The Stephen Notman Gold Signature Awards Launch in China 

The Stephen Notman Gold Signature Awards, a new landmark rating system specifically designed for China, will launch at this year’s Whisky Live Shanghai on the 23^rd August. The Awards mark the first comprehensive guide to whisky published in Mainland China in both Chinese and English. Backed by the Scottish Government the groundbreaking prize is a first for the region and the whisky industry worldwide.

“Interacting with old and new whisky lovers is key to developing the whisky market in China. With whisky marketing getting evermore complex it is essential to place actual taste as paramount,” says Stephen Notman judge and founder of Whisky Live Shanghai and Whisky Live Taipei, the world’s largest whisky festival.

Scored out of 100, over 120 whiskies that are legally registered in Mainland China have been evaluated using Notman’s experience as a World Whisky Awards and IWSC judge, along with his neutrality as an advisor to the Scottish Government on whisky in China. Notman has lived in China for six years and conducted around 350 tastings across the country and the Far East. He is also the youngest serving Keeper of the Quaich, a title once held by former US President Ronald Reagan.

The eagerly anticipated results will be announced at this year’s show. They will be published in the Whisky Live Magazine and broadcast to Whisky Live’s 46,000 Weibo and Weixin followers. They will also be accessible via a new App, which allows consumers to judge the whiskies themselves.

“My main aim is to make whisky easier, to decode the complexity and make it even more of a talking point in China. I take into account the taste profile of Asia, where people don’t necessarily want big, smoky whiskies,” says Notman. “I hope the awards will raise the profile of the entire whisky industry in the region.”

For regular updates and exclusive announcements follow @WhiskyLIVE on Weibo.

Notes:

1) For more exclusive previews and to arrange interviews, please contact press officer Charlotte Middlehurst on +86 156 1814 3200, email charlotte@whiskylivechina.com.

2) Whisky Live is the world’s premier whisky tasting and sampling show, taking place in 17 countries from London to Tokyo, Paris to Taipei.

3) Steve Notman is managing director of Whisky Live Shanghai, chief whisky advisor for Global Spirit Merchants and whisky sommelier at the Waldorf Astoria, and contributor to DRiNK magazine.

4) Whisky Live 2013 will be held at the Le Royal Meridien Hotel, 789 Nanjing Dong Lu, near Xizang Lu, Huangpu District, Shanghai, on August 23 and 24. More information on the show available here www.whiskylivechina.com/ Weibo @WhiskyLIVE.