Irish whiskey’s sweeping success at World Whiskies Awards
At the World Whiskies Awards in London were (from left): IWA Director William Lavelle; Chair of IWA Category Education Committee Denis O’Flynn of Clonakilty Distillery; Clonakilty Distillery’s Michael Scully and Ewan Paterson, winner of the World’s Best Whiskey Visitor Attraction Manager award.
The Irish winners at the annual global event organised by Whisky Magazine included:
- World’s Best Pot Still Whiskey:Teeling Wonder of Wood Single Pot Still, Teeling Distillery, Dublin
- World’s Best Grain Whiskey: The Whistler Mosaic Marsala Cask, Boann Distillery, County Meath
- World’s Best Master Distiller: Kevin O’Gorman, Master Distiller, Midleton Distillery/Irish Distillers
- World’s Best Whiskey Visitor Attraction Manager: Ewan Paterson, Visitor Centre Manager, Clonakilty Distillery, County Cork
- World’s Best Whiskey Bar Manager: Padraic Rafter, Paris Texas Bar, Kilkenny City
- World’s Best Chef (working with whiskey): Jason Nolan, Celtic Whiskey Bar & Larder, Killarney, County Kerry.
- World’s Best Travel Retailer (for selling whiskey): The Loop, Aer Rianta International
- World’s Best Supermarket (for selling whiskey): SuperValu.
The ceremony also awarded the best Irish whiskeys in a range of global taste categories. These winners included: Teeling Distillery; The Whistler/Boann Distillery; Clonakilty Distillery; Pearse Lyons Distillery and Dunvilles/Echlinville Distillery.
The Irish Whiskey Association welcomed the success.
“The sweeping success of Irish whiskey distilleries, bars and retailers confirms Ireland’s re-emergence as one of the world’s leading whiskey-producing nations,” said IWA Director William Lavelle who attended the awards event as part of a large Irish contingent, “I wish to congratulate all the winners who’re proudly flying the flag for Irish whiskey.”
