This week, Value for Money compares four barm bracks
Stafford's Halloween Brack
€2.99 for 454g, €6.58 per kg
This contains 42 per cent fruit and manages to get the balance of density and airiness spot on. It is filled with pleasant fruity flavours and the bread is good quality. The ring is wrapped in what seems like yards of greaseproof paper and is the nicest, coming as it does with a natty pink gem stone – and we use the word gem loosely. We had hoped that being from a small, traditional bakery, it would include some of the other elements of a old-school brack like the stick and the rag but we were to be disappointed.
Verdict: Nice and tasty
* * * *
Ballymore Barm Brack, Aldi
€0.99 for 454g, €2.18 per kg
While the other bracks boast about the free and surprising nature of their rings, Aldi takes a considerably more sober approach and instead goes with “warning Halloween ring inside”. Glumness aside, it is remarkably cheap and perfectly fine without being amazing. It is very bready, very airy and surprisingly fruity. The ingredient list is long and not all of it seems to be entirely wholesome and the ring deserves special mention for being utterly useless.
Verdict: Very good value
* * * *
Gateaux Halloween Barm Brack
€3.49 for 454g, €7.69 per kg
“Surprise surprise, free ring inside” the packaging proclaims loudly – a message which somewhat ruins the surprise, we have to say. This widely available brack from a well-known brand is densely packed and while it weighs the same as the competition, it is a whole lot smaller. We were not at all impressed with the price tag. The long list of ingredients, including three types of sugar and preservatives, did not do it many favours either. It makes a fine first impression although it was found to have a weird artificial aftertaste and a heavy mixed peel kick to it.
Verdict: Too dear
* *
Superquinn Brack
€3.99 for 454g, €8.78 per kg
This brack was freshly baked in a Superquinn store and tastes all the better for it. It is free from preservatives and beautifully fresh. It is light and filled with good quality pieces of fruit and in terms of taste, it is miles ahead of the competition. But there’s a couple of buts. And big ones too. For a start we searched and searched but couldn’t find a ring anywhere and the other, admittedly more serious concern, is the price. It is four times the price of the Aldi brack and while it is a lot better, it’s probably not that much better.
Verdict: Lovely but dear
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Is there something you would like us to test? E-mail suggestions to pricewatch@irishtimes.com
