Talk Morgan Forums Thread Like Summary - Hot Cross Bun Strangeness!

Last week I picked up some hot cross buns from a small independent baker. Got home, cut one in half, popped it in the toaster, lightly toasted, put some butter on it and took a bite...

...as soon as I bit into it, I remembered buying the same buns last year and that I didn't like them... they have a faint smell of petrol or perhaps a whiff of chemicals.

Chalking it down to something the baker was doing, I purchased some from good old M&S and Sainsburys... all good, no issues.

However, today, I had a hot cross bun from Gail's and it had exactly the same flavour, a faint chemical almost petrol-like wiff. If I was being pretentious, I would say it was akin to tasting wine and that you get more of a flavour profile when pulling air into your mouth whilst having the wine, or in this case, hot cross bun in your mouth.

Now, before anyone says I'm going mad (which is fair and reasonable), on both occasions, I had someone independent taste the buns and they said the same thing, without being prompted.

Has anyone else noticed this? I can't work out what the spice/flavour profile would be but it isn't pleasant.

No hot cross buns in Italy.



The Colomba is a dove shaped sweet loaf, not really cake or bread but something between, that has candied peel and is garnished with sugar and almonds. I have one on the table in front of me now 😋 😋 😋

Interesting! I think you may be on to something because I notice it varied from bun to bun. If it was in the mixture itself, I would imagine it would be constant but with the Gails buns, some were far worse than others, which would lean me towards different levels of glazing on each bun.

I definitely think you're onto something there! Thank you


With Gails that would be almost pointless! In my experience, they have gone from a reasonable bakers to the McDonalds/Starbucks of the baking world, with the level of apathetic staff to match. It is a shame because early shops were actually quite both in terms of service and product.

As for the other baker, the independent - I will but he is a young lad, starting out, and has only been baking (like so many!) since Covid. He has a little pop up shop (two days a week) and if he's alone, with no other customers in earshot, I'll ask but I don't want to do it when he'd busy, which (thankfully for him) he almost always is

Because of the inclement weather here, blowing a gale and raining, I decided a solo Easter cruise was not to be -so picked up some standard supermarket hot cross buns this morning-for TM testing of course ,and what do you know -a definite ethanol type taste, so the big guys are copying whatever they do in the UK! Though the price of 6 is only the price of 1.5 Bakery ones I know which I shall be sticking to from now on..