The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Awards celebrated the best whiskies from Speyside last night as they unveiled the 2020/2021 winners at their Awards Ceremony which was hosted by the event sponsors, Forsyths at The Station Hotel in Rothes and saw Glenfarclas 25YO triumph as the overall favourite Speyside Malt.
The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Awards are unique in that, after the finest Speyside offerings have been selected by an Independent Judging Panel, it is The People’s Choice as to which Speyside Dram comes out on top.
This time around, along with the UK and Ireland, a total of just over 1600 votes were cast, at dedicated judging events, in New Brunswick, Malmo, Oslo, Cologne, Milan, Warsaw, Copenhagen and Mumbai, the latter three being the newest destinations. The Awards Presentation was streamed via a Facebook Live event with many of the venues around the world watching as the winners were announced. The Whisky Awards are the only industry awards of its kind in the world to give consumers the final say when it comes to recognising the best Speyside whiskies.
The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Awards 2020/2021 Winners are:
12YO & Under
Gold Award - Aberlour 10YO
Silver Award - Cardhu 12YO
13YO – 20YO
Gold Award - Glenallachie 15YO
Silver Award - Benromach 15YO
21YO & Over
Gold Award - Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23YO
Silver Award - Glenfarclas 25YO
Non-Age Statement
Gold Award - Tamnavulin Sherry Cask Edition
Silver Award - Cardhu Amber Rock
Prior to announcing the winners of the 2020/21 competition, the expert judging panel conducted their blind tasting to select the shortlist for the 2022 Whisky Awards. To achieve the shortlist the independent panel carried out a rigorous blind tasting of the numerous entries submitted by the 50 qualifying Speyside Distilleries entries, before scoring each whisky on its character and flavour.
The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Awards 2022 Finalists are:
12YO & Under
Benriach 12YO
Benromach 10YO
13YO to 20YO
Glenlivet 15YO
Aberlour 16YO
21YO & Over
Aultmore 21YO
Balvenie 21YO
Non-Age Statement
Aberlour A’bunadh
Tamnavulin Spanish Grenache Cask Edition
These whiskies will now go forward to be tasted and judged by whisky drinkers around the world over the coming months. The final winners will be announced at the Spirit of Speyside’s Gala Dinner on 27th April 2022, which also marks the beginning of the 2022 Whisky Festival. Anyone wishing to host a voting session in 2022 should contact the Spirit of Speyside on [email protected].
George McNeil, chairman designate at The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, said:
“It’s the first time I’ve been involved in the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Awards and it’s been great to see our judging panel in awe of the standard of whisky produced here in Speyside by our local craftsmen and women.
The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Awards is an award like no other with the real whisky experts, whisky consumers from around the world, voting for the final winners of Speyside’s best whiskies.”
