Christmas is approaching and the time has come to buy typical holiday desserts, primarily panettone and pandoro but also nougat, nougats or other. If you are part of the “pandoro team”, knowing which is the best to buy at the supermarket (and without spending a fortune) can make the difference. Also on the occasion of Christmas 2024, Altroconsumo comes to our aid with a test which took 8 pandoros from large-scale retail trade as a sample.
Let’s find out the ranking right away.
The best pandoros for Christmas 2024
After having analyzed (and tasted) the pandori, Altroconsumo has drawn up the following ranking, in which it highlights in particular the best of the test and the best purchases (i.e. the products that offer the most advantageous quality-price ratio):
- Trunks – The Pandoro of Verona – Score: 72 – Better than the test – Average price per kg: €7.38
- Motta – Pandoro according to Bruno Barbieri – Score: 67 – Average price per kg: €20.29
- Paluani – Pandoro di Verona – Score: 67 – Average price per kg: €6.70
- Pasticceria del Centro (MD Discount) Pandoro Classico – Score: 66 – Best buy – Average price per kg: €6.28
- Balocco – Il Pandoro – Score: 66 – Average price per kg: €6.84
- Maina – Il Pandoro – Score: 65 – Average price per kg: €7.40
- Carrefour Extra Pandoro – Score: 64 – Best buy – Average price per kg: €5.54
- Melegatti – The Original Pandoro – Score: 62 – Average price per kg: €7.14
How the test was conducted
The pandoro samples were purchased between the end of October and the beginning of November 2024. Subsequently, they were sent to specialized laboratories for analysis. Product prices were recorded in November 2024 in 50 Italian large-scale retail outlets.
The test involved exclusively classic pandoros, selected from the best-selling brands in the previous season (2023-2024). Most of the products were purchased at common retail outlets; in some cases, however, it was necessary to resort to company sales points, which were still accessible to the public.
The test of Altroconsumo analyzed various characteristics of the sampled pandoros. Specifically, to draw up the ranking the following were taken into account:
Unmissable, the taste test which played a central role in the overall evaluation of the pandoros and was conducted in two phases: on the one hand, a jury of expert pastry chefs examined details such as the presentation, external and internal appearance, as well as taste and aroma of the pandoros; on the other, a panel of 50 consumers expressed opinions on the visual appearance, the intensity of the aromas and the overall pleasantness on the palate.
Among the most relevant criteria was the presentation, which had to respect the image shown on the packaging as much as possible, while guaranteeing the integrity of the product. The internal appearance was instead analyzed to verify the presence of a homogeneous color and regular honeycombing. Finally, for taste and aroma, a harmonious balance between the notes of butter and vanilla was essential, avoiding both excesses and artificial scents.
