Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2025 i Whisky Magazine

We all have our own heroes in life. It might be a former employee or manager who has influenced you professionally and inspired you in your workplace. It might be a family member, perhaps a parent, whose battles through hardship has given you the confidence to fight your own battles. Your hero might not even be someone you know personally, like a sporting hero. There might be no industry with a greater number of heroes who have passed on their skills and knowledge through an unfathomable number of years than the whisky industry. Within the many decades (and sometimes centuries) a distillery has existed for, a fountain of knowledge, technique, and talent has had to pass through multiple generations in order to keep any one brand’s whisky at a consistently…

Back in December, you could almost hear the drumbeat of doom to which the global whisky industry was marching into the new year. The social-challenge-turned-lifestyle-change of sobriety (not to belittle or mock its critical importance for countless people) is fuelling the growth of non-alcoholic brands. The US surgeon general announced that labels on all alcoholic drinks should include a cancer warning. Craft distilleries are closing and global corporate juggernauts are tightening the purse strings and cutting staff. And the new/old administration in the US is threatening tariffs on all imported goods. Will a trade war be a death knell for producers? But just as the holidays arrived, a ray of light cracked through the clouds of gloom, and telegraphed an affirming message: hard work and dedication pay off. After almost…

It is that time of the year again to celebrate the standouts in the whisky world. While we consider every issue at Whisky Magazine to highlight the groundbreaking achievements and success of our favourite spirit, this yearly edition does allow us to go the extra mile to honour the very best in the last 12 months. We begin our coverage of the 2025 awards with the latest inductions into the Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame — one from Ireland, and two from the Rest of World region. Then, we have the Icons of Whisky awards. This includes the regional results from Ireland, China, Middle East and Africa, and the Rest of World. This follows the announcement of American Icons in the most recent issue of American Whiskey, and the announcement…

The Icons of Whisky is sponsored by DISTILLER Goalong Liquor Distillery Co Highly Commended Fujian Daiking Louis Distillery SUSTAINABLE DISTILLERY The Chuan Malt Whisky Distillery Highly Commended YunTuo Single Malt Whisky Distillery CRAFT PRODUCER Lingyun Liquor Industry Highly Commended Changzi River Distillery VISITOR ATTRACTION Laizhou Spirits Cultural Experience Centre VISITOR ATTRACTION TEAM The Team, The Chuan Malt Whisky Distillery Visitor Centre CAMPAIGN INNOVATOR Fettercairn Highland Single Malt Whisky Highly Commended The Infinite Distillery BRAND INNOVATOR Jiangsu Yangming Liwei Liquor Co Highly Commended Goalong Liquor Distillery Co INDEPENDENT BOTTLER Joy Master, Beijing A Bu Technology Co Highly Commended Oxhead Whisky Company COOPERAGE Laizhou Distillery Cooperage Highly Commended Gaomi City Xincheng Oak Barrel Co COOPER Jisheng Fang, Wolin Cooperage MASTER DISTILLER/MASTER BLENDER Hai-Bo Wang, Shan He Liu Xin Distillery Co Highly Commended…

I reland’s premier whiskey tasting event, Whiskey Live Dublin, is back! The event will take place from Friday 16 to Saturday 17 May 2025 at the RDS Main Arena, Hall 1 on the Merrion Road, and is in partnership with Whisky Live brand owner Paragraph Publishing. Whiskey Live Dublin will showcase both classic, well-established Irish brands as well as the new kids on the scene, with attendees offered the opportunity to sample the latest Irish whiskey releases. The event will also present whiskies from across the globe, including Scotland, Japan, and the US, offering the opportunity for guests to broaden their whisky horizons and meet exhibitors from hundreds of miles away. As well as the chance to sample and taste, the event will include food pairings, informative masterclasses (highlights from…

While the number of new whisky distilleries has increased twentyfold over the past 25 years, remarkably, no distillery deaths have been reported. Progressively stringent health and safety standards, improved training, and better equipment and design have made distilling safer. The only fatalities were human mishaps at warehouses: falling off roofs and forklift accidents. However, the past tells a different story of death and destruction at the distillery. Since the late 18th century, industrialisation has facilitated large-scale whisky production, with steam-pressure boilers and more complex machinery creating hazardous working conditions within distilleries. This has resulted in thousands of destroyed or damaged distilleries and hundreds of worker accidents and fatalities. Referencing a US insurance industry report from 1881, 97 insured distilleries burned down between 1875 and 1880, with the principal danger being…

Taster biographies Bradley Weir Having studied at the University of Gloucestershire, Bradley started writing about film before moving into spirits. He joined Whisky Magazine as tastings co-ordinator in 2022, taking over as interim editor of sister publication American Whiskey in 2024. He became editor of Whisky Magazine in 2025. Alwynne Gwilt After studying broadcast journalism in Canada, Alwynne moved to the UK where she started her blog, Miss Whisky, in 2011. An early female voice in the whisky writing space, she worked with numerous brands hosting events globally, before joining the Balvenie as brand ambassador. She now runs her own company, MW Consulting, hosting events and writing about the water of life. THE PROCESS • All samples are blind tasted, with ABV, country/region, and style the only information disclosed •…

Brand and Packaging Design Agency NUDE BRAND CREATION Rest of World Nude Brand Creation is a specialist branding and packaging design agency with a focus on premium wine and spirits. With 20 years of experience, it has worked across multiple categories including whisky, rum, Cognac, gin, vodka, and wine. In the last 12 months, Nude Brand Creation has worked on whisky projects across several global brands such as Chivas Regal, Ballantine’s, Royal Salute, Redbreast, Midleton, and Jameson. Regional Winners China — Huilai Cultural Tourism Development Co India — Premier Printers Digital Agency LEWIS America Lewis is a digital agency that specialises in creative solutions for business growth, marketing efficiency, and audience connection. The brand’s recent achievements include the execution of a global toast online to Kentucky bourbon. The first-of-its-kind event…

I’ve watched the furore surrounding the proposed English whisky geographical indication (GI) — and, conspicuously, the lack of commotion surrounding American single malt’s newly minted status — with mixed feelings. For those who’ve missed the news, December 2024 saw the United States’ Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s (TTB) issuing of its ‘final rule’ detailing new labelling and production standards for ‘American single malt’ (before now, a more lenient definition of ‘malt whisky’ existed), while 19 February 2025 saw the commencement of a public consultation by the UK’s Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) regarding a proposed GI for ‘English whisky’. While both definitions (the former now set in stone, the latter open to objections until 20 May 2025) are generally what one might expect, both definitions…

The Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame welcomes members of the whisky community whose careers have had significant impact on the industry. It is the pleasure of the magazine every year to compile this induction list, and with each passing the year the wealth of knowledge and experience only gets even greater. As we pass 100 inductees, we’re delighted to welcome new Hall of Famers from Ireland, Finland, and Scotland: a product developer and brand ambassador, a distillery founder, and an internationally renowned whisky writer. Each is an incredibly deserving inductee, bringing such unique qualities to their roles that are more than Hall of Fame worthy. The Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame is sponsored by Inductee No 100 John Cashman Powerscourt Distillery John Cashman is head of brand and new product…

Headline sponsors – Brindiamo & Glencairn Crystal Studio Design Headline sponsors Sponsors The World Whiskies Awards launched in 2007 with the aim of judging and promoting the world’s best whiskies through a comprehensive annual tasting. The competition now has two strands: taste and design. To enter, whiskies must be available for purchase by the general public in bottles and conform to the criteria of a relevant entry category. Taste entries are blind-tasted by an expert panel of international judges including figures from the hospitality, media, retail, and drinks industries, alongside regional sub-panels. Entries are first judged to find the best in each age statement per category in each participating country and region. In the next round, the age statement winners compete in each category in each country to determine the…