I tried 14 supermarket iced coffees – Ocado was as good as a coffee shop drink

Britain has fallen for iced coffee. Once a treat from a high-street café on a hot day, they are now ubiquitous – helped by the fact that, this summer, practically every day has been a hot day. In the late May heatwave, purchases jumped by 137 per cent. But it’s no new trend – sales have grown by 22 per cent annually over the past five years, while almost a quarter of younger consumers, those under 35, are drinking them year round. There are a number of reasons why people opt for iced coffee. They’re refreshing in hot weather, of course, but many find them smoother and easier to drink than hot coffee. They are sometimes blended with sugar or caramel, often closer to a milkshake than an americano. Not limited to cafes, you can now find tinned versions at every supermarket and corner shop. With the UK set to see hot weather continuing, I blind tasted 14 options commonly found in supermarkets around the country. As a coffee drinker, one who usually sticks to hot, black coffee, I was hoping to find options that balanced milky sweetness with a good kick. I opted for a range, including lattes and cappuccinos, with a couple of oat milk numbers thrown in. While some were excessively sweet – and including up to a quarter of the daily recommended sugar intake – a few impressed. Here’s what I found. Shorts Co-op Fairtrade iced coffee café latte £1.15 for 330ml, Co-op. Sugar: 6.9g per 100ml With a light colour, like old tea bags left in water, this was very sweet, almost milkshake, with only the merest hint of coffee – a touch of bitterness to the aftertaste. Mostly just a milky, sugary drink with a caramelly note to it. 2/5 Costa classic latte £1.25 for 250ml, Ocado. Sugar: 7.1g per 100ml A pale, almost Horlicks-like tinge, this is cloyingly sweet, not unlike a high street cafe’s frappuccino. You can taste a nice milkiness – not too artificial – but barely any coffee, really. 2.5/5 Barista Coffee Co caffè latte 80p for 250ml, Tesco. Sugar: 7.3g per 100ml This is intensely sweet, overly sugary, but you do get more of a coffee hint behind that sweetness. But a latte, to me, shouldn’t be this sweet – this is more like a milkshake, mocha or a caramel-based coffeeshop frappuccino. But it’s drinkable. 2.5/5 Arctic Coffee café latte £1.15 for 330ml, Sainsbury’s. Sugar: 7.9g per 100ml Perhaps surprisingly, as it’s on the higher end for sugar per 100ml, this wasn’t the sweetest of the lot, although there was a backnote of almost vanilla-like sweetness. I couldn’t detect much coffee – it felt more like a chocolate milk or caramel drink. A coffee for children, perhaps. 2/5 Arctic Coffee café latte (left) is rated 2/5, Starbucks Tripleshot espresso (second left) is rated a lowly 1/5, Co-op Fairtrade iced coffee café latte (right) is rated 2/5, while Jimmy’s iced coffee original (second right) is one of the best at 4/5 Moma oat latte caramel flavour £1.80 for 250ml, Waitrose. Sugar: 4.6g per 100ml This coffee smelled almost like a Werther’s Original and, in some ways, tasted like one too. Sickly sweet and quite thick, with more viscosity than some of the more watery options. While it was too sweet for me, there was a strong kick of coffee, which saved it somewhat. 2.5/5 Emmi caffe latte cappuccino £2 for 230ml, Tesco. Sugar: 8.8g per 100ml Though sugary (it has more sugar per 100ml than most) this didn’t taste as sweet as some, and you could detect a good hit of coffee, with a hint of bean to the finish. The bitterness makes it one of the more balanced options, flavour wise, although a whole cup is 22 per cent of your recommended daily sugar intake. 4/5 Starbucks Tripleshot espresso £2.50 per 300ml, Tesco. Sugar: 8.7g per 100ml Overwhelmingly milky, with an almost rancid, off flavour. There is an espresso kick, though not of good coffee, sadly, and I couldn’t drink more than a sip, which leaves an artificial sweetness in the mouth long after. 1/5 Jimmy’s iced coffee original £1.75 for 250ml, Ocado. Sugar: 4.9g per 100ml Rather milky but not that sweet, possibly the least of all, so it’s one for those who like a milky coffee. The coffee flavour is pleasant but weak, a bit like a glass of milk with a touch of coffee, but decent overall. 4/5 Milbona cappuccino coffee drink 69p for 330ml, Lidl. Sugar: 8.2g per 100ml Very milky, intensely sugary, but there is a good kick of coffee to it. Could perhaps have dialled down the sweetness a touch, but it’s not a bad drink. 3.5 /5 Illy Cold Brew Cappuccino £2 for 250ml, Ocado. Sugar: 5.3g per 100ml Darker in colour than most – more digestive than rich tea. And the best, too, with that darker colour suggesting a higher coffee content, which you can taste. Not too sweet, not too milky, the three flavours seem to be in harmony, with a nice bitter aftertaste. 4.5/5 Rodd’s Iced Coffee original oat latte £2.20 for 250ml, Sainsbury’s. Sugar: 4.8g per 100ml An awful caramelly sweetness. If I were not testing coffees, I might not have known what it was. Tastes primarily of oat milk, so perhaps would be nice on cereal, but not a good coffee for me. 1/5 Illy Cold Brew Cappuccino (second left) and Grind iced coffee oat caffè latte (second right) are the two best rated ice coffees, while M&S classic latte cold brew coffee (left) and Costa classic latte are too sweet M&S classic latte cold brew coffee £2.10 for 250ml, M&S. Sugar: 3.8g per 100ml The least sugary of the non-oat milk options, and it tasted like it, with the coffee shining through. Although slightly excessively milky, it’s a well balanced tin that’s easy to drink. 3.5/5 Grind iced coffee oat caffè latte £2.25 for 250ml, Ocado. Sugar: 3.2g per 100ml Easily the nicest of the oat milk options. In fact, the best of all. This is like a proper coffee, almost as good as something you might order in a coffee shop. It’s not too sweet, not too (oat) milky, with the taste of decent coffee shining through. 4.5/5 Barissimo iced coffee latte 55p for 250ml, Aldi. Sugar: 8g per 100ml Smells and tastes nice. Very sweet, with only the merest suggestion of coffee, but a pleasant one to drink – would be good on a hangover on a hot morning. Tastes less artificial than some, but doesn’t stand out as a coffee. Very good value. 3.5/5