The USA Spirits Ratings event, scheduled for July 23-24 in San Francisco, is now accepting pre-registration entries. The goal of this new award competition is to recognize high-quality spirits that consumers are looking to buy in retail stores or order when they visit a bar or restaurant. While there are many competitions that judge spirits on the basis of overall taste, the USA Spirits Ratings will be the first one that uses the criteria of Quality, Value, and Packaging to judge the best spirits in the world.

According to the organizers of the event, Beverage Trade Network, decisions about what makes a great spirit are too often made without the end consumer in mind. There are other factors that are often top-of-mind for consumers than just taste – such as the appearance and design of a bottle, or the overall brand image associated with a specific spirit. Pricing, too, plays an important role in how a product is perceived.

As a result, the USA Spirits Ratings has developed an entirely new scoring system based on Quality, Value, and Packaging that takes these factors into account. In previous events hosted by Beverage Trade Network, such as the London Spirits Competition earlier this year, this system has proven to be extraordinarily successful.

Sid Patel, CEO, and Founder of Beverage Trade Network notes that this scoring system is really all about aligning the expectations of buyers and sellers. “Our new scoring system really has the chance to change the way people think about what makes a great spirit. We’re really excited to bring this award competition to San Francisco later this summer.”

The judging panel will consist of prominent industry individuals with a strong commercial buying focus. Whether they are purchasing for hotels and restaurants or a retail chain of liquor stores, these buyers know the types of brands and products that will resonate with consumers.

Scoring system for the USA Spirits Ratings

Spirits will be scored out of a possible 100 points, as per the global industry standard, but there will be a different weighting attached to each of the following:

• Quality, scored from 0 to 50
• Value, scored from 0 to 25
• Packaging scored from 0 to 25

Thus, while Quality retains its role as the most important judging criteria (accounting for 50 out of 100 total points), it will be impossible for a spirit to win a Gold, Silver or Bronze award simply on the basis of Quality alone. The scoring system for the USA Spirits Ratings is as follows:

• Gold: 90+ points
• Silver: 80 to 89 points
• Bronze: 70 to 79 points

Spirits that are awarded a Gold, Silver or Bronze prize will be those that score highest based on a consideration of all three criteria.

All winners in the USA Spirits Ratings will receive additional promotional and marketing support from the event organizers, including full mention in upcoming editorial and press coverage of the event. In addition, social media platforms and channels will be used to promote the winners of the event.

To qualify for special pricing and ensure your place within the USA Spirits Ratings, distillers, spirits makers, importers, distributors and other spirits industry participants can sign up today to take advantage of special pre-registration rates.

Key Dates

Super Early Bird Registration: Ends May 10, 2018

Warehouse closes for samples: July 5, 2018

Judging: July 23-24, 2018

Winners announced: September 5, 2018

Fee Schedule

$170 ends May 10, 2018

$220 from May 11 to June 15, 2018

$250 from June 16 to June 30, 2018

For more information on the USA Spirits Ratings, as well as additional information on how it works and how spirits will be evaluated, please [CLICK HERE] or visit the official website of the USA Spirits Ratings: www.usaspiritsratings.com