Competitions

New York International Spirits Competition, USA, $300

New York International Spirits Competition is a trade only judging panel where spirits are judged not just in their category but their pricing band. Founded in 2010 by Adam Levy.

SIP Awards International Spirits Competition, USA, $325 USD

The Spirits International Prestige (SIP) Awards inaugural competition was held in Los Angeles, California in 2009. SIP Awards comprises a judging panel of 100 consumers to blind-taste-test old and new spirits based strictly on aroma, taste and finish. The aim of the SIP Awards is to eliminate “layers of elaborate marketing, brand recognition, price point disparity and, most critically, the bias of established judges. To further preserve fairness, the awards will not accept sponsorships from spirit companies, affiliates, partners, importers or distributors.

San Francisco World Spirits Competition, USA, $400 USD

The San Francisco World Spirits Competition, founded in 2000, is the first comprehensive, international spirits judging held in the United States on annual basis.

The International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC), England, $250 USD

The IWSC, founded in 1960, is the world’s leading wine and spirit competition with a rigorous two-stage judging process of professional blind tasting followed by chemical and microbiological analysis.

The Destillata Awards, Austria, $275 USD

The Destillata is recognized as one of the most serious distillate tastings in the world with double tastings by separate jury groups followed by technical analysis.