The results of the 2015 San Francisco World Spirits Competition were recently announced, and a handful of area distilleries were honored with medals. New Haven-based Pinckney Bend was awarded gold medals both for its sherry cask corn whiskey and its cask-finished gin. Bronze medals were awarded to: Defiant Spirits for its Defiance High Rye bourbon whiskey; Rebel Yell, a honey whiskey locally blended by Luxco; and local dandelion liqueur Lion’s Tooth. Defiance High Rye and Lion’s Tooth were both released in 2014.
This is the fourth time in as many years that Pinckney Bend has earned recognition at the esteemed spirits competition. In 2014, Pinckney Bend took home a coveted double gold medal for its American Rested Whiskey. In 2013, its un-aged corn whiskey received a gold medal; in 2012, its gin also took home a gold.
The number of submissions for this year’s competition totaled nearly 1,600 entries and hailed from 41 states and 66 countries in 90 classifications. The entries were evaluated by a judging panel that consisted of journalists, distillers, beverage directors, mixologists, restaurateurs, Master Sommeliers, hoteliers, consultants and educators from the beverage community. Click here for a complete results of 2015 medal winners.
Editor’s Note: This post originally reported that Pinckney Bend won for its corn whiskey and that Lion’s Tooth is a collaboration between Water Street Cafe and Crown Valley. It has been updated with the correct information.
This article appears in April 2015.