Missouri distillery Pinckney Bend has earned a coveted double gold medal at this year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The New Haven-based company was awarded the medal for its American Rested Whiskey. Pinckney Bend is the only Missouri distillery to earn an award at the competition, which took place in late March. Results of the 2014 medal winners were announced today.
“We were kind of blown away,” said Ralph Haynes (pictured), Pinckney Bend Vice President of Marketing and Sales. “As important as getting the double gold is, if you took a look at who we beat, it was some of the biggest names in the business.” Pinckney Bend American Rested Whiskey is aged for one year in 15-gallon No. 3 charred Missouri white oak barrels.
This is the third time in as many years that Pinckney Bend has earned recognition at the reputed spirits competition, now in its fourteenth year. 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 1,474 and hailed from 41 states and 64 countries in 89 different classifications. The entries were evaluated by a panel of 39 judges of journalists, distillers, beverage directors, mixologists, restaurateurs, Master Sommeliers, hoteliers, consultants and educators from the beverage community. Complete results of 2014 medal winners are posted here.
This article appears in April 2014.