Food: Tesco Finest*

A few weeks ago I was invited to an event run by Tesco, specifically to taste some of their Tesco Finest* range. I was quite excited to see what's new, and as I had no idea what to expect I was looking forward to learning a little more about these products.

I was very pleasantly surprised to find out just how good the quality of the range is, where it really comes from and most importantly the passionate people that make it happen.

I tried all sorts - blue cheese, ham, jelly, camembert, dark chocolate, juice, flavour infused crackers and some red velvet cake.

What really amazed me was where the products come from and how much detail and attention is paid to the processes of obtaining them, in the best way possible.

For example, the wild mushrooms below are hand picked by experts in Scotland, and the chocolate is single origin which means it comes from one country only.

I also learnt a little bit about the original home of pasta in Italy, and how the best pasta is made by slow drying and use of bronze die that gives it a rougher texture that holds sauce better. Bronze die is the real, traditional way of making pasta. Essentially what it is, is a machine that the dough is pressed through to make various shapes. As the dough is pressed through, the holes make surfaces rougher. Check these photos out to see what I mean. Nowadays pasta is made with commercial machines lined with Teflon that  just aren't as good.

The packaging was quite big and the mushrooms too. There is also a QR code which you can scan with your phone to see info and a video of the wild mushroom pickers at work.

Lovely chocolate packaging

Great, large and solid pieces of dark chocolate - what quality looks like!

Tesco hire the world's best wine, cheese and tea experts to obtain the best suppliers and ingredients for their Finest* products. Their 'master of wine' is one of only 312 in the world with this amazing and prestigious title, and their tea expert visits every month to check quality standards.

The story behind the tea picking is also very interesting - the leaves are grown at 1,900m above sea level, are handpicked at the same time of day every five days and are also single origin like the chocolate. Your cuppa tea will always taste nicer when you know it's come from a good place and been grown by people who are supported in their community.

I've never had jelly with cheese before but these tiny jars of goodness pleasantly surprised me

Another new taste for me...blue cheese. I have to admit it was absolutely delicious!

I have to admit I was a little reluctant to buy Tesco Finest* products before, not really thinking it would make a difference and that they are just labeling it differently for marketing reasons...but I have changed my mind. Having tried at least 10 different products in one night, I have to say the tastes are some of the most delicious I've ever experienced, and Tesco have genuinely impressed me.

Nowadays, it's all about knowing where your food really comes from and how it's made, and Tesco have really nailed this with their Finest* range. I just hope more people take notice!

Check out more photos here..