The line up of whiskies in the running at the 14th annual Canadian Whisky Awards was impressive, but only one would be deemed the best.
The awards kicked off the 9th annual Victoria Whisky Festival at Hotel Grand Pacific over the weekend – an event that draws hundreds of distillers, brand ambassadors and fans for tastings and events.
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A jury of ten independent judges blind tasted a selection of submitted whiskys and provided a score out of ten. The scores are then averaged out to determine a winner.
This year’s ‘Whisky of the Year’ was Forty Creek’s 22-year Rye, an all-rye whisky distilled 22 years ago in Grimsby, Ontario. Chairman of the judges David de Kergommeaux described the spirit as “a huge, yet elegant rye whisky, just bursting with complex flavours.”
Other notable winners included a gold medal for Vancouver Island’s Shelter Point single malt artisanal whisky and a gold for Okanagan-based Bearface.
“Every year the whiskies are just that much better than the year before,” said de Kergommeaux during the awards ceremony Friday night. “Top whiskies from five or six years ago might earn a silver medal today. The competition is that intense.”
For a full list of winners, go to canadianwhisky.org.
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nina.grossman@blackpress.ca
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