Best Eggnog To Buy (And The Worst)

As much as we applaud your good-intentioned enthusiasm in wanting to make everything yourself this holiday season, when it comes to items like eggnog, there's no shame in turning to the supermarket for help.

Although it's not difficult to make at home, eggnog is one of those products that is easy to check off your shopping list. The only hitch? Making sure you pick the right brand. Reach for the wrong carton in your dairy aisle and you might wind up with something that tastes more like thin, banana-bubblegum-flavored milk, rather than that creamy, lightly spiced drink you were anticipating.

[slideshow:

Knowing that "added stress" wasn't on your Christmas wish list, eight Daily Meal editors tested 12 popular eggnog brands to see which are best (and which you might want to leave on the supermarket shelf). Our taste test criteria? We considered texture (does it have the desired creamy thickness?), flavor (is there a hint of holiday spices?), color (is it more yellow or white?), and level of sweetness (not too cloying, please). What's more, we conducted a second round of testing that mixed in a little dark spiced rum to help determine which tasted best with a spirited addition.

Check out the results below — the brands are listed best to worst (scores are based on a 100 point scale) — then check out the slideshow for full commentary.

Click here for the Best Egg Nog to Buy (and the Worst) Slideshow.

The Results: