tests. The experts divided two flavours, vanilla and chocolate, into "luxury" – containing at least 5 per cent milk fat and 2.5 per cent milk protein – and low-calorie ice creams. Winners in the luxury vanilla category were Safeway's The Best Simply Vanilla (£2.79 per 500ml) which "looked good and tasted the best" and Waitrose Vanilla (£2.49/500ml) because it was "nice and creamy" and had "great texture".

The best two luxury chocolate ice creams were Waitrose Belgian Chocolate (£2.49 for 500ml), praised for its "subtle" flavour; and Green & Black's organic chocolate (£3.79/500ml), which the judges said was "worth every penny". In both chocolate and vanilla categories, Ben & Jerry's and Häagen-Dazs – among the best-selling brands in Britain – failed to impress.

A spokesman for Which? said: "Much depends on personal preference but our tasters consistently liked some brands more than others."

According to the experts, a good ice cream should have the right appearance, a good texture (smooth, not crumbly and without ice crystals), and have a natural, identifiable and not overpowering flavour.

In the "healthy" category, the judges considered the best two vanilla ice creams – "from a bad bunch" – to be Heinz Weight Watchers (£1.89 for 1 litre), and Winner's Authentic Swedish Glace (£1.58 per 750ml).Poor marks were given to home-made ice cream when compared with shop-bought flavours.