Nordic Spirits Awards

The Nordic Spirits Awards return and invite craft spirits producers to enter their international tasting competition.

Last year, the international craft spirits competition received entries from over 20 countries. Learn more about the 2020 Judges Choice winner, Stauning Whisky, in the video above.

Enter the 2021 Awards

Following a successful first year, the Copenhagen-based craft spirits awards once again set out to showcase products which demonstrate high quality in taste and production within the craft spirits sector.

Head of communication at Nordic Spirits Awards, Rune Rastad, commented, "After exceeding our target for the first ever Nordic Spirits Awards last year, we wanted to build an even stronger product that appeals to both the participants from last year and new entries, so we introduced a wide range of new initiatives."

International craft spirits producers are invited to register by 15 October 2020.

Celebrating creativity and commercial appeal in design, the Nordic Spirits Design Awards is a new award in the competition this year. The judges will consider artwork, bottle designs and bottle handling. For those entering their products into the Nordic Spirits Awards, they can also opt to enter their products into the design competition.

The panel of judges bring a wealth of spirits and innovation knowledge to the competition. Restaurateurs, leading bartenders and innovators themselves, the panel includes Nick Kobbernagel Hovind (operations director at RUBY, Copenhagen), Rasmus Leck Fischer (head chef at Gatronomisk Innovation, Copenhagen), Max Scott (product manager at Juuls, Copenhagen), Anne Maurseth (co-owner of Andre Til Høyre, Oslo), Linnea Stenberg (bar manager at Liberty or Death, Helsinki), Mads Schack (owner of Force Majeure, Aarhus), Ola Carlsson (bar manager at Bar Hommage, Stockholm) and Kirsten Holm (owner at K_Bar, Copenhagen). Take a look at the complete judging panel.

In light of the innovative craft spirits sector, the awards have developed new standards for classifying products. The main eight categories are: Gin, Rum, Vodka, Whisky, Liqueur/Bitter, Aquavit/Snaps, Free Form Spirits and Vermouth, and each has a number of sub-categories, so producers will find more options in which to classify their products in the competition.

Four medals will be awarded, gold, silver and bronze, and Best In Class in each category. There will also be the additional awards of Judges Choice and Best Value For Money across all categories.

Who can enter?

The Nordic Spirits Awards deem a craft spirit as: "Annual productions max 300,000 bottles. The product must be free of artificial additives, flavor extracts, sugar substitutes, preservatives and GMOs."

All products entered into the awards will be blind tasted and judged on appearance, aroma, taste and finish.

The award winners will be announced in January 2021.

The Judges Choice medal

Nordic Spirits Design Awards medal

Enter the Nordic Awards here: nordicspiritsawards.com/enter-the-competition. Entry deadline is October 15, 2020.

For more information, please go to nordicspiritsawards.com/about or email
rune@nordicspiritsawards.com.