Ultimate Spirits Challenge Announces 2016 Results
By Chilled Magazine
Spirits Also Assessed in USC’s Innovative Cocktail Evaluation.
Ultimate Spirits Challenge®, the world’s platinum standard for spirits competitions, proudly announces the winners and full results for the just-completed 2016 Challenge.
Ultimate Spirits Challenge (USC), now in its seventh year, celebrates 40 Chairman’s Trophy winners, USC’s highest award of excellence, along with 157 Finalists. Ultimate Spirits Challenge was held at the specially designed Ultimate Beverage Challenge Evaluation Center in Hawthorne, NY.
“One of the many advantages of having our own year-round facility is that instead of having to judge hundreds of spirits entries over a couple of days like other competitions do, we can, by design, break each category down into smaller flights. This means that USC judging panels can focus on each flight with greater in-depth attention and analytical precision, resulting in truer, more accurate assessments. This hyper-focus allows USC to provide useful, extensive and authoritative data to companies for use in building their spirits brands.”
– UBC founder and USC judging chairman, F. Paul Pacult
USC also provides an additional component to the competition with its inclusion of a cocktail evaluation. The judges are able to taste and assess a spirit’s “mixability factor” in several classic cocktail recipes in suitable spirits categories.
This groundbreaking innovation, employed by no other competition, allows even deeper evaluation of spirits. Recommendations for cocktails, along with complete results, can be found at Ultimate-Beverage.com
USC 2016 – CHAIRMAN’S TROPHY WINNERS
ABSINTHE
Vieux Pontarlier
BAIJIU
HKB Hong Kong
BITTER/AMARO/APERITIF
Bitter: Tempus Fugit Spirits Gran Classico
BRANDY
American: Christian Brothers Sacred Bond
Armagnac: Chateau de Laubade Intemporel N5 25 Years Old
Calvados: Christian Drouin XO
Cognac: Cognac Frapin Extra
Grappa: Nonino Cru Monovitigno Picolit
Pisco: La Caravedo Puro Quebranta
Spanish Brandy: Cardenal Mendoza Solera Gran Reserva Carta Real Brandy de Jerez
GIN
The West Winds Gin “The Cutlass”
LIQUEUR
Cointreau
MEZCAL
Mezcales de Leyenda Murcielago Durango 2015
RUM
Flavored Rum: Kōloa Kauai Coconut
Rhum Agricole: Damoiseau XO
Spiced Rum: Chic Choc
Unflavored Rum: Privateer “The Queen’s Share”
TEQUILA 100% AGAVE
Blanco: Siete Leguas
Reposado: Blue Nectar Extra Blend
Añejo: El Tesoro
Extra Añejo: Herradura Seleccion Suprema
WHISKY – CANADA
J.P. Wiser’s Red Letter 2015 Edition
WHISKEY – IRELAND
Blended: Midleton Very Rare 2015
Irish Pot Still: Redbreast 21 Years Old
Single Grain: Teeling Single Grain
Single Malt: Egan’s 10 Years Old
WHISKY – SCOTLAND
Blended Malt: Johnnie Walker Green Label 15 Years Old
Blended: Buchanan’s Deluxe 12 Years Old
Single Malt: Highland Park Ice Edition 17 Years Old
WHISKEY – USA
American: Clyde May’s Special Reserve
Bourbon: Blade and Bow Limited Release 22 Years Old Kentucky Straight
Rye: Jim Beam Pre-Prohibition Style
Single Malt: Westland
WHISKEY – WORLD
Kavalan ex-Bourbon Oak Single Malt
WHISKEY – WORLD – FLAVORED
Knob Creek Smoked Maple
SHOCHU
Wapirits Tumugi
VERMOUTH
Dry: Martini Riserva Speciale Ambrato
Sweet: La Quintinye Vermouth Royal Rouge
VODKA
Flavored: Hanson of Sonoma Organic Vodka – Habanero Flavored
Unflavored: Purus Organic
For complete results visit Ultimate-Beverage.com/USC2016Results
All products are rated on the 100-point scale by the spirits industry’s most renowned judges including award-winning authors, buyers, journalists, educators and bar owners. The judges for USC 2016 included: Founder/Judging Chairman F. Paul Pacult, Jeff Bell, Jacques Bezuidenhout, Tad Carducci, Gregg Glaser, Don Lee, Francis Schott, Joaquin Simo, Andy Seymour, Paul Tanguay and David Wondrich.
All spirits rated 80 points and higher receive an individual results page (accessed by clicking on “more” next to the product name) which provides all downloadable marketing materials for the product – including icons, shelf-talkers (where applicable) and a bottle image for easy consumer identification.
Spirits rated 85 points and higher also receive a tasting note. If a spirit is recommended for the category’s assigned classic cocktail, it is also indicated on this page. USC results are promoted globally via email and web publication to both trade buyers and consumers.
In addition, high scoring products are featured in the Ultimate Beverage Challenge Guide published each year in the October issue of Beverage Media reaching more than 70,000 on- and off-premise spirits buyers.