Remember when butter wasn't evil? If you're younger than 30, you probably don't.

In the last 30 years, butter's fat and cholesterol have gotten it banished largely to the world of bakers and those few hardy devotees who refuse to surrender.

For most of us, either for economic or health reasons, that tub of spread in the refrigerator is a fact of life. The convenience of having something ready to spread straight from the fridge is certainly a reason, as is the fact that most of the spreads on the market today have no cholesterol. Some even claim to increase good cholesterol while lowering the bad.

But what about the taste? Some of us are still scarred by memories of the early attempts at butter-like spreads, which tasted and melted like yellow candle wax. You could put a dollop of it on a baked potato still scorching-hot from the oven and watch as it softened but steadfastly refused to melt.

Thankfully, competition has driven the companies making butter spreads to put serious time and research into creating something bearing a bit more similarity to butter. The results have been highly mixed, with some eschewing that hunt in favor of amping up the health benefits, but taste and flavor are there to be found.

In this test, we'll help you separate the tubs o' grease from the worthy contenders. All entries were tested on flavor, spreadability and melting characteristics alone, without regard to any health claims. Each of the five testers was given a maximum of 20 points to award to each entry, for a possible perfect score of 100. All were tested on freshly toasted whole-wheat bread.

Nutritional information is given for each entry.

Fleischmann's With Olive Oil 60 calories, 7 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 70 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

This one spread very smoothly and melted well, but there was very little buttery flavor. It would be good, perhaps, mixed with some herbs and used over vegetables, but on toast it provided moisture and not much else. Olive oil is one of the cornerstones of the Mediterranean diet, but there's a reason why it's not on the table for breakfast. Final score: 82.

Land O'Lakes Fresh Buttery Taste Spread 70 calories, 8 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 80 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

You'd think the biggest name in butter would know what butter should taste like, and this product shows that to be true. It's a bit stiff to spread, but melts quickly and has a really mellow, slightly salty butter flavor. It's a great lower-impact alternative to butter. Final score: 94.

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter: 80 calories, 8 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 90 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

It doesn't melt like butter, taking quite a while to disappear into the bread, but it spreads well and the flavor is quite good. You will believe it's not butter, but it's a decent substitute. Final score: 85.

Benecol: 70 calories, 8 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 110 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

Benecol doesn't so much melt as turn gooey when spread on hot toast. Even after a quick shot in the microwave just to see if it would work, it refused to really melt into the bread. The flavor was somewhat buttery, but the greasy feel left in the mouth was unpleasant. Final score: 63.

Smart Balance: 80 calories, 9 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 90 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

Smart Balance makes perhaps the strongest health claims of any butter-replacement product, building its reputation more on those than on its flavor. That's not necessarily a bad thing. While it melts well, it spreads with bread-mangling stiffness and the flavor is fairly nondescript. Final score: 74.

Shedd's Spread Country Crock: 60 calories, 7 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 110 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

This is one of the biggest brands in the business, available in a variety of formulas and flavors. The original version spreads more easily than any other in the test, but doesn't quite completely melt into the toast. The flavor is quite buttery, but it leaves a slightly greasy aftertaste. Final score: 83.

Parkay Squeeze: 70 calories, 8 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 110 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

We decided to include one "squeezable" product in the test, and this one acquitted itself fairly well. It didn't melt much, but the flavor was very buttery and smooth. As far as being spreadable … well, it's squeezable, so that should tell you something. Final score: 87.

Brummel & Brown: 45 calories, 5 grams fat, 0 cholesterol, 90 mg sodium, 0 carbs.

Try this: Spread one piece of toast with butter, and one with Brummel & Brown. It's likely you won't be able to tell a difference in the way they melt. The B&B spreads fairly smoothly, and the flavor is almost indistinguishable from real butter. It edged out the Land O'Lakes spread for top honors with a final score of 95.

As one of the most reasonably priced spreads in the test, the Brummel & Brown also is our clear pick as the best buy of the bunch.

If you're more concerned with the relative health claims of the spreads on the market, your opinion will likely differ significantly, but at least now you'll have a guide when it comes to taste.