Kentucky Senator Bourbon and Louisiana Senator Bourbon Earn Top Honors at 2026 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and 2026 ASCOT Awards

LEXINGTON, KY – June 2026 – Kentucky Senator Spirits, LLC announced Kentucky Senator Bourbon and Louisiana Senator Bourbon expressions have received multiple prestigious awards from two of the industry’s most respected competitions, further cementing the brands’ reputations for excellence in the American whiskey category. These honors reflect the unwavering commitment to quality and craftsmanship that co-founders Damon Thayer and Andre Regard have built into every bottle.

Jim Bunning Release – 2026 San Francisco World Spirits Competition Double Gold, 96 Points

The Jim Bunning Release, Kentucky Senator Bourbon’s seventh small-batch expression, earned a Double Gold Medal and a score of 96 points at the 2026 San Francisco World Spirits Competition (SFWSC), one of the most prestigious spirits competitions in the world. The Double Gold distinction is awarded only to spirits that receive a Gold Medal from every judge on the panel, representing the highest recognition the competition confers. For an eight-and-a-half-year, 107-proof small-batch bourbon to earn unanimous Gold from an elite judging panel is a testament to the depth, complexity, and character that defines Kentucky Senator Bourbon.

John Edwards Release – 2026 San Francisco World Spirits Competition Silver Medal and 2026 ASCOT Double Platinum Award

The John Edwards Release earned recognition at the 2026 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, receiving a Silver Medal. This is a strong commendation from a panel of judges that evaluated hundreds of spirits across all categories, and a further confirmation that Kentucky Senator Bourbon consistently performs at the highest level of American whiskey craft.

Additionally, the John Edwards Release was named a 2026 ASCOT Double Platinum Award Winner. The ASCOT Awards (American Spirits Council of Tasters), founded by spirits expert Fred Minnick, represent one of the most rigorous evaluation processes in the domestic spirits industry. Spirits are judged blind on a 100-point scale, and a Double Platinum designation is reserved for spirits scoring between 95 and 100 points.

Huey P. Long Release – 2026 ASCOT Platinum Award Winner

Louisiana Senator Bourbon Huey P. Long Release earned a 2026 ASCOT Platinum Award. This distinction is achieved through blind evaluation on a 100-point scale by a panel of industry experts, and a Platinum designation is reserved for spirits scoring between 90 and 94 points. This recognition places the Huey P. Long Release among the most celebrated small-batch bourbons.

About Kentucky Senator Bourbon

Kentucky Senator Bourbon is an award-winning small-batch Bourbon brand committed to crafting exceptional spirits with a side of American history. Each limited-edition release is named after a U.S. Senator and represents a blend of tradition, character and U.S. heritage; it is distilled and aged in Kentucky for at least six years (the same length as a U.S. senate term), but often longer.

Founded by Andre Regard and Damon Thayer, Kentucky Senator Bourbon revives a historic brand once produced by Crigler and Crigler in Covington and later Double Springs Distillers in Bardstown. The brand launched its first revival release in 2021 and has since become known for producing richly aged, 107-proof Bourbon expressions that connect past and present.

Awards & Recognition

• • Kentucky Senator Bourbon’s inaugural release, the Alben W. Barkley Release, was highlighted in Forbes’ Online Magazine 
  • Fred Minnick, a noted Bourbon author, ranked Kentucky Senator Bourbon in his Top 100 Whiskeys of 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025
  • Kentucky Senator Bourbon has won multiple Gold ASCOT Awards for taste and a Double Platinum ASCOT Award for marketing and brand design
  • Kentucky Senator Bourbon recently won its first Double Gold medal from the San Francisco World Spirits Competition for its 2024 John Brown release

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TMF DISTILLERY VISITS

We’ve teamed up with John Kennedy Transport to provide a bus service to and from our distillery all weekend.

Rather than a formal tour, the doors to the Distillery will be open, with our staff and Distillery Founders available to answer any questions you may have.

Our Distillery Shop and Bar will be open for drinks and merchandise sales with fantastic views across Balephuil Bay towards Skerryvore Lighthouse.

The perfect opportunity to visit another part of Tiree while attending the festival!

Book a Distillery Visit

Tickets and more information

If you are as excited as us and what to get relaxed in May this year, you can find all you want to know and tickets on this site: https://events.humanitix.com/maltstock

We are looking forward to meet you there!

Tickets for Maltstock 2026 

Get relaxed now and get your Maltstock tickets here:

https://www.maltstock.com/shop

Saturday 1st August 2026

Ad Gefrin Distillery

WOOLER
NORTHUMBERLAND
NE71 6NJ

Ad Gefrin have hosted two special events per year, for the last 2 years. The Gaderung is their summer ‘gathering’ and is a celebration of the distillery, but also local food, art and culture. We are delighted that we have talked them into allowing us to bring our own brand of whisky celebration into their broader event.
So, for the Saturday 1st August, we will be hosting a special outdoor area, devoted to whisky and music, of all types, and we would love it if you can join us!

The event is free to enter, but if you want to taste whisky, you’ll need to purchase one of two advance ticket types, or turn up on the day for ‘on the day’ tickets.

We really hope you can make the journey – it is a beautiful part of the country, and getting there from Edinburgh, the Borders and Newcastle is not too difficult. And it will be worth it!

DETAILS & BOOK NOW

HAPPY CANADA DAY, eh?

LotG and Whisky Stories Podcast

@Whiskystoriespod hosted us for a podcast at Diggers Leith. If you want to hear what unfolded and a preview of our Q2 outrun there are links to the various ways listen here

Maltstock Down Under!

Something wonderful and relaxed happened in Tasmania two weeks ago! Maltstock went down under! Bob and Teun were there for the first edition and we have a small report for you below.

It was relaxed, a bit weird, but so much fun to walk around at an event roughly 17000 kilometers from home and to feel totally at home. Maltstock Down Under was a blast! It totally felt like Maltstock! People from all over Australia (and the world… we were there, Connel from Ardnamurchan, a couple of Kiwis and a guy from Texas USA) gathered in the small town of Bothwell (Tasmania). Australia’s 2nd oldest golf course was the theatre to enjoy each relaxed company, Drinks with… sessions, a blind tasting, morning walk, good food and great whisky. In other words: Maltstock!

All in all it was a big success! David Ligoff and the volunteer crew pulled of an amazing event and the dates for next year have already been set:

Maltstock Down Under 2027
To give everyone enough time to plan for next year, the date for Maltstock Down Under 2027 has been set, so save the date!
19 to 21 March 
Central Highlands, Tasmania

This event will never be huge, we will always keep it a relaxed, intimate weekend. We do know that many of you would like to bring friends & family along, and there are a few people on our waiting list that could not attend this year.  To accommodate everyone, we are looking at including a Glamping option, and for this we needed to move to a warmer month 😏.

David: “I look forward to seeing you at upcoming whisky events around the country, and maybe even at Maltstock in September in The Netherlands.”

Annette, Bob, Klaas, Stan, Teun

Maltstock Down Under 2027 tickets

HOLE IN ONE AT THIS ST ANDREWS DISTILLERY GETS YOU A £5,000 WHISKY CASK

Visitors to the ‘home of golf’ have the chance to win their very own whisky cask

St Andrews-based independent distiller, Eden Mill, has launched ‘Pin It To Win It’ – a golf simulator challenge combining Scotland’s national drink with the home of golf.

For £10, players get three attempts to land closest to the pin on the simulator, with anyone landing a hole in one winning their very own Eden Mill Whisky Cask, filled on site at the distillery. Everyone’s a winner though and there’s a prize to be had wherever your ball lands. The distillery will also award the closest person to the pin each calendar month with a bottle of its single malt whisky.

Hamish Maclean, Senior Brand Manager at Eden Mill, said: “We wanted to create something spontaneous and genuinely exciting, the kind of thing you walk past and think ‘oh go on then’ and end up talking about for weeks. Owning a whisky cask is a dream for many, so we thought why not give our guests the chance to win one for a tenner!”

The only distillery experience of its kind in Scotland, the activation brings together whisky tourism and golf culture – giving visitors the chance to test their swing just minutes from the Old Course while enjoying one of Scotland’s newest premium whisky destinations.

Players landing safely on the green win an Eden Mill tote bag. Those finding the bunker receive a golf ball, while out-of-bounds efforts are rewarded with a golf tee – the challenge’s “wooden spoon”!

Pin It To Win It is available to all visitors to Eden Mill’s distillery visitor centre in Guardbridge, alongside the distillery’s whisky tours, cocktail bar, and blending experiences. For more information, visit edenmill.com.

• Pin It To Win It is priced at £10 for three shots, or £15 as part of the Dram and Drive package, which includes an Eden Mill single malt.
• On the green wins an Eden Mill tote bag. Bunker wins a golf ball. Out of bounds wins a golf tee.
• The hole in one prize is an Eden Mill Bourbon Whisky Cask, filled on site at the distillery, worth £5,000.
• The monthly prize is a bottle of Eden Mill whisky, awarded to the closest shot to the pin at the end of each calendar month.

Win XOP Port Dundas & Cameronbridge

45 Year Old Whiskies – Worth £3,600

For just £10, you could win two of the rarest Grain Whiskies Douglas Laing has ever bottled – a matched pair from our XOP series. Both spent 45 years in a Single Cask, and just 98 Cameronbridge and 106 Port Dundas bottles exist anywhere in the world, each numbered and signed by Cara Laing and Fred Laing. e’re putting both in the hands of one winner.

XOP Cameronbridge 45 Years Old

A refined, elegant grain whisky from one of Scotland’s most respected Grain distilleries.

Distillery: Cameronbridge

Age: 45 Years

ABV: 54.6% · 70cl

Cask: Single Refill Barrel

Only 98 bottles produced.

XOP Port Dundas 45 Years Old

Deep, characterful and beautifully aged from the now-silent Port Dundas distillery.

Distillery: Port Dundas

Age: 45 Years

ABV: 49.9% · 70cl

Cask: Single Refill Hogshead

Only 106 bottles produced.

ENTER NOW

SPIRIT OF SPEYSIDE RETURNS WITH DISTILLED EVENT 

After a record-breaking year at the Spirit of Speyside Festival, the celebrations continue as tickets go on sale for the 10^th anniversary of Distilled, the popular two-day spirits and craft beer event.

Following a one-year hiatus while Elgin Town Hall undergoes major refurbishment, Distilled returns on Friday 11^th and Saturday 12^th September 2026 at the Alexander Graham Bell Centre at UHI Moray in Elgin, bringing together more than 20 drink producers from across Speyside.

While whisky remains a major attraction in the area, Distilled is about much more than Scotland’s national drink.  The event shines a spotlight on Speyside’s vibrant community of craft producers, allowing visitors to discover everything from whisky and gin to beer and other premium spirits, all under one roof.

Three sessions are available, starting on Friday evening at 6pm, followed by two sessions on the Saturday at 11am and 4pm.  Attendance is limited to just 150 visitors per session, and organisers expect tickets to sell out quickly.

Speyside brands confirmed include The Glenlivet, Aberlour, Gordon & MacPhail, Strathisla, Benriach, The GlenAllachie and Cardhu.

Visitors will be able to choose from 3 passes for each session with the line-up still being finalised.  A Discovery Pass gives access to the event where you can sample from each stand at your own pace.

The Masterclass Pass includes two exclusive 45-minute Masterclasses.  Confirmed brands so far include Glen Moray, Elixir Distillers and Speyburn.  If you prefer a more laid-back experience guests can opt for the Premium Pass with access to a chill-out area and two exclusive pours from Speyside brands.

Henry Angus, Chairman of the festivals, said: “It’s wonderful to be back with Distilled after a break last year.  While the venue has changed, the enthusiasm from Speyside producers remains as strong as ever.

“Distilled creates a fantastic opportunity for visitors to have the chance to meet the people behind the brands, sample fantastic products and experience the incredible diversity of drinks production across the region.”

TICKET INFORMATION –

Tickets for Distilled 2026 go on sale from 12pm on Friday 26th June with an Early Bird special discounted price for Friday evening of £35 for the Discovery Pass until 24^th July.  After that, tickets will go on sale at £40.  All tickets include a Glencairn Crystal glass with a lanyard.

There will only be 25 Premium Passes available at £60, which gives access to the Premium Lounge where there will be exclusive pours during each session.  A limited number of Early Bird tickets will be available on Friday evening at £55, subject to availability.

Again, to make it very exclusive, there will only be 25 Masterclass Passes at £70 and includes a deeper insight into the drams and heritage behind the brands.  Again, a limited number of Early Bird tickets will be available at £65, subject to availability.

https://www.spiritofspeyside.com/festival/distilled

Distilled26

#spiritofspeyside

#sos26

Spirit of Speyside: Distilled

The team behind the annual Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival brings another fantastic event to the sampling table – Spirit of Speyside: Distilled. Where the world’s best whisky distillers unite under one roof on their own doorstep. At the festival, Speyside’s whisky distillers are accompanied by award-winning brewers, gin crafters and there will be lots of local food on offer.

Spirit of Speyside

Spirit of Speyside organises some of the world’s premier whisky events, welcoming visitors to the beauty of Speyside from across the globe each year. The organisation is responsible for the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival each year with hundreds of events incorporating the Whisky School and Whisky Awards. The same team also hosts Spirit of Speyside: Distilled, exclusively for whisky distillers.

Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival

First launched in 1999, the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival’s annual celebration of Scotland’s national drink has developed into one of the largest events of its kind anywhere in the world. This year it will celebrate its 27^th anniversary with a programme of around 500+ whisky-inspired events over 6 days.  The Festival is a true mecca for the curious beginner and the whisky connoisseur alike. Festival events take place throughout Speyside, the biggest whisky-producing region in Scotland, located in the Moray area in the north-east of the country between Aberdeen and Inverness. Over the years, the Festival has developed close links with many Speyside businesses and communities who help to fund the festival. It is a true team effort to deliver an ever-improving range of events and services to make the six days of the festival a truly unforgettable experience.