Strathisla and Aberlour Distilleries Whisky Award Wins

Strathisla and Aberlour distilleries won two out of three categories in this year’s Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival Whisky Awards.

The picture above shows Rikki Scott, Supervisor at Aberlour Visitor Centre, with the award for Aberlour 18 Years.

The event claims it is the only awards in which the winners are determined by members of the whisky-loving public.

Strathisla 12 Years beat finalist Cardhu Gold Reserve to take first place in the 12 Years & Under/Non-Age Statement section.

Aberlour 18 Years took the top award in the 13-20 Years section, beating Glenfiddich 18 years for the title.

Six finalists were voted on at a series of judging sessions across Speyside in the run up to and during the Festival, which ran from 30 April to 3 May, 2015.

The malts had previously been shortlisted by a panel of industry leaders, acclaimed writers and specialist retailers.

The 37 distillery entries in the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival Whisky Awards had been shortlisted by a panel of industry leaders, writers and specialist retailers in a blind tasting event.

It was then down to festival visitors to taste the shortlisted malts in each category.

The winners were announced at the closing ceilidh held on Sunday, 3 May, at the Laichmoray Hotel in Elgin.

James Campbell, festival chairman, said, “Well done to our 2015 winners. It is a huge honour to receive one of these awards because they are voted for by the public, as opposed to a panel of experts, and are not influenced by any kind of consumer loyalty or external influences.

“Festival visitors have used their noses, knowledge and taste buds to vote on these drams at judging sessions that were held across Speyside and the  judging sessions are equally loved by people who are just starting to learn about whisky as well as those with expert knowledge.”