Painswick-based flavoured organic grass fed ghee start-up Karobi’s Ghee has been named among the top food and drink producers globally.
They scooped a highly prized 3-star Great Taste award for its “plain Ghee” in its first year of business.
Made in small batches with organic grass fed butter and organic spices in Karobi Ghee’s kitchen overlooking the Painswick Valley, where she produces a range of flavoured ghees , including a popular roasted garlic ghee and an innovative range of ghee and honey based spiced chocolate spreads, the plain Ghee was one of 5,904 products to receive a Great Taste award in 2023 (which is only 41.6% of the total products entered). Only 248 entries of those received a 3 star award .
Karobi from Karobi’s Ghee said: “I am thrilled and very surprised to have won a 3 star Great Taste award for my Plain Ghee. I am so proud to be adding the prestigious black and gold Great Taste badge of honour to my plain ghee. I only started this business in Jul 2022, in my home kitchen, so only a year later to be where we are today with a 3 star Great Taste award is truly a dream come true.
“Being recognised with a Great Taste award means so much to independent producers such as myself, as it makes all the hard work and determination worth it! Great Taste is the most recognised accolade for taste and quality in the food and drink industry, so it’s a huge moment for me.”
New for this year and to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Great Taste, the Guild of Fine Food offered 50 micro producers the chance to put one new product in front of its expert panel of Great Taste judges for free.
The bursary was aimed at micro producers who have never entered Great Taste before or have a new product, which has never been entered before.
The bursary panel, which consisted of Adrian Boswell, buyer at Selfridges, industry commentator and food entrepreneur Mallika Basu, and PR & marketing expert AJ Sharp, selected the 50 most eligible entries.
The recipients of the bursary then participated in the same rigorous blind-tasting process as all 14,195 food and drink entries, with judges unaware of their bursary status.
With the news of a 3 star rating for her plain ghee, Karobi’s becomes one of the first cohort of bursary applicants to win a Great Taste award and joins 20 other successful companies who participated in the scheme this year.
Christabel Cairns, operations and marketing director at the Guild of Fine Food said: “We’re really proud to have launched the bursary scheme to celebrate 30 years of Great Taste discovering fantastic food and drink. There are some brilliant products that have more than held their own through the judging process. We’re looking forward to supporting our 21 bursary winners with further initiatives later this year and following their progress after their success.”
14,195 products were put through the competition’s rigorous blind judging process; and Karobi’s Plain Ghee] was dubbed as” interesting – it tastes like fudge! Very clever. It has kept a butteriness but is not greasy . A clearly well made and cared for ghee. ” at the world’s most coveted food and drink awards. 4,088 products were awarded a Great Taste 1-star – ‘food and drink that delivers fantastic flavour’, 1,568 were awarded a Great Taste 2-star – ‘above and beyond delicious’, and 248 were awarded a Great Taste 3-star – ‘extraordinarily tasty food and drink’.
Described as having “ a comforting colour and texture, that delivers the most remarkable mouthfeel. and a nuttiness that you are gloriously grateful for. There is a cleanness and a freshness that delivers such a positive mouthfeel, without coating the mouth with any residue. A length of flavour that is joyful. We couldn’t find anything that would make it better ” “ The judges loved this product. The aroma is sweet and inviting. We enjoyed the nutty flavour with butterscotch notes and the clean finish” . this hand produced Ghee was a big hit with the Great Taste judges.
What is Great Taste?
Recognised as a stamp of excellence and actively sought out by food lovers and retailers alike, Great Taste, organised by the Guild of Fine Food, values taste above all else. All products in the line-up for judging are blind tasted: every product is removed from its packaging so it cannot be identified, before entering a robust, layered judging process.
This year, judging took place over 89 days in Dorset and London, with a panel of more than 500 judges putting the products to the test. The line-up saw food and drink products submitted from an extraordinary 109 different countries across the world.
Karobi’s Ghee (plain) is available from Karobi’s online shop at her website ( below) and she can be found at Stroud Framers market and other local markets and food festivals. . RRP: £4.95 for 75g 11.95 for 225g ]
For more information about Karobi’s ghees and her award winning plain version, visit www.karobisghee.co.uk
The full list of this year’s winners and where to buy them can be found at www.greattasteawards.co.uk and a wide range of the award-winning products are available to buy in delis, farm shops and independent retailers across the country.