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The best maple syrup for pancakes and waffles
Sweet and rich, maple syrup is a store cupboard must-have that's just as good in savoury dressings as it is on sweet puddings. But which one is the best to buy? Our taste test team tried 11 A-grade (which have a light to medium intensity) syrups to find out...
That sweet syrup we love to drizzle on our pancakes and waffles is one of the oldest forms of natural sweeteners around. It was first harvested over 300 years ago by Native Americans for its healing properties. It's an unprocessed sugar, but unlike honey, is suitable for vegans and contains less calories too. With the increasing popularity in healthy eating and veganism, we are seeing the sales of maple syrup grow. Maple syrup is low GI, meaning it raises your blood sugar much more slowly than white sugar and honey. Clarks is the biggest producer and supplier of it in the UK, accounting for over 52% of the £17m total retail sales.
Maple syrup is harvested in a 6 week period in spring, with over 80% of the world’s supply coming from Canada. Maple syrup is categorized into different grades, with Grade A being a golden amber to dark shade with a light to medium intensity, and the most common grade used for drizzling due to its robust flavour. Whereas Grade B – a very dark amber colour – is perfect for baking, thanks to its more caramelized flavour.
We tasted 11 A-grade maple syrups to find the perfect drizzle.
Aldi Specially Selected Canadian Maple Syrup
Score: 78/100
Our crowned winner comes at a bargain price! It's a dark amber warming syrup with nutty, brown sugar molasses and coffee aroma. Not overwhelmingly sweet, our tasters were surprised by the rich, complex notes of floral, roasted grains, and Christmas spices. It's a perfect accompaniment to savoury and sweet dishes.
Price: £2.99
Available from: aldi.co.uk
Acadian Maple Organic Pure
Score: 75/100
A golden brown syrup that is thick and slightly frothy. Our testers likened it to caramel, black coffee beans, desiccated coconut and candy floss aroma. We mainly tasted rich, caramelised muscovado sugar and vanilla. It's a great all-rounder that will add a new dimension to your chosen dish.
Price: £12.49
Available from: ocado.com
Asda Extra Special 100% Pure Canadian Maple Syrup (Grade A)
Score: 73/100
Light in colour and very thin in consistency, this maple syrup has a slight smoky and burnt aroma with a very subtle caramelised vanilla flavour. Our testers noted it wasn't overly sweet, and it was smooth with a slight coating of the mouth and delicate taste.
Price: £3.19
Available from: groceries.asda.com
Pure Maple 100% Pure Canadian Maple Syrup
Score: 73/100
This scored well, with its medium amber shade, faint caramel aroma and brown sugar taste. It had a nice balance of sweetness with a thin and smooth texture.
Price: £7.45
Available from: puremaple.co.uk
Waitrose Duchy Organic Canadian Maple Syrup No.1 Medium
Score: 73/100
An intense burnt orange colour with very subtle smoky and woody smells. Our panel thought it was very sweet, with fruity and slightly burnt flavours coming through. It was quite thin and watery in texture, with our testers preferring a slightly thicker syrup.
Price: £6.45
Available from: waitrose.com
Butternut Mountain Farm Vermont Maple Syrup
Score: 72/100
In store only
A light golden-amber colour with a sweet and slight marshmallow aroma. It was very sweet on the palate, with a creamy taste and a nice thickness.
Price: £6.00
Available from: marksandspencer.com
Waitrose 1 Canadian Maple Syrup No1 Medium
Score: 72/100
A lovely dark amber colour with a light caramelised sugar aroma. We noticed the taste changed from a soft, fruit flavour to a slightly bitter, smoky taste. The texture was smooth and pleasantly thin.
Price: £5.49
Available from: waitrose.com
Clarks Special Reserve Red Maple Pure Canadian
Score: 72/100
A light brown amber shade. The panel found this to have a faint burnt coffee smell, with a smoky burnt chocolate flavour. It was quite runny but had a nice smooth texture.
Price: £4.50
Available from: ocado.com
Morrisons The Best Grade 2 100% Pure Canadian Maple Syrup
Score: 71/100
A rich, dark red amber colour, with a nutty maple scent. It had a strong burnt sugar flavour, the intensity of which made it taste overly sweet. It was thick, syrupy and cloying to the mouth.
Price: £3.50
Available from: groceries.morrisons.com
Buckwud Organic 100% Pure Canadian Maple Syrup
Score: 69/100
This syrup has a very rich, deep brown amber shade. It has notes of subtle vanilla with a slight burnt aroma. Our tasters found that it had a smoky, nutty flavour but was verging on too sweet. It had a thick, syrupy consistency which cloyed to the back of our mouths.
Price: £5.00
Available from: ocado.com
Tesco Finest Pure No1 Light Maple Syrup
Score: 69/100
This was quite thin, with a light golden appearance. It had a sugary-sweet golden syrup aroma with a similar taste, just with a slightly richer caramel flavour. It was slightly sticky but smooth.
Price: £5.50
Available from: tesco.com
Sainsbury's Pure Canadian Maple Syrup
Score: 61/100
This rich, dark brown syrup had a slight burnt, earthy smell to it. However, the taste was artificial and there were notes of liquorice. It was smooth but very thick.
Price: £4.00
Available from: sainsburys.co.uk
Clarks Pure Canada Maple Syrup (Amber and Rich Grade A)
Score: 67/100
This appealing light golden-amber syrup has notes of caramel and golden syrup with a subtle buttery sweet honeyed flavour. However our panel found it was quite dull and sugary and was lacking a certain depth in flavour. It was sticky on the lips, but surprisingly thin too.
Price: £9.25
Available from: ocado.com
Mel is the Senior Food & Drink Writer for Good Housekeeping UK, covering all the delicious new product launches that come her way, writing about food and drink topics, and curating gift guides for the best foodie products to buy. Alongside that, she can be found developing and creating cocktails for GH and holds her WSET Level 2 in Wine and Spirits. She was part of the Good Housekeeping Institute food testing team for over four years before moving over to the digital side, so knows a thing or two about great food products. You'll find her scouring the supermarket shelves in her spare time for new and exciting ingredients to experiment with in her kitchen.
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