You probably eat fewer peanut butter and jelly sandwiches now than you did as a kid, but there's at least one jar of fruit preserves in your cupboard. It might just be Bonne Maman, which is one of our go-to brands for everything from morning toast to cheese plates. The French brand of preserves—made of whole fruits, not to be confused with jams, which are made with crushed fruit—and jellies is iconic for a short and stout wide-mouth jar and a bright red gingham lid. But did you know they come in whopping 23 flavors?
To help you out of a sticky situation, we enlisted a team of preserve-tasting Avengers, who tried every single flavor from apricot to quince. It was a close race, but we were able to crown the best Bonne Maman flavor of all time. Here's our official ranking of all of Granny's (yes, that's what Bonne Maman translates to) preserves.
23. Orange Marmalade
Although tasters across the board typically thought Bonne Mamam skewed a little sweet overall, this one was called out for having too much bitter rind flavor. "Is this why Lady Mary is so cranky?" questioned one staffer. It was one of the few flavors to score a 0.
22. Blackcurrant Jelly
The problem with jellies—made from the juice of fruits—is the slippery texture. Most people were not a fan of that, but one taster noted that it's "very wintry" in flavor and could imagine eating it on a snow day.
21. Redcurrant Jelly
"Tastes like a tart, more lively version of grape. It's like if grape went on Spring Break," was one review. Generally, the "Jell-O texture" would be a better fit for diner-style toast than filling cookies or serving with cheese.
20. Blackberry Jelly
The "almost creamy consistency" and "not too sweet" flavor had one person interested, but overall, tasters didn't like the texture and the way it dissolved in your mouth.
19. Fig Preserves
One staffer commented that this "lost the flavor of a fig" since it was "crazy sweet." Another noted that it could be good with cheese, but its intense chunkiness was a deterrent.
18. Mango Peach Preserves
The tropical preserve was a shocker to most people, since the newer flavor is not that common in stores yet. While one person noted that the peachy side "tastes like summer," most other tasters wondered if mango should be in jam form. "It's not French," someone joked.
17. Muscat Grape Jelly
This tasted most like the grape jelly everyone grew up with, and is ideal for a slightly-grown-up PB&J. "Super silky texture, good for spreading," said one enthusiastic reviewer. Hey, Bonne Maman, please make this as a preserve next!
16. Blackberry Preserves
This preserve was a lot more loosey goosey than the others, and it divided the group. Some appreciated that it was kind of like a jelly with big pieces of fruit in it, while others thought it was too runny and seedy at the same time. A taster noted it could go well spooned over a bowl of oatmeal.
15. Quince Spread
Quince isn't the most popular fruit. It kind of looks like a pear, but tastes tough and bitter raw. This spread—marketed for pairing with cheese—is "mild, but not memorable," according to one taster. It has a slightly mealy texture, so it may not be for everyone.
14. Purple Fig Spread
"Super seedy, not sweet, and hella mellow" wrote one taster. It was definitely more popular amongst tasters than the classic fig preserves, but felt a little boring compared to the other 22 options laid out.
13. Peach Preserves
"Nice balance of sweetness and tang with good texture," a staffer noted. The strong peach flavor is similar to another fan-favorite, apricot, and we'd slather it on toast or use in thumbprint cookies.
12. Black Cherry Spread
"This cherry has attitude. It's too aggressive," remarked one taster. It was a little too intense after tasting the classic preserves (below), and its spreadable consistency felt wrong to some chunk-preferred testers.
11. Cherry Preserves
This is an excellent all-purpose jam with a nice balance of sweetness and tartness. You could use it as part of a dessert, while one staffer has already used this in an Old-Fashioned. Add jams to your cocktails!
10. Four Fruits Preserves
The four fruits are probably not what you expected: cherries, strawberries, red currants, and raspberries. Most tasters found it inoffensive, but would rather focus on one fruit than mix 'em up. One tester appreciated how the berries rounded each other out.
9. Mixed Berry Preserves
Now, mixed berry is raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and wild strawberries (they know how to party). Tasters were a big fan of the texture, which combined chunks of fruit with a smooth finish.
8. Plum Preserves
Warning: there are some chunks of fruit skin in this one, which some tasters disliked and others applauded. "The texture and sweetness are juuuust right," noted one. "It's a delicious but unusual option," added another. While a single review noted the texture was a little "goopy."
7. Wild Blueberry Preserves
"The little bloobs are such a treat!" wrote one tester. "You could put this in a pie crust if you were feeling lazy," a staffer suggested. It didn't have a super strong blueberry flavor, which makes sense for the subtle berry, but the preserves definitely had a lot of sweetness.
6. Apricot-Raspberry Preserves
When two favorite flavors combine, magic happens. "There's a lot of gelatin or pectin in this one," commented a staffer, but there was still good texture from big chunks of fruit. The raspberry seeds do kind of take over the nice, smooth apricot preserves, so give it a good stir.
5. Lemon Curd
Curveball! (Curd-ball? Sorry.) The comment cards on this one had a lot of exclamation points: creamy! tart! amazing! OMG! Tastes like lemon meringue pie! You could probably make some good tarts with this.
4. Strawberry Preserves
"That sugar is intense...but that's the point, so I'm okay with it," said one tester. "You know it's not fake because of the huge chunks of strawberries," added another. You can't go wrong with a classic, and this one is ready to befriend some crunchy toast.
3. Raspberry Preserves
FINAL THREE, HERE WE GO. "This has that signature raspberry flavor and the right amount of seeds," a staffer declared. Some raspberry preserves can be gritty, but this consistency was spot-on for any sandwich, or even spooned over ice cream.
2. Golden Mirabelle Plum Preserves
Man, this was a hard jar to track down! It's a rarer flavor, so you may have to go to a few stores to find (or buy online)—and it's worth the wait. Tiny golden mirabelle plums are actually the golden ticket. "This has a real soft stone fruit flavor, and is a a ringer for apricot. The only thing that would make it better is bigger pieces of plums," said a tester. Many loved the "meltingly smooth texture," and noted a "pleasingly syrupy consistency."
1. Apricot Preserves
Apricot was many tasters' favorite before they tried the other 22, and it came out as a clear winner. It's the Goldilocks of jams: not too soft, not too chunky, just right. "The flavor really shines and tastes like the height of summertime," a staffer concluded for the group, suggesting to use them to make cookies, specifically our Beurre and Sel Jammers. Hot damn, that's our jam.