You may have bought a product recently with a Great Taste Gold Award sticker on it and given it little thought other than someone else in the know thought it tasted great. This week, I will be spending 2 days in Wincanton finding out exactly how that sticker gets earnt by a product, as I have been invited to take part in the judging process for the 2011 Awards. Below is an extract from the website of organiser The Guild of Fine Food explaining the process in depth, and I’ll let you know how I got on on my return.

The Great Taste Awards at www.finefoodworld.co.uk

Over 30 million consumers read about gold-star winning food and drink in newspapers and magazines and tens of thousands got to taste them at food exhibitions throughout the country. Many also meet producers at GREAT TASTE LIVE theatres at REAL FOOD FESTIVAL and BBC MASTERCHEF LIVE and thousands buy from shops, food halls, markets, exhibitions and the GREAT TASTE MARKETS.

Coveted black & gold-star GREAT TASTE stickers adorn thousands of speciality foods stocked on shelves and counters in stores throughout the UK and more recently, even as part of a television commercial.

Of all the UK’s food award schemes, the GREAT TASTE AWARDS is the most important. Completely independent and uncompromisingly rigorous, it is trusted by retailers, buyers and consumers. GREAT TASTE is to speciality food and drink what MICHELIN is to fine dining.

Rigorous Judging

For 2010, over 6000 products were judged over an intense two-month period. The Awards’ organiser, the Guild of Fine Food constantly refines the judging mechanics and this year was no exception. Before gold is awarded, a minimum of eight experts, often 16 taste, discuss and agree. For two- or three-stars, up to 20 judges must unanimously agree an entry has achieved absolute perfection. Over 350 experts including key buyers, retailers, chefs and food writers blind tasted entries to ensure they are fairly and independently assessed. Every entry starts with 25 points and marks are deducted when faults are identified and constructive feedback offers suggestions to the producers how entries could be improved.