Jordan's Honey Baked Crunchy Oat Granola €3.39 for 500gThere are some products that gush and this is undoubtedly one of them. The makers of this pleasant cereal drizzle honey into batches of nature-friendly wholegrain British oats, bake them gently until golden and ... yada yada yada. It goes on in this vein for some time and is mildly irksome.

The actual granola doesn't need such a hard sell as it is perfectly nice. There is a decent mix of fruit and nuts and while the oat clusters are on the chewy side they are not excessively sweet. This is one of the few granolas not to come in a resealable bag and its absence makes you realise how useful it is, particularly when you have to deal with an unanticipated granola avalanche first thing on a Monday morning.

Verdict: Pretty good

Star rating: * * *

Foods of Athenry Granola €5.25 for 450g

This award-winning granola is from a Galway-based company is now available in your local Tesco and elsewhere and is well worth keeping an eye out for. It is gorgeous and has a great crunch to it, a lovely balance of sweet and cinnamon flavours and, based on our experience, will leave you feeling full for longer. It comes with a very good selection of dried fruit including sultanas, cranberries, cherries and blueberries and the almonds are nice too. It is sweetened with apple juice rather than processed sugars and is also a source of copper, the box tells us. Is that a good thing? We have no idea. We also like the fact that it is locally produced. We like the price a whole lot less mind you but sometimes it is worth paying more.

Verdict: Dear but excellent.

Star rating: * * * *

Kelkin Triple Berry Granola €3.65 for 500g

This, as the name might suggest is all about the berries and the stars are the freeze-dried raspberries and the strawberries which only make up 3 per cent of the mix but are punching way above their weight. Their presence is noticed from the start as they turn the milk pink almost immediately they are introduced to it. They also have a nice freshness and a tartness that is appealing. The oat clusters are chewy rather than crunchy, but nice all the same while the presence of a range of nuts and seeds amongst the ingredients gave it a more wholesome feel.

Verdict: A good way to start the day

Star rating: * * * * 

Tesco finest Nut €3.35 for 500g

While the Kelkin granola is coming down with berries, this is all about the nuts and despite the absence of juicy fruits, it is gorgeous. It is, perhaps a little too sweet but we liked it nonetheless. The oat clusters were on the right side of crunchiness and we were very impressed with the ingredient list which was super-pure and lacked anything by way of additives or preservatives. It comes with eight varieties of nut, two types of seed, sugar, treacle and oats. While many of its competitors also package their product in re-sealable bags, Tesco goes a step further and adds a foil dimension to protect this product from light. It is, however, probably unnecessary as you will have it eaten before the elements do any damage.

Verdict: A real nut job

Star rating: * * * *

Whites Toasted Oats €3.15 for 500g

This granola was the cheapest of the products we reviewed so earns a star for that. It was also the crunchiest by a country mile and even after spending minutes in a breakfast bowl there was still a discernable bite to the clusters of toasted oats. It has some nice pieces of freeze dried strawberries – although not too many of them. While it is okay, we reckoned it was way too sweet. The presence of frosted cornflakes might delight some class of talking tiger, but it takes away from its wholesomeness by our reckoning. The company makes much of the strawberries and banana they have included, but the reality is there is just 2 per cent of the latter and 1 per cent of the former.

Verdict: Too sweet

Star rating: * *