The 4th annual global wine competition is now set to take place in London on March 17, 2020.

At the third annual London Spirits Competition, which took place in London recently, spirits from all over the world participated. More than 1000 spirits were tasted by top bartenders and spirits buyers.

Spirits were judged on the basis of three primary criteria – quality, value, and packaging – and then scored on a 100-point scale. Spirits that scored 90+ points were awarded Gold medals, while spirits that scored 76 to 89 points were awarded Silver medals. The primary reason for using three criteria rather than just one was to focus on the overall drinkability of each spirit. As a result, the judging panel ranked spirits not just by how they taste, but also their overall presentation and appearance in the bottle. In addition, judges assessed spirits on their relative value in relation to their peers, as determined by retail pricing.

Here are the results for the previous competition.

By Spirits Types:

Spirit Of The Year - St. Kilian Signature Edition FOUR by St. Kilian Distillers GmbH       

Vodka Of The Year - G52 Botanical Vodka - Fresh Citrus by Glasgow Distillery Company         

Rum Of The Year - Substation 41 by Pinnacle Drinks

Tequila Of The Year - Cutwater Tequila Reposado by Cutwater Spirits       

Gin Of The Year - Barossa Distilling Barrel Aged Gin by Barossa Distilling

Whisky Of The Year - St. Kilian Signature Edition FOUR by Kilian Distillers GmbH

Distillery Of The Year - St. Kilian Distillers GmbH

Country Category Winners:

Australia - Substation 41 by Pinnacle Drinks

Germany - Signature Edition FOUR by St. Kilian Distillers GmbH

Mexico - Cutwater Tequila Reposado by Cutwater Spirits

Denmark - Fary Lochan Single Malt Whisky by Fary Lochan Destilleri A/S

United States - Petoskey Stone Gin by High Five

United Kingdom - The Whisky Baron Glenrothes by The Whisky Baron

Ukraine - The Inked Collection Wild Cranberry by Nemiroff

Canada - Georgian Bay Vodka by Georgian Bay Spirit Co.

Italy - JAMAICA White Pot Still by Rum Nation

France - Courvoisier Napoleon Fine Champagne Cognac by  De Kuyper Royal Distillers

Spain - Ron Aldea Familia by Destilerías Aldea, S.L.

By Judging Category:

Best Spirit By Quality - Fary Lochan Danish Single Malt

Best Spirit By Value - St. Kilian Signature Edition FOUR

Best Spirit By Package - St. Kilian Signature Edition FOUR

Click here to see the full results

The London Spirits Competition is one of its kind as it will be judges based on the actual factors that an average spirits drinker can relate to; What it looks like on the shelf, or on a back bar, how much it costs, does it offer value for money, and then how much do they enjoy the spirits once it is opened. It is that crucial quality, drinkability factor that will determine whether they go back another time for a second, third or fourth bottle.

Judging criteria

Judging criteria To win a London Spirits Competition award you will need to score highly in all three areas of our judging criteria. You might have outstanding quality spirits, but if the price and packaging is not right then you don’t, in commercial terms, have winning spirits. And you will not be recognized by the London Spirits Competition. There is no point, for example, in having 95 point spirits if it does not look good or offer consumers great value for money. Those points mean it will remain highly respected within the trade, but it will also remain largely unsold on the shelf or languishing on a restaurant’s spirits list.

Key Dates:

Super Early Bird Ends - Sept 30, 2020

Registration Ends - Feb 20, 2021

Warehouse Closes: Feb 26, 2021

Judging Date: March 17, 2021

Winners Announced: April 12, 2021

Fee Schedule:

£170 Regular - Dec 01 to Feb 22, 2021

A competition that will judge spirits in three key areas: Their Quality. Their value for money. What they look like. To be an award winner you will need to have top quality spirits, that offers both the trade and the consumer great value for money, and you will need to look good and truly stand out on the shelf and on the back bar.

You can now enter your spirits in the 2021 London Spirits Competition and take advantage of the super early bird pricing that's available till September 30, 2020.