This week, Value for Money compares four varieties of shortbread

Shortbread Aldi

€5.99 for 500g €11.98 per kg

These nicely sized biscuits which are made in Scotland look a lot more upmarket than you might expect from an Aldi product (although the same can be said for a lot of its ranges). The tin is big and sturdy and will have a long life after the biscuits have been scoffed. They are a little less buttery than their rivals and a lot less greasy too. They have a commendably pure ingredient list which is made up of just five elements. There are an assortment of shapes in the box including hearts, leaves shamrocks and moons. We also liked the texture and, of course, the price

Verdict: Well worth buying

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Seymour’s Shortbread

€3.65 for 160g €22.81 per kg

These shortbread biscuits are made in Ireland and while this fact may annoy Scottish shortbread purists, it pleased us. They have a slightly less crunchy texture and are so buttery we could practically have spread them on our toast.

They are undoubtedly expensive but are also super-luxurious, so if you wanted to give yourself a treat this Christmas then you will not go wrong with these. They have a very fine grain and no salt – although you’d never be able to tell that from tasting them. The packaging had no nutritional information or, at least, if it did we couldn’t find it.

Verdict: Lovely

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Marks & Spencer

€6.74 for 650g €10.36 per kg

With this purchase you get more biscuits than elsewhere. The biscuits are also on the kind of massive side – which might be nice but certainly not good for you. They have a slightly harder texture than their rivals and are a little sticky which may be explained by the presence of rice flour in the mix, They are made with 34 per cent butter and contain 27.5g of fat per 100g which seemed like a lot to us. Despite all the fat, they do have a surprising lightness to them, well, insofar as shortbread can be light

Verdict: Nice and big

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House of Edinburgh

€3.70 for 170g €21.76 per kg

These biscuits are handmade in Edinburgh, as you may have guessed from their name, so might be considered the real Scottish deal. We thought the other shortbreads we tried this week were very buttery until we bit into a stubby little finger from Edinburgh. It was like eating actual sticks of butter. We're not very keen on sugary shortbread so were quite pleased that there was only the merest hint of a dusting on these. A single biscuit is 116 calories and the biscuits are not massive so you would not want to eat a whole lot of these. For research purposes we ate half a packet (okay, it was just because we liked them).

Verdict: Hmm, buttery

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Is there something you would like us to test? e-mail your suggestion to pricewatch@irishtimes.com