In most creative fields, there are awards on offer for excellence, some worth taking more seriously than others. And the world of wine and spirits is no different where the most prestigious awards do matter. Here, it is the opinion of independent experts, uninfluenced by marketing, and tasting blind (with no visual clues about any whisky) that really counts.
The best-known medals are awarded by the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC), the nearest thing we have to the Oscars. However, we are also proud to achieve recognition in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and the International Spirits Challenge.
At these international events, the world's best whiskies compete on a level footing, so these prizes mean a lot to us and to all our colleagues who have distilled and nurtured these whiskies over the years.
Here are just a handful of the awards we’ve won over the past 12 months.
The CLASSIC MALTS™ have always done well in the past and in 2009 we won 27 medals at the IWSC, including two Trophies - the supreme awards - for Clynelish™ Distillers Edition™ and Lagavulin™ Distillers Edition.
The IWSC also bestowed prestigious Gold - Best in Class medals for Cardhu™, two variants of Talisker™ and a number of other brands.
Double Gold Medals went to Talisker 10 year old and Distillers Edition, Clynelish 14 year old, Cragganmore™ Distillers Edition and Lagavulin Distillers Edition. On top of that, the much sought-after Ltd Edition Port Ellen™ 29 year old not only won a Double Gold Medal but was also declared "Best Single Malt Scotch".
Talisker 57° North™ led the way in winning a Gold Medal, along with The Singleton of Glen Ord™, Lagavulin Distillers Edition and Lagavulin 16 year old.
