What Does a Great Taste Award Mean? A Chef’s Guide

You may have spotted the familiar black and gold Great Taste stars on jars, packets and bottles. But what does a Great Taste Award actually mean, and how can it help you choose genuinely exceptional food?

Every summer, once the judging is complete, I still get butterflies waiting for the Great Taste results. It does not seem to matter how many times I have entered. Handing your food over for blind judging never becomes routine because, once the labels disappear, only the food remains.

Since founding The Artisan Kitchen in 2011, I have entered hundreds of preserves into Great Taste. Every result has taught me something about flavour, balance and what makes a jam or marmalade genuinely memorable.

In this guide, I explain how Great Taste judging works, what one, two and three stars represent, and what years of entering my own preserves have taught me about award-winning food.

What are the Great Taste Awards?

Great Taste is an international food and drink accreditation scheme organised by the Guild of Fine Food. Products are entered by producers and assessed by judging panels drawn from different areas of the food industry.

These panels can include chefs, food writers, buyers, retailers and other experienced food professionals. As a result, products are considered from several perspectives rather than according to the preferences of one individual judge.

Importantly, Great Taste is an accreditation based on the quality and flavour of the product. It is not primarily a competition about attractive packaging, clever branding or the size of the producer.

A jar made in a small independent kitchen can therefore be tasted alongside food made by a much larger company. Once the product reaches the judging table, the food itself must do the talking.

That is one of the reasons I have always valued Great Taste so highly. Your reputation disappears. Your label disappears. Your marketing disappears. The judges are left with the spoonful in front of them, and that is exactly how it should be.

How does Great Taste judging work?

Great Taste products are judged blind. Therefore, judges generally assess the food without seeing the producer’s branded packaging or being influenced by the reputation behind it.

Instead, products are prepared and presented in a way that allows the judges to concentrate on their sensory qualities. Depending on the food, this may include appearance, aroma, texture, mouthfeel and the balance and length of the flavour.

However, the central question remains reassuringly simple: does this product taste truly excellent?

Products can move between judging teams as part of the decision-making process. Consequently, a star rating is not necessarily determined by one quick taste or one person’s opinion.

The producer also receives judges’ feedback. That feedback can be valuable even when a product does not receive an award because it offers an independent view of what worked and what could be improved.

What do the Great Taste stars mean?

Great Taste recognises successful products with one, two or three stars. Every level is an achievement because the product must persuade an independent judging panel through flavour rather than marketing.

How rare is a three-star Great Taste Award?

A three-star Great Taste Award is deliberately difficult to achieve. According to the Guild of Fine Food, fewer than two per cent of entered products receive three stars in a typical year.

That rarity matters. It means a three-star result represents more than a product being pleasant or competently made. The food must create an exceptional response from experienced judges and continue to impress as it moves through the judging process.

Nevertheless, star ratings should not be viewed as a simple league table. A one-star product is still award-winning food, while a two-star result is a significant endorsement. Three stars indicate that the judges found the product truly exceptional.

What do judges look for in an award-winning marmalade?

Marmalade may contain relatively few core ingredients, but that apparent simplicity leaves very little room to hide. The character of the citrus, the treatment of the peel, the balance of sugar and bitterness, and the final texture all become immediately noticeable.

An excellent marmalade should express the natural character of its fruit. A Seville orange marmalade, for example, should possess the aromatic bitterness and depth associated with Seville oranges. Meanwhile, a blood orange or grapefruit marmalade should retain the qualities that make those citrus fruits distinctive.

Originality can also make a marmalade exciting. However, an unusual ingredient is not enough on its own. Alcohol, spice, vanilla, chocolate or another citrus fruit must contribute to the overall balance rather than conceal the flavour of the marmalade beneath it.

Ultimately, technical skill matters because it allows the fruit to taste more fully of itself. The finest marmalade does not feel complicated for the sake of it. Instead, it feels complete.

What do judges look for in an award-winning jam?

As with marmalade, the best jam begins with the character of the fruit. Colour, fragrance, acidity, sweetness and texture should work together, while the flavour should remain bright and clearly identifiable.

A successful jam should not taste simply of sugar. Instead, sweetness should support the fruit, soften its acidity and help create a generous, rounded finish.

Texture is equally important. Depending on the fruit and style, judges may expect tender pieces of fruit, a smooth spreadable preserve or a softer natural set. However, the jam should still feel deliberate and pleasurable rather than watery, sticky or overcooked.

Does Great Taste judge packaging and branding?

Great Taste judging centres on the food itself. Because entries are judged blind, attractive packaging, a fashionable brand name or an expensive marketing campaign cannot make an ordinary product taste better.

This gives independent producers an important opportunity. A small-batch product can be recognised on the strength of its flavour, even when it comes from a kitchen without the promotional resources of a national company.

For customers, this also makes the Great Taste label useful. It provides an independent indication that the contents of the jar, bottle or packet have been assessed, not simply the attractiveness of the outside.

Does a Great Taste Award guarantee that I will like something?

Taste remains personal. Someone who dislikes bitter citrus may not suddenly fall in love with a dark, peel-rich Seville marmalade simply because it has won an award.

However, a Great Taste star gives you a useful independent signal. It tells you that experienced judges found notable quality, flavour and pleasure in that particular product.

The best approach is to use the award alongside the product description. Look for the style, ingredients and flavours you already enjoy, and then allow the award to guide you towards a particularly accomplished example.

The Artisan Kitchen and Great Taste

I founded The Artisan Kitchen in 2011 after a career spent working as a chef, including time at two Michelin-starred restaurant The Square and ten years at Daylesford Organic.

When I first entered Great Taste, I remember wondering whether preserves made in my small kitchen would stand alongside products from much larger producers. That is the beauty of blind judging. Once the jars are opened, every producer begins from the same place.

Since then, I have continued to make every preserve in small batches in Gloucestershire. The process remains hands-on, from choosing and preparing the fruit to judging the set and balancing the final flavour.

By the end of the 2025 results, The Artisan Kitchen had received 188 Great Taste Awards, including 49 three-star awards. Those results span jams, marmalades and more unusual combinations developed from a chef’s perspective.

Fifteen years later, I still feel the same mixture of excitement and nerves every awards season. Winning never feels guaranteed, which is precisely why every star continues to mean so much to me.

The greatest value lies in the discipline behind the awards. Entering a product means placing the jar in front of experienced strangers and allowing the flavour to stand entirely on its own.

How to choose an award-winning marmalade or jam

First, consider the style of preserve you enjoy. For marmalade, that might mean a fine-cut breakfast marmalade, a thicker traditional Seville marmalade or a softer, more aromatic citrus preserve.

Next, read beyond the star. Look at the fruit variety, additional flavours, cut of the peel and balance described by the maker. These details will help you choose an award-winning product that also suits your own taste.

1. Choose a fruit or flavour profile you genuinely enjoy.
2. Check whether the preserve is traditional, fine-cut, thick-cut or creatively flavoured.
3. Look at the year and star rating on the award label.
4. Read the product description and serving suggestions.
5. Use the award as evidence of quality rather than as a substitute for your own preferences.

Finally, remember that the most rewarding choice is not always the preserve with the highest number of stars. It is the one that combines independent recognition with the flavours and textures you love.

Frequently asked questions

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