The organisers of Scotland’s biggest gin event have revealed its line up combining gin tasting, celebrity hosts and top-class entertainment as the Scottish gin distilling sector prepares to celebrate another year of success.
500 guests have already booked for the second annual Scottish Gin Awards ceremony which takes place in seven weeks’ time in Glasgow and is on track to be a sell-out success.
The awards will be presented by national broadcaster Kaye Adams alongside radio broadcaster and award-winning comedian, Des Clarke. They will oversee the presentation of 11 business awards and gold, silver & bronze awards in 6 taste categories, culminating in the top award of the night which will be presented to the Scottish Gin Distillery of the Year.
Entertainment will be provided by 4 Poofs and a Piano who will bring their unique blend of humour and superb vocals to the stage. This camp house-band are well-known for their ever-presence on the BAFTA award-winning Friday Night with Jonathan Ross.
Leading figures from the Scottish gin industry are now preparing to hit the red carpet for another glittering celebration. The formal event will start with drinks from the ultimate Scottish gin bar, which will serve a range of Scottish gins selected from the finalists. The bar will be supported by a range of tonic producers including Franklin & Sons, who are also sponsoring the London Dry Gin of the Year.
The second year of the competition which is sponsored by Aldi, Vetroelite and Scotland Food and Drink, saw a steep increase in entries from Scottish gin producers across the country, with 46 companies and 80 gins progressing to the final stages.
Chair of the judging panel, Alex Bruce, Managing Director of Adelphi Distillery commented;
“It is encouraging to see so many producers and distillers continuing to commit to making the gin industry one of Scotland’s most exciting and fastest growing in the food and drink sector. Winning a Scottish Gin Award is a tremendous honour and one which will undoubtedly bring positive sales and marketing advantage. I wish all the finalists the best of luck in the second year of this highly regarded competition.”
This year’s judging panel saw 22 gin experts including Master Distillers from some of the UK’s biggest gin brands and the UK’s leading professors in distilling, taste 116 Scottish gins under strict competition conditions. The tasting was supervised by international sensory management consultancy, Cara Technology.
[yikes-mailchimp form=”2″ title=”1″ description=”1″]
The second annual Scottish Gin Awards takes place on Thursday 20th September 2018 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Glasgow Central. The event will again raise funds for Edinburgh based charity It’s Good 2 Give which supports young cancer patients and their families in Scotland.
2018 Finalists
The finalists in the second annual Scottish Gin Awards have been announced with 46 producers and 80 gins all distilled in Scotland progressing to the finals of the national competition.
The awards cover both taste and business performance and were judged on 24th May 2018 by a highly experienced judging panel consisting of some of Scotland and the UK’s foremost distilling and gin experts.
Scottish Gin Distillery of the Year
- Eden Mill
- Edinburgh Gin
- Glasgow Distillery Company
- Isle of Harris Distillers
- McQueen Gin
London Dry Gin of the Year
- Caorunn Small Batch Scottish Gin, Balmenach Distillery
- Caorunn Gin Master’s Cut, Balmenach Distillery
- Boe Scottish Gin, Boe Gin
- Wild Island Botanic Gin – Distillers Cut, Colonsay Beverages
- Crossbill 100% Highland, Crossbill Distilling
- Sea Glass Gin, Deerness Distillery
- Eden Mill Original Gin, Eden Mill
- 1670, Edinburgh Gin
- Granite North Spirits, Granite North Spirits
- Bardowie Gin, Hazell & Hazell
- Edinburgh Gin – Original Gin, Ian Macleod Distillers
- Isle of Harris Gin, Isle of Harris Distillers
- Leith Gin, Leith Still Room
- LinGin, Linlithgow Distillery
- NB Gin, NB Distillery
- Ginerosity , Spirits for Good
- Stirling Gin, Stirling Spirit Co
- Pickering’s Gin, Summerhall Distillery
- Pickering’s Gin with Scottish Botanicals, Summerhall Distillery
- Garden Shed Gin, The Garden Shed Drinks Company
- Oro, The Oro Distilling Co.
- McQueen Super Premium Dry Gin, Trossachs Distillery
- Verdant Dry Gin, Verdant Spirits
- Colonsay Gin, Wild Thyme Spirits
Distilled Gin of the Year
- Badachro Gin, Badachro Distillery
- Hills & Harbour Gin, Crafty Distillery
- Still River – Dee, Deeside Distillery
- Thompson Bros Organic Highland Gin, Dornoch Distillery Company
- Scottish Rugby Gin, Eden Mill
- El:gin Scottish Small Batch, El:gin Distillery
- Edinburgh Gin – Valentine’s Gin, Ian Macleod Distillers
- Misty Isle Gin, Isle of Skye Distillers
- Tommy’s Gin, Isle of Skye Distillers
- Persie Dog Days Gin, Persie Distillery
- The Teasmith Original, Teasmith
- eeNoo, The Lost Loch Distillery
- Arcturus, The Torridon & Dunnet Bay Distillery
Navy Strength Gin of the Year
- Badachro Gin 57* North, Badachro Distillery
- Crossbill 200 Single Specimen Juniper, Crossbill Distilling
- Still River – Uncut, Deeside Distillery
- Edinburgh Gin – Cannonball Gin, Ian Macleod Distillers
- Kinrara Estate Edition Highlander, Kinrara Distillery
- Arkh-Angell – Storm Strength Edition, Orkney Distilling
- Shetland Reel Up Helly Aa Gin: 2018 Edition, Shetland Distillery Company
- Pickering’s Navy Strength Gin, Summerhall Distillery
Cask Gin of the Year
- Crossbill Pineapple PX Cask Aged, Crossbill Distilling
- Oak Gin, Eden Mill
- Makar Cask Aged Gin – Matured in Mulberry Wood, Glasgow Distillery Company
- Makar Cask Aged Gin – Matured in Oak, Glasgow Distillery Company
- Firkin Oak Cask Aged, Leith Still Room
- Pickering’s Islay Oak Aged Gin, Summerhall Distillery
Gin Liqueur of the Year
- Boe Scottish Bramble Gin Liqueur, Boe Gin
- Boe Peach & Hibiscus Gin Liqueur, Boe Gin
- Strawberry & Black Pepper Gin Liqueur, Eden Mill
- Pomegranate & Rose Gin Liqueur, Edinburgh Gin
- El:gin Moray Berry, El:gin Distillery
- Moray Mocha, El:gin Distillery
- Redcastle Raspberry & Pomegranate Scottish Gin Liqueur, Redcastle Spirits
Speciality Gin of the Year
- Crossbill – American Red, Crossbill Distilling
- Still River – Spiced Plum, Deeside Distillery
- El:gin Gin-gle Gin, El:gin Distillery
- Esker Honey Spiced Gin, Esker Spirits
- Gunshot, Gin Bothy
- Glasgow Distillery Double Cherry – Single Batch Series, Glasgow Distillery Company
- Kinrara Estate Edition Hibiscus Gin, Kinrara Distillery
- Firkin Old Tom, Leith Still Room
- Firkin Rosie, Leith Still Room
- Firkin Yuletide Old Tom, Leith Still Room
- Something Blue (Limited Edition), McLean’s Gin
- Johnsmas, Orkney Gin Company
- Mikkelmas, Orkney Gin Company
- Devil’s Staircase, Pixel Spirits
- Shetland Reel Simmer Gin, Shetland Distillery Company
- Eden Mill Hop Gin, Eden Mill
- Mallow and Geranium, The Old Curiosity Distillery
- McQueen Mocha Gin, McQueen Gin
- McQueen Spiced Chocolate Orange Gin, McQueen Gin
- McQueen Raspberry and White Chocolate, McQueen Gin
- McQueen Smokey Chilli, McQueen Gin
- McQueen Chocolate Mint, McQueen Gin
Growth Business of the Year
- Colonsay Beverages
- Edinburgh Gin
- Huffman’s
- No. 18 (The Gin Fayre)
- McQueen Gin
Best Newcomer
- Badachro Distillery
- Beinn an Tuirc Distillers
- Crafty Scottish Distillers
- Dornoch Distillery Company
- Isle of Skye Distillers
- Kinrara Distillery
- The Old Curiosity Distillery
- The Oro Distilling Co.
Innovation of the Year
Arbikie Highland Estate
for their ‘field to bottle’ approach from one single site
Crafty Scottish Distillers
for using snow from the ‘Beast from the East’ in their Hills and Harbour Gin
Eden Mill
for Blendworks
Edinburgh Gin – 1670
Edinburgh Gin 1670, a limited-edition, exotic gin created in partnership with Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
Isle of Skye Distillers
for Tommy’s Gin, a remembrance bottle for the distiller’s father with donations made to Military Charities for every bottle sold
The Gin Spa
for their gin-inspired customer experience incorporating gin to drink and gin-based spa treatments
The Old Curiosity Distillery
for their unique and natural colour changing gin from their Secret Herb Garden upon adding tonic water.
McQueen Gin
for saying goodbye to their iconic ceramic bottle for an innovative, new glass bottle
Exporter of the Year
- Dornoch Distillery Company
- Eden Mill
- NB Distillery
Excellence in Marketing
- Craft56°
- Deeside Distillery and Brewery
- Eden Mill
- OriGINs – The Scottish Gin Festival
- The Teasmith Spirit Company
Best Marketing Campaign
- Caorunn, Balmenach Distillery
- Crafty Scottish Distillers
- Persie Distillery
Excellence in Branding
- Beinn an Tuirc Distillers
- Crafty Scottish Distillers
- Deerness Distillery
- Eden Mill
- Electric Spirit Co.
- Esker Spirits
- Glasgow Distillery Company
- The Garden Shed Drinks Company
- The Lost Loch Distillery
- The Oro Distilling Co.
- The Teasmith Spirit Company
- The Torridon
- Wild Thyme Spirits
Scottish Gin Destination of the Year
- Crafty Scottish Distillers, Newton Stewart
- Crossbill Distilling, Glasgow
- Eden Mill, St Andrews
- Isle of Harris Distillers, Isle of Harris
- Summerhall Distillery, Edinburgh
- The Gin Spa, Glasgow
Scottish Gin Bar of the Year
- Cheers Café Bar, Fraserburgh
- Gin71, Glasgow
- One Square, Edinburgh
- The Craftsman Company, Aberdeen
- The Spiritualist (Signature Pubs Ltd), Glasgow
Scottish Gin Event of the Year
- Meet the Maker – Crossbill Gin
- OriGINs – The Scottish Gin Festival
- No. 18 (The Gin Fayre)
- Orkney Gin Festival, 2018 – Orkney Distilling
- Stirling Gin Festival – Stirling Spirit Co.
