Big success for Isle of Skye Distillers at 2021 London Spirits Competition
As far as we’re concerned, it’s a very well-deserved success story! We’re delighted to share with you the news that Isle of Skye Distillers have won Gold (and several Silver) medals at the 4th London Spirits Competition, which took place in London in March. The gold medal (which they received for their vodka) is an ultimate endorsement of quality in the global spirits industry. And Isle of Skye Distillers scored highly in all three judging aspects of quality, value and packaging.
The London Spirits Competition stands apart from other spirits competitions by awarding spirits for their drinkability. Where other competitions focus solely on technical competence and distilling prowess, the London Spirits Competitions goes further to evaluate a spirit for its all-around excellence – in the way it tastes, looks and the value it provides. They believe that this golden triangle makes spirit drinkers more likely to buy and drink the spirit either from a retail store or at a bar or restaurant and want to laud this.
The judging panel of 2021 was drawn from leading spirits industry professionals with direct commercial buying responsibility. This establishes the winners at the competition to be agreeable to the on-premise trade and consumer alike. 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, whilst Bronze medals were awarded to spirits that score between 65 & 75.
Brothers, Thomas and Alistair Wilson, who founded Isle of Skye Distillers in 2016 in Portree, becoming the first to distil gin and vodka on the Isle of Skye. To Thomas and Alistair, provenance is everything – the abiding sense of belonging and community. Taking inspiration from the local landscape, the Wilson brothers set out to create a gin that embraced the spirit of Skye.
Speaking about their awards haul they said: “The extremely qualified judges, the chance to compete with thousands of excellent spirits from around the world and the stringent judging criteria of quality, value and packaging makes an award from the London Spirits Competition a coveted one. We are pleased that our Misty Isle Vodka and Gins performed so well at the competition.”
“This Gold medal awarded to our Vodka and Silver medals to our gins demonstrates that the spirits we are making are the kind that bar managers and mixologists want to stock and spirits drinkers enjoy drinking.”
We’ll join the team at Isle of Skye Distillers in raising a glass to celebrate their success! If you want to treat yourself to their award-winning spirits range, visit their online shop.
