BUSHMILLS™ IRISH WHISKEY SWEEPS THE BOARD AT 2012 SPIRIT COMPETITIONS

BUSHMILLS Irish Whiskey has finished the 2012 awards season with a sweep of accolades from some of the world’s most prestigious spirit competitions – twelve of which have been picked up in the last month alone.

The recent awards include two gold medals for BUSHMILLS 21 Year Old Single Malt Irish Whiskey – one at the 2012 International Wine and Spirit Competition and another at the 2012 Spirits Business Irish Whiskey Masters.

The medals bring the number of awards that the handcrafted BUSHMILLS range has won in 2012 to 32. This includes the accolade of ‘Best Irish Whiskey’ that BUSHMILLS 21 Year Old also picked up at the 2012 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

BUSHMILLS 16 Year Old Single Malt also picked up a coveted ‘Master’ award – the highest in its category – in the 2012 Spirits Business Irish Whiskey Masters.

BUSHMILLS Global Brand Director, Samantha Reader said: “The quality of BUSHMILLS, as recognised by the most credible experts in the industry, is an important factor in the growth of the brand.”

“Picking up a haul of 32 top awards has been the perfect ending to a big year for us. In the past few months, we’ve launched a new product, BUSHMILLS Irish Honey, in the U.S.; staged Bushmills Live – a handcrafted whiskey and music festival – at the home of BUSHMILLS; and collaborated with a range of world-famous artists such as Snow Patrol, Bon Iver and Elijah Wood.”

BUSHMILLS Master Distiller, Colum Egan, said: “It has been an incredible year already for us here at Bushmills and we have been thrilled with each and every award that has been bestowed on our beloved whiskies.

“We spend a lot of time here at Bushmills handcrafting each of our whiskies in small batches – that’s our secret to creating the best quality Irish Whiskey and the smooth taste that is our house style. We’ll certainly be enjoying a glass to celebrate!”

BUSHMILLS Range

Topping the boards: The BUSHMILLS Irish Whiskey range.

Bushmills 21 Year Old

Best Irish Whiskey: Bushmills 21 Year Old Single Malt Irish Whiskey

Colum Egan

BUSHMILLS Master Distiller Colum Egan celebrates the brand’s awards haul at the Old Bushmills Distillery.

Samantha Reader

BUSHMILLS Irish Whiskey Global Brand Director Samantha Reader: “The quality of BUSHMILLS, as recognised by our industry peers already this year, is an important factor in the growth of the brand”.

Bushmills Live

Bushmills Live – the festival of handcrafted whiskey and music – at the Old Bushmills Distillery.

Notes

BUSHMILLS Irish Whiskey is handcrafted in small batches for a smooth taste at Ireland’s oldest working distillery, in Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland. The brand portfolio includes six award-winning whiskies: BUSHMILLS, BLACK BUSH, BUSHMILLS 10 Year Old Single Malt, BUSHMILLS 16 Year Old Single Malt, BUSHMILLS 21 Year Old Single Malt and our anniversary edition, BUSHMILLS 1608.

BUSHMILLS Irish Whiskey awards 2012: 

About Diageo

Diageo is the world’s leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, beer and wine. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, JεB, Buchanan’s, Windsor and Bushmills whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Baileys, Captain Morgan, Jose Cuervo, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo is a global company, with its products sold in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE). For more information about Diageo, its people, brands, and performance, visit us at Diageo.com. For our global resource that promotes responsible drinking through the sharing of best practice tools, information and initiatives, visit DRINKiQ.com. Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.