Triple Gold For Clonakilty Distillery at World Whiskies Awards
(L-R) Oisín Mulcahy, head distiller, and Michael Scully, founder, Clonakilty Distillery
Clonakilty Distillery took home triple gold at the World Whiskies Awards 2023 where it was named Best New Make in Ireland for its Single Pot Still Spirit. This comes after receiving the same honour in 2020.
On the awards night, the distillery secured two further golds for Best Single Malt (12 Years and Under), and Best Single Cask Single Malt (21 Years & Over) in Ireland.
Established in 2018, Clonakilty Distillery is a family owned and operated distillery on Ireland’s South West Coast, along the popular Wild Atlantic Way. The distillery makes award winning whiskies, gins, and vodka.
Founded by the Scully Family, who have farmed this windswept coastal land for nine generations. With the best resources that nature has to offer, prime land, pristine water, and salt sea air, they had the perfect ingredients for a maritime distillery.
The World Whiskies Awards select the very best in all the international recognised styles, and award and promote the world’s best whiskies to consumers and trade across the globe.
According to the judges’ notes, Clonakilty Distillery was selected for Best New Make & Young Spirit: “The nose opens with a sake-like, fermented rice quality, baked potato and toasted cornflake notes, as well as blanched green beans. The palate leans towards toasted rice milk with fresh almonds and bitter cacao. The finish is light with gentle spiciness.”
They noted that it won Best Single Malt 12 Years & Under for the “Black cherries and peaches on the nose build to toffee, raisins, and apricots, before brown bread, ripe banana and walnuts arrive on the palate. The finish brings creamy milk chocolate in with gentle floral-like spices.”
Meanwhile, in the judges’ notes for its Best Single Cask Single Malt 21 Years & Over, they praised the “Apple crumble, cinnamon spice and gingerbread give a wonderful introduction to a sweet nose, which builds with tangerine, pineapple and blackcurrant on the palate. The finish features a dusty liquorice and mezcal-like funk.”
Accepting the award at a ceremony at Merchant Taylor’s Guild Hall in London, Michael Scully, Clonakilty Distillery founder, said: “We are proud to be the first whiskey producer in Ireland to win this award twice, and see it as a confirmation that we are on the right path to launching a truly great whiskey in 2024, when we go to market with our single pot still whiskey for the first time.”
“Our success is a tribute to the team we have, and for their expertise, craftmanship and dedication to distilling quality spirits,” according to Scully. “This good news follows other recent victories, including the recognition of our Minke Vodka as one of the best vodkas in the world, and our Minke Gin as Ireland’s best classic gin.”
