Panettone originated in Milan during the Middle Ages and has long been enjoyed in Latin America, but its popularity only seems to be growing worldwide—especially in the US, where more and more bakeries offer it each year in a variety of styles. We tasted several traditional versions of panettone that have a tighter crumb, but we also made an effort to try some newer, modern styles, which typically have more open, stretchy crumbs.
We looked for panettone from well-established bakeries that could be ordered online and shipped nationwide. Our samples ranged in price from $15 to $105.
To have a baseline for comparison, we ordered a traditional panettone—that is, the kind with candied citrus and raisins—from each bakery. But if others were available, we also chose one specialty flavor so that we could sample something else the company offered. In some cases, as with the Una Pizza Napoletana panettone, only one specialty flavor is available each year, so we went with that.
Since panettone is a seasonal product typically available only during the holiday season, we were limited to the amount that we could test at one time. However, we hope to expand this guide and taste more options in a new round of testing next year.
In our testing:
We taste-tested 15 panettone. Our tasting took place over two days with members of the Wirecutter kitchen team. Going off the guidance included with the Olivieri panettone, we warmed each loaf (unless they were coated with icing) for two minutes in an oven set to 300 degrees Fahrenheit before tasting.
We took note of the texture and moisture of each loaf. A whole panettone, somewhat notoriously, is supposed to stay fresh for weeks, if not months, which ICE’s Jürgen David said is due to the high percentage of butter and eggs. He also told us that the crumb should be a uniform texture; ideally, it should be light, moist, and fluffy like cotton candy, not dense and dry like day-old bread.
We evaluated the citrus flavors. We tasted the loaves to see if they were balanced, fresh, and bright—or artificial-tasting, cloying, and overpowering.
We compared the candied and dried fruit. Subpar panettone has a bad reputation for having fruit with an unpleasantly chewy or dry texture. We wanted the candied fruit to taste fresh, have a soft, juicy texture, and melt in our mouths. David said the fruit should also be evenly distributed.
We assessed the height of each loaf. Ideally, we wanted the loaves to be tall, with lofty domes that resembled Brunelleschi’s Dome in Florence, Italy.
We evaluated the packaging. Since many people like to send panettone as a holiday gift, we assessed the presentation and quality of each bakery’s packaging.
