The siren call of rich, European-style butters becomes irresistible at holiday time, what with all the baking, dinner partying and general extravagance.

European-style butters are not necessarily more expensive than everyday butters, but they can be. And we've long wondered how they would stack up -- and whether the same butter that was best for slathering on Parkerhouse rolls at dinner would make the best cookies, too.

So we invited Emily Luchetti, pastry chef at Farallon in San Francisco, to join the regular panel for a special holiday tasting of fancy butters.

The category was somewhat arbitrary; we aimed for the higher-fat butters, but it wasn't possible to determine the precise fat content for many butters on the market. So we picked butters imported from Europe and New Zealand, plus American-made ones that called themselves European-style.

Altogether, 12 unsalted butters were tasted, including one everyday supermarket brand for comparison. All were tasted blind, plain or spread on a piece of fresh, sweet baguette. In a second blind tasting, the panel was served the same butters baked into shortbread using Luchetti's recipe.

The results of our shortbread bake-athon amazed and astounded. Batches made with different butters emerged from the oven looking as if they'd been made from different recipes. Some were very pale, others quite well browned. Some held their rectangular shape perfectly; others spread and flattened. Taste varied, too.

Higher quantities of butterfat and varying amounts of water in the different butters accounted for the differences, Luchetti and others at the table explained.

When it came to tasting, the results were equally fascinating. The butters that the panel scarfed down plain, some straight off their knives, weren't the ones they loved baked into shortbread, and vice versa.

For example, Jana Valley, a strongly flavored New Zealand-made butter that won the shortbread tasting in a slam-dunk, limped in last in the plain tasting. And U.S.-made Plugra, the second-favorite when tasted plain, fared poorly in the baking test -- it came in ninth.

For those keeping score, we've listed all the butters and how they fared overall -- a combination of their plain and baked scores. These are useful for cooks who want to use the same butter for everything.

For those who are willing to buy different butters for baking and the table, we've listed the top five in each category. Because there were six tasters instead of the usual five, the scores were mathematically translated to the normal 100-point scale.

For the record, the everyday supermarket butter placed ninth overall -- eighth when tasted plain, 10th when baked.

U.S.-made Challenge European Style ($2.99 a pound, Draeger's) was the panel's overall favorite -- coming in first when tasted plain and fourth when baked.

As a table butter, Challenge earned a score worthy of the Taster's Choice Hall of Fame. The panel loved its "silky surface" and "excellent creamy dairy flavor" with an "appealing tang." "Smooth, not greasy," said one taster. Two panelists found it a bit bland. Four would buy this brand as a table butter; one might; and one would not.

When it came to baking, the shortbread made with Challenge held its shape well, was crisp and had a very "sandy texture." A good butter flavor came through, but it was a bit mild for several on the panel. Three would buy it for baking; two might; one wouldn't.

A Danish butter, Lurpak ($3.49 for 8 ounces, Whole Foods) came in second overall. The panel really liked it for baking; the shortbread baked up pale and crisp, but kept its shape pretty well and had a "sweet and delicate" flavor. Tasted plain, Lurpak ranked fifth -- some on the panel found it "delightful" but others found it lacking a bit of creaminess. Four would buy it for baking; three for table butter.

Another American-made contender, Plugra ($2.69 a pound, Trader Joe's) claimed third place overall. In a tasting of everyday butters several years ago, Plugra won big, earning the highest score (95) of any Taster's Choice ever. This time, the competition was tougher.

Plugra again did well when tasted plain, coming in third for its "assertive" and "tangy" flavor with "strong dairy notes." The texture was "silky smooth." But when it came to baking, which wasn't part of the previous tasting, Plugra stumbled, placing ninth. The shortbread spread out some, and the butter flavor hid behind the sugar and flour tastes. Five would buy this for table butter, but only one would buy it for baking.

Fourth place went to locally made Straus European Style ($5.69 a pound, Whole Foods) -- it did better overall than in either category. As a baking butter, Straus came in fifth, making a "very tender, short and crisp" shortbread with a "delicate" butter flavor. Tasted plain, the same butter took sixth place, and was described as "flat-tasting" and "neutral" or "stale." Three would buy it for baking; one would buy it for the table.

Fifth-ranked Kerrygold ($2.49 for 8 ounces, Trader Joe's) hails from Ireland. The panel gave it sixth place in the baking contest, ninth when tasted plain.

Holiday bakers might be better off considering Jana Valley ($1.99 for 8.82 ounces, Whole Foods), whose bright yellow color and "cheesy" or "grassy" taste turned the panel off when they tried it plain. But in baking, the same butter was a dream -- it kept its shape, and the flavor came across as "rich." Four would buy it for baking; one would buy it for the table.

One other butter that did well in baking, but not plain, was French-made La Baratte des Gourmets ($5.99 for 8.82 ounces, Draeger's). As for table butters, French-made Celles sur Belle and U.S.-made Cremerie Classique did well. Celles sur Belle ($4.99 for 8.82 ounces, Draeger's) came close to the Challenge for its "smooth, creamy" texture and "excellent creamy dairy flavor."

European-style butter

To rank the butters, we held two blind tastings. In one, the butters were tasted plain. In the second, the panel evaluated the buttery attributes of shortbread baked using the same products that had been tasted plain. Scores from both were added together for the overall rankings; a perfect score would be 200. We are also listing the top plain butters, and the top baking butters; for them, a perfect score would be 100.

Combined scores

Challenge European Style 151

Lurpak 144

Plugra 131

Straus 120

Kerrygold 114

Jana Valley 106

Celles sur Belle 86

Cremerie Classique 83

Anchor 58

La Baratte des Gourmets 56

Delitia 37

Tasted plain

Challenge Eur. Style 82

Celles sur Belle 79

Plugra 76

Cremerie Classique 71

Lurpak 68

Baked in shortbread

Jana Valley 79

Lurpak 76

La Baratte des Gourmets 73

Challenge Eur. Style 69

Straus 67

Panelists were Linda Anusasananan, food writer and consultant, San Mateo; John Carroll, cookbook author, San Francisco; Marc Halperin, director, Center for Culinary Development, San Francisco; Shelley Handler, consultant, San Francisco; Emily Luchetti, pastry chef, Farallon, San Francisco; and Roland Passot, chef-owner, La Folie and five Left Banks. All products are tasted blind; a perfect score would be 100. Prices listed are the lowest found, but products may be available at other stores.