Benjamin Zephaniah; compiled by Molly Tait-Hyland 

Benjamin Zephaniah’s vegan taste test

Dairy-free butters, cheeses, yogurts and more, tested by the writer and poet who has been vegan since his teens
  
  

Poet and writer Benjamin Zephaniah photographed for Observer Food Monthly
Poet and writer Benjamin Zephaniah photographed for Observer Food Monthly. Photograph: Alex Lake/The Observer

Oat milk

Marks & Spencer Oat Drink
1l, £1.55, marksandspencer.com
A slightly creamy colour. There’s very little smell. My fear always with these types of milks is that they’re bland and this is not. I have a very sweet tooth and this is just right. There’s enough oat in there to keep me happy.
★★★★

Innocent Oat Dairy Free
750ml, £1.49, innocentdrinks.co.uk
I think this is the oatiest. Is there such a word? It lacks a sweetness. There’s a slight grittiness … it could be that it’s got more oats in it ... which could be a good thing.
★★★

Provame Organic Oat Drink
1l, £1.89, ocado.com
A bit boring. It’s not quite as oaty as I would like. There seems to be something else … a flavour that I can’t quite describe. It’s quite creamy. Average.
★★★

Oatly Oat Drink Semi
1l, £1.80, oatly.com
This is real, isn’t it? You’re setting me up! I don’t know what real milk tastes like but this tastes creamy to me. I can’t taste the oat… it’s is overwhelmed by the creaminess.
★★

Coconut yogurt



Rebel Kitchen Original Dairy Free Organic Coconut Yogurt
400g, £4.49, ocado.com
This one’s not bad actually … It’s light, I can taste coconut, and there’s enough sweetness in there for me.
★★★★

The Coconut Collaborative Dairy Free Natural Coconut Yogurt Alternative
350g, £2.75, coconutco.co.uk
This one is not as light as some, but it’s filling … thicker. There is an OK hit of coconut.
★★★

Pudology Dairy Free Natural Coconut Yogurt
350g, £3.55, ocado.com
This is the runniest yogurt of the four. And I would like to taste more coconut in it.
★★

CO YO Organic Natural Dairy Free Coconut Milk Yogurt Alternative
400g, £4.99, coyo.com
This has a thick consistency. But the coconut has not hit me … I want to taste coconut! It’s just not coconutty enough.
★★


Vegan spread



Naturli Vegan Spreadable
225g, £1.80, sainsburys.com
It’s spreadable and on its own more edible … there is the poet in me coming out now. I like this one … really light and melty.
★★★

Tesco Light Olive Spread
500g, 95p, tesco.com
This is so alien to me. It’s not particularly salty … it disappears on my tongue. But I don’t really taste anything.
★★

Naturli Vegan Block
200g, £2, sainsburys.com
I guess I could see myself putting this in a cake, but I can’t see myself eating it on bread. I don’t want to taste it too much.
★★

Pure Dairy Free Sunflower Spread
500g, £1.50, purefreefrom.co.uk
I don’t want to be too harsh because it probably does a really good job in cakes and stuff, but if someone was going to give me that on bread, I would say don’t bother.


Almond butter



Pip & Nut Smooth Almond Butter
225g, £4.20, pipandnut.com
Mmmmmmmm … I could just sit and eat this. It’s nutty, it’s got the right texture … it feels very homemade in a good way.
★★★★★

Meridian Smooth Almond Butter
170g, £3.29, ocado.com
It tastes almost chocolatey? Maybe it has a hazelnutty taste and that’s why. It’s got a good consistency, it would spread well.
★★★

Sainsbury’s 100% Smooth Almond Butter
340g, £4.50, sainsburys.com
It’s rich. To me this one feels a bit less nutty than the others. It’s not that I don’t like it, though. I can taste almond and it has a good consistency.
★★★

Raw Health Organic Almond Butter
170g, £6.19, ocado.com
Reminds me of the nut butters hippies would give me. I’ve got a feeling this is the healthiest one but it’s not as tasty.
★★


Vegan cheddar


Asda Free From Mature Cheddar Alternative
200g, £2, asda.com
I don’t really know what cheese tastes like – I was vegan at 13 – but I like this the most. Smells cheesy to me … nice texture.
★★★★

Tesco Free From Mature Cheddar Alternative
200g, £2.25, tesco.com
Not bad. It’s chewable. It’s probably, from the descriptions I’ve heard, a good imitation of cheese. It doesn’t taste particularly salty – there’s a flavouring I can’t quite pinpoint.
★★★

Violife Non-Dairy Cheese Alternative
200g, £2.30, ocado.com
When I first put it into my mouth, it tasted plastic, but when I chew into it, it’s not too bad … I could imagine this melted on toast.
★★★

Morrisons Vegan Cheddar
200g, £2.25, morrisons.com
I don’t like the way it looks that much, I don’t like the way it cuts, it’s quite salty and there’s not much texture to it. It is just like … a block of something.
★★


Chocolate



Eat Your Hat Dark Chocolate 70% Cocoa
91g, £3.95, eatyourhat.com
This one is bitter, but not too bitter. It doesn’t cling to my teeth. Quite fruity and the sweetness is just about right. Smooth.
★★★★

Marks & Spencer Plain Chocolate
80g, £1.50, marksandspencer.com
I like that … mmm. Slightly bitter but in a nice way. Because of its bitterness, it’s not a type I would eat all of the time … it doesn’t feel too decadent.
★★★

Raw Halo Pure Dark Bar
70g, £3.99, ocado.com
This one seems pretty average. Doesn’t taste sweet enough to me. It’s staying in my mouth, strong aftertaste.
★★★

kAAKAO Original Chocolate
40g, £3.59, ocado.com
It’s really clinging to my teeth! A bit bland. I probably would prefer something sweeter. It’s a bit boring.
★★


 

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