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Heaven Hill Brands Earn over 100 Industry-Leading Awards in 2021, Rating Gold or Higher

Heaven Hill Brands Earn over 100 Industry-Leading Awards in 2021, Rating Gold or Higher

In 2021 Heaven Hill brands earned over 130 industry-leading awards, going head-to-head with competitive brands in their respective categories. In competition, our brands often are judged by a panel of esteemed spirits enthusiasts and scored. For those competitions handing out medals, we’ve rounded up some of the best of year.

Below is a recap of awards in which our brands achieved a gold or higher rating this year.

San Francisco World Spirits Competition

Founded in 2000, the San Francisco World Spirits Competition is the oldest and largest competition of its kind. The competition features highly-controlled blind tasting over four days by an experienced judging panel, which does not receive any information on producer or price point and judges each entry on an individual basis.

GOLD

Gold winners are considered exceptional spirits near the pinnacle of achievement. These products set the standard for their categories.

Deep Eddy Lemon

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof A121

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Evan Williams 1783

Larceny

Pikesville

 

           

DOUBLE GOLD

Double Gold award recipients reflect entries that receive a Gold medal rating by all members of the judging panel. These are considered by the panel to be among the finest products in the world.

Bernheim

Black Velvet Apple

Burnett’s Vodka 80 Proof

Carolans Salted Caramel

Carolans

Christian Brothers VS

Christian Brothers VSOP

Elijah Craig Rye

Elijah Craig Single Barrel

Elijah Craig Small Batch

Evan Williams Egg Nog

Evan Williams Single Barrel 2013

Rittenhouse

William Heavenhill 8th Edition

    

NOTABLE RECOGNITION

These entries received notable recognition, in addition to Double Gold.

Henry McKenna Single Barrel, Best Single Barrel Bourbon – Up to 10 Years

Parker’s Heritage 14th Edition, Best Small Batch Bourbon – 6 to 10 Years

Ultimate Spirits Challenge

In the Ultimate Spirits Challenge, spirits are reviewed under ideal tasting conditions over a period of time that allows the product to express its best characteristics. Each product is evaluated blind by panels in multi-stage assessments to remove any inherent or individual bias.

GREAT VALUE

PAMA, Score: 92

Carolans Cold Brew, Score: 92

Carolans Original, Score: 91

Burnett’s 80 Proof Vodka, Score 87

Black Velvet Toasted Caramel, Score: 87

Black Velvet Apple, Score: 86

Carolans Salted Caramel Cream, Score: 95

Christian Brothers VSOP, Score: 86

Christian Brothers Sacred Bond 4Y, Score: 95

Deep Eddy Lemon, Score: 95

   

FINALIST/TRIED & TRUE

Carolans Salted Caramel Cream, Score: 95

Domaine de Canton Ginger, Score: 93

CHAIRMAN’S TROPHY

Christian Brothers Sacred Bond 4Y, Top 100 Spirits, Score: 95

Deep Eddy Lemon, Top 100 Spirits, Score: 85

ASCOT Awards

ASCOT Awards is an international spirits competition created by spirits personality and veteran tasting judge, Fred Minnick. The competition provides a unique opportunity for distillers to have their products recognized through Fred’s Dash Radio show, YouTube channel, social media, news articles, newsletters and festival.

Taste category entries are scrutinized through a blind judging process, determining various levels of awards, and top-scoring entries proceed to a live-streamed championship round, where they are judged by Minnick and another expert for that specific class.

Best in Class, championship round participants and Double Platinum finalists receive extensive year-long exposure through Minnick’s various media channels. Heaven Hill received “Large Distiller of the Year” this year thanks to a strong showing across all categories. Many of our brands scoring Double Platinum also received Best in Class or Finalist designations.

GOLD

Admiral Nelson’s Spiced Rum

Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond

Henry McKenna Single Barrel

Rittenhouse

PLATINUM

Bernheim

Lunazul Anejo

Sacred Bond

William Heavenhill 8th Edition

DOUBLE PLATINUM

Elijah Craig Rye, Best American Rye Whiskey Finalist

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Larceny Barrel Proof C920

Parker’s Hertiage 14th Edition, Best Small Batch Bourbon 6Y-10Y Finalist

NOTEABLE RECOGNITON

These brands received notable recognition in addition to double platinum.

Carolans Salted Caramel, Best Liqueur Cream/Dairy

Christian Brothers VS, Best Grape Brandy

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof C920, Best Small Batch Bourbon 11Y+

Lunazul Blanco, Best Blanco Blue Agave Tequila

PAMA, Best Liqueur Fruit

John Barleycorn Awards

John Barleycorn Awards honor the innovative distillers, writers, marketers and designers who “cultivate the fertile traditions of the spirits industry.”The judges for taste include trade writers skilled in the art of evaluating the taste, quality and character of fine spirits.Judging is conducted over a period of days in New York City, blind-tested, judged at random and not compared to other submissions in their category. Judges grade each entry on a 100-point scale, based on a series of criteria relating to appearance, aroma, taste and finish.

GOLD

Admiral Nelson’s Spiced Rum

Bernheim

Black Velvet Original

Burnett’s Vodka 80 Proof

Carolans Salted Caramel

Christian Brothers VS

Christian Brothers VSOP

Deep Eddy Original

Elijah Craig, Barrel Proof A121

Elijah Craig Small Batch

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond

Evan Williams Single Barrel 2013

Larceny

Lunazul Blanco

Lunazul Reposado

NOTEABLE RECOGNITION

This brand received notable recognition, in addition to Gold designation.

Deep Eddy Ruby Red, Best Flavored Vodka

DOUBLE GOLD

Elijah Craig Rye

Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond 7Y

Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond 7Y

Rittenhouse

NOTEABLE RECOGNITION

These brands received notable recognition in addition to Double Gold.

Black Velvet Reserve, Best Canadian Whisky

Larceny Barrel Proof A121, Best Bourbon

SIP Awards

The SIP Awards were created with a simple question in mind: What about the consumer’s opinion? The goal was to fill this void, bringing the people who regularly consume products together to decide which brands deserve this prestigious award. The SIP Awards set out to create a fair competition by strategically choosing consumers from all demographics, conceiving an event that cuts to the core of public opinion as a starting point, rather than an afterthought, in branding and product development.

The judges are consumers who assess spirits based on blind tastings.

GOLD

Admiral Nelson’s Pineapple, Consumer’s Choice

Admiral Nelson’s Spiced, Consumer’s Choice and Innovation Star

Bernheim, Consumer’s Choice

Burnett’s Vodka 80 Proof

Christian Brothers VS

Deep Eddy Lemon

Deep Eddy Lime

Deep Eddy Original, Consumer’s Choice and Innovation Star

Deep Eddy Ruby Red, Consumer’s Choice

Dubonnet, Consumer’s Choice and Innovation Star

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof C920

Lunazul Reposado, Consumers’ Choice

Pikesville, Consumers’ Choice

DOUBLE GOLD

Carolans Salted Caramel, Consumers’ Choice and Innovation Star

Domaine de Canton, Consumers’ Choice

Elijah Craig Rye, Consumers’ Choice

Elijah Craig Small Batch, Consumer’s Choice

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Evan Williams 1783, Consumers’ Choice

Larceny, Consumers’ Choice

Lunazul Extra Aged, Consumers’ Choice

Lunazul Primero, Consumers’ Choice

Rittenhouse, Consumers’ Choice

Sacred Bond, Consumers’ Choice

William Heavenhill 8th Edition, Innovation Star

PLATINUM

Admiral Nelson’s Coconut, Consumers’ Choice

Admiral Nelson’s Watermelon, Consumers’ Choice

Black Velvet Reserve, Consumers’ Choice

Carolans, Consumers’ Choice

Elijah Craig Single Barrel 18YO

Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond

Evan Williams Black Label, Consumers’ Choice

Evan Williams Egg Nog, Consumers’ Choice and Innovation Star

Evan Williams Single Barrel 2013, Consumers’ Choice

Old Fitzgerald VVS, Consumers’ Choice

NOTABLE RECOGNITION

These brands received notable recognition in addition to Platinum.

Heaven Hill 85th Anniversary Bourbon, Best of Class

Lunazul Anejo, Best of Class, Consumers’ Choice and Innovation Star

Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond Fall 2020, Best of Class

International Wine & Spirit Competition

The IWSC has over 50 years of experience, world-renowned judges, an innovative and market-driven approach, and it gives feedback on all entries. The contest runs a tighly-structured, rigorous tasting process, using a double-blind method, which means samples are tasted in pre-poured, numbered glasses to ensure experts never see a bottle.

Each spirit is judged by a whole panel in sync, allowing for group discussions.

GOLD

Gold recipients are classed as “an excellent spirit with an exceptional balance and rare and complex flavors” and “an example that stands out against its peers.” These entries scored 95-100 of 100 total points.

Parker’s Heritage Rye, Score: 98

Pikesville, Score: 95

Evan Williams Single Barrel, Score: 95

Lunazul Blanco, Score: 95

World Drinks Awards

The World Drinks Awards are the global awards recognizing spirit drinks and the many styles within these categories. Presented by TheDrinksReport.com the World Drinks Awards select, reward and promote the world’s best in each spirit category to consumers and trade across the globe.

LIQUEUR

Carolans Salted Caramel, World’s Best Irish Cream Liqueur

PAMA, World’s Best Fruit Liqueur

TEQUILA

Lunazul Blanco, World’s Best Blanco

VODKA

Deep Eddy Lime, Country Winner, Best Flavored Vodka

WHISKEY

Larceny, Gold, Kentucky Bourbon

Beverage Testing Institute

Beverage Testing Institute (BTI) was founded in 1981 as the first international wine competition in the United States, adding beer, spirits, cider, sake, mead and more to the repertoire in 1994. Using industry-leading methodology co-developed with Cornell University and a one-of-a-kind approach to trade focus groups and sensory panelist recruitment, BTI’s evaluations are so much more than a competition.

GOLD

Bernheim Wheat Whiskey, 92

Elijah Craig Small Batch, 93

Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond, 90

Evan Williams Single Barrel 2013 Vintage, 94

Heaven Hill 7 YO Bottled-in-Bond, 93

Henry Mckenna Bourbon, 93

Larceny Small Batch, 90

Larceny Barrel Proof, 94

Rittenhouse Rye, 92

Burnett’s Vodka, 90

PLATINUM

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof, 96, Best of Year