Now one of Meghan’s favourite publications publishes a viscious negative review of her jam

Meghan Markle has faced a series of damning reviews of her new jam from US media – with one of her favourite outlets calling it ‘slimy and viscous, a bit like baby food’.

The Duchess of Sussex released the first products from her new lifestyle brand As Ever on April 2, including the $14 (£11) ‘raspberry spread in keepsake packaging’.

But taste tasters at American publications have been left unimpressed upon taking delivery of the jam in recent days – including The Cut, which secured one of the first big interviews with Meghan after she stepped down as a senior royal in 2020.

The publication asked 12 members of its team to taste the jam and they gave a variety of good and bad reviews, with features writer Emily Gould saying: ‘I was put off by the texture. It’s slimy and viscous, a bit like baby food. Generously, raspberry purée.’

Features editor Catherine Thompson said: ‘I wouldn’t pay $14 for this. Its consistency is a little too thin for my taste – you really wouldn’t be able to spread it on toast.’

And The Cut’s senior writer EJ Dickson added: ‘It sucks! It’s like something you’d see at the toppings bar at Pinkberry, not a functional, standalone jam in itself.

‘I would argue that not only Bonne Maman is far superior but also Smuckers. Very disappointing. I figured she’d be better at making jam than producing podcast content, but no.’

Colleagues said it was ‘too runny’ and ‘too sweet’, although others were more positive with deputy editor Jen Ortiz writing: ‘Is there such a thing as a bad raspberry jam? I like how runny this one is. And I loved her show! Sue me!’

The Duchess of Sussex in her Netflix show With Love, Meghan which came out on March 4

Taste tasters at US publications have been left unimpressed upon taking delivery of the jam

One reviewer in The Cut described the jam as being ‘slimy and viscous, a bit like baby food’

Other US media have also published critical reviews – including the New York Post, whose food critic Steve Cuozzo said: ‘It tastes like the same kind of raspberry spread/jam/jelly/preserve that you can buy in any supermarket in the United States.

‘It tastes fine. Raspberry jam always tastes fine. There’s nothing unique about this.’

The newspaper’s editor Zachary Kussin also complained that it ‘has a really high acid profile, making it completely unenjoyable’.

Meanwhile Yahoo!’s entertainment team said they were ‘disappointed’.

Reporter Suzy Byrne wrote: ‘The jam has been called “runny” – the As Ever description says it’s supposed to be (it’s a ‘fluid texture so it can be drizzled, spread, poured’) – and that was a complaint in our Yahoo kitchen taste test, but it went beyond that.’

One staffer said: ‘Bad taste, bad texture, bad memory.’ Another added: ‘It’s acidic.’ A third asked: ‘Did we get a bad batch?’

The Today show on NBC published a mixed review, with its food reporter Joseph Lamour writing: ‘I was assuming a thick texture when I opened the jar and almost spilled it all over myself.’

He added: ‘I would call this a syrup, compote or coulis. Meghan is calling it ‘spread,’ though – so spread it is!’

One reviewer in The Cut described the jam as being ‘slimy and viscous, a bit like baby food’

Meghan’s new range of As Ever products launched on April 4 and rapidly sold out

But Mr Lamour also praised it as ‘fresh and bright’, saying the ‘raspberry sweetness gives way to a lemony tartness I found really refreshing paired with whipped cream cheese on an English muffin’.

Reporters for UK newspaper The Times based in America also reviewed the jam, with the reception generally positive.

Keiran Southern found the consistency to be ‘slightly runny, certainly compared with the jams I am used to’, while Phyllis Akalin called it ‘banging’.

She added: ‘Not too sweet and sugary, zingy … I am a sucker for sour fruit, and the As Ever jam was just the right amount of sour.’

Another positive review came from InStyle’s Rachel Burchfield, who wrote: ‘I am not a food writer and don’t pretend to be, but as a regular old consumer, this jam is really, really good.’

‘When I asked my husband how he would describe the jam, he said, ‘I have never really thought about how to describe jam. I’ve never even really thought about jam.

‘That’s when a lightbulb went off for me. For me, jam has always been secondary to whatever more interesting carb I was spreading it on. This jam, I’d eat without any other accoutrements. Don’t tempt me with a good time.’

Meghan’s jam and a collection of herbal teas, flower sprinkles and luxury honey were all snapped up by shoppers soon after As Ever began taking orders.

Meghan’s limited-edition As Ever wildflower honey with honeycomb cost $28 (£22)

The $15 (£12) flower sprinkles which Meghan uses frequently and refers to in her Netflix series

While the exact number of products it sold has not been confirmed, the company said it was ‘tens of thousands’.

Some of the goods feature in her cooking and lifestyle Netflix series With Love, Meghan, which is seen as a make-or-break moment for the Sussexes who signed a $100million (£78million) deal with the streaming platform in 2020.

The show received a string of critical reviews when it was released on March 4 but became the tenth most-watched programme on the streaming platform and will return for a second series.

The Duchess also released the first episode of her new podcast Confessions of a Female Founder on the Lemonada Media network on Tuesday.

As Ever has generated headlines around the world and Meghan and actress Gwyneth Paltrow posted a social media video of themselves together to counter reports of a feud centred around the Duchess’s brand and Paltrow’s wellness company Goop.

Fans of Meghan bought her raspberry spread in keepsake packaging, and for those who missed out it will be available later without the circular box for $9 (£7).

As Ever was originally called American Riviera Orchard but the name was switched just weeks before the launch after the Duchess faced trademarking setbacks.

Its herbal teas – lemon ginger, peppermint and hibiscus – sold for $12 (£9) each, while the limited-edition wildflower honey with honeycomb cost $28 (£22) and flower sprinkles $15 (£12) which Meghan uses frequently and refers to in her Netflix series.

The last items to sell out were the crepe mix and shortbread cookie mix, both priced at $14 (£11).