A York artisan pickle business that created a range of jams in response to customer demand has won three Great Taste awards.
Of the new range of six jams made by Puckett’s, three were awarded gold stars at the Guild of Fine Foods Great Taste Awards.
Puckett’s Blackcurrant Jam was awarded two gold stars whilst Puckett’s Strawberry and Gooseberry and Orange Blossom jams were each awarded one gold star.
Often described as the ‘Oscars’ of the food world, the prestigious Great Taste scheme is the world’s largest and most trusted food and drink awards accreditation scheme. This year’s competition attracted over 14,000 entries that were blind-tasted by 500 judges between March and July.
Sarah Puckett, who founded the award-winning artisan business, Puckett’s Pickles almost a decade ago, is delighted with the news: “We’re passionate about producing wholesomely natural, gloriously colourful and joyfully British jams, pickles, ketchups, chutneys and condiments and we’re delighted that our new jams have been rewarded with prestigious gold stars.”
The judges’ feedback for the two-star Blackcurrant Jam included: “Exquisitely balanced, high in acidity and full of bright cassis flavour. The judges loved how much fruit was extracted into the product and found this to be a real artisan product. Would be just wonderful stirred into sauces for game meats.”

“We loved the gentleness of the orange blossom against the tartness of the gooseberries. We think this is a unique product, and really more ish” was how they described the Gooseberry and Orange Blossom Jam, and the feedback on the Strawberry Jam included: “This jam has a clear intense strawberry aroma and flavour. We liked the fact that this preserve had such a low sugar content which is brave and challenging when it comes to setting and consistency. We enjoyed the mouthfeel which was smooth, more like a compote and it felt very natural, almost like pure strawberry.”
Ms Puckett is delighted that the judges picked up on the low sugar content: “All our jams, pickles, chutneys, condiments are naturally 24 calories or less per tablespoon. It proves that, if you use high-quality, fresh and seasonal ingredients, you don’t need to compromise flavour over calories.”
Ms Puckett, who started making small batches of pickles in her kitchen in 2013, scaled up her operations in 2017 and now hand makes Yorkshire jams, pickles, chutneys, ketchups and condiments in a bespoke factory north of York that is dubbed the ‘Pickle Palace’.
The Puckett’s jam range also includes Bramble and Bay Leaf, Raspberry and Rhubarb and Rose Water whilst the Puckett’s Pickles range comprises classic chutneys including Carrot and Cardamom, seasonal specials like Cucumber and Lemon and the perennial favourite, Puckalilli.
All are available from farm shops, delis and cheesemongers nationwide and online from www.puckettspickles.co.uk. Ms Puckett also ships her eponymous range to Europe and North America.