As the world’s oldest and most respected drinks industry awards, at the IWSC we see our mission in championing a diversity of drinks categories and supporting producers from across the world, no matter how big or small. To stay true to this mission, in addition to our main judging in London, in 2023 we introduced Global Judging events. Today, we are the only drinks competition to take its judges, all of them renowned industry experts, around the world, thus bringing the international spotlight to various regions and categories.
Following the success of the 2024 IWSC Judging in Kentucky, we are thrilled to be returning to the home of bourbon for the second time, focusing on North American whiskey and RTD's.
In addition to the convenient local delivery, the IWSC Judging in Kentucky will offer its entrants unprecedented opportunities to build industry connections, get new listings and increase their brand awareness via extensive media campaigns in the US and internationally.
Some of the key benefits for our Kentucky entrants include:
- Exposure to the drinks industry’s key decision-makers, our judges: Master Blenders and Master Distillers, renowned drinks journalists, key US distributors and buyers.
- Year-round US and international media coverage. IWSC winners are featured in key media, from Forbes to Time Out and many others. Our Kentucky Judging results will gain its own PR spotlight.
- Dedicated year-round campaign, showcasing the medal winners across our trade channels (IWSC website, social media, newsletter) and consumer channels (Club Oenologique and The Drinking Hour podcast).
- Bourbon Producer Trophy. All shortlisted producers of this trophy will benefit from exposure to international trade via our channels. The winner will be announced at our annual Awards Celebration.
The IWSC’s Green Spirit Initiative Trophy, was created in 2022 to recognise the multitude of considerate distillation and spirit production practices underway across the world. Entry is open to all 2025 Kentucky Judging entrants. Find out more here.
Yes.
After the judging, all Kentucky gold medal winners will be retasted in London, along with gold medal winning whiskey and RTDs from our London Judging. The best-performing drinks will be awarded with our 2025 Spririts and Alternative Drinks trophies.
Yes.
Our Kentucky entrants will be considered for the 2025 Producer Trophies in the following categories: 2025 Worldwide Whiskey Producer Trophy, 2025 Bourbon Producer Trophy, 2025 RTD Producer Trophy.
Later in the year, we will select the most awarded producers from all our Judging events, including Kentucky, and we will contact them asking them to fill in a questionnaire. Based on these questionnaires and looking at the producers' medal performance, our judges will form the shortlists and will decide on the winners. The winners of our 2025 Producer Trophies will be announced at our annual Awards Celebration on 12 November.
Entry deadline for the IWSC North American Whiskey & RTD Judging in Kentucky is 25 April 2025
Entry fee
| 1-4 entries | 5 to 10 entries | 11 to 20 entries | 21+ entries |
| US $425 per entry | US $395 per entry | US $325 per entry | US $310 per entry |
Your invoice will be sent to you via email. If you haven't received your invoice after two weeks, please contact accounts@iwscgroup.com.
Delivery timeframe: 19- 23 May 2025
Delivery address:
Kentucky Eagle
Attn: Jim Gann and IWSC
2440 Innovation Drive
Lexington, KY 40511
Please be sure to include IWSC on the address
Whiskey: Please send 2 x bottles of each entry.
RTD: Please send 4 x cans (or 1ltr in total) of each entry.
Please note, if your spirit/RTD is awarded a gold medal, we may request additional samples to be sent to the UK for our Trophy judging and the IWSC Awards Celebration.
Delivery instructions for entries from Canada will be announced shortly.
We run a tightly structured, rigorous tasting process. We use the ‘double-blind’ method, which means samples are tasted in pre-poured numbered glasses to ensure our experts never see a bottle. Each spirit is judged by a whole panel in sync, allowing for group discussions.
We are the only competition to limit the number of samples to a maximum of 65 tasted during each judging day. This allows time for panel discussions and prevents palate fatigue.
All gold-awarded spirits are re-tasted by our Head Judge - member of the IWSC Spirits Judging Committee to give the final seal of approval.
Find out more about our judging process here.
For a completely fair and unbiased judging process, we use the ‘double-blind’ method, which means samples are tasted in pre-poured numbered glasses to ensure our experts never see or hold a bottle.
Following the blind tasting and the results announcement, we reveal the highest-scoring brands to the judges and we are one of the few competitions to do so. This often ignites international collaborations and results in new listings for our entrants. See our previous entrants' success stories here.
You will receive an email notifying you if you have won any medals. You will also be able to access your results by logging in to your account on our website.
The winners will find out the results under embargo, prior to a public announcement so that they can prepare their marketing materials beforehand.
The results of the IWSC North American Whiskey & RTD Judging will be publicly announced on our website and social media channels on 16 June 2025.
Successful entrants can download free PDF certificates and standard resolution medal artwork by logging in to your account. If you purchase printed certificates they will be sent a few weeks after they have been purchased and orders have closed.
You will be able to purchase high res logos, artwork and bottle stickers by logging in to your account.
Pricing per roll of 1,000 stickers:
1-10 rolls = £62.00 each
11-25 rolls= £53.00 each
26-49 rolls = £43.00 each
50-99 rolls = £37.00 each
100+ rolls = £31.00 each
Login to your account to purchase stickers.
Sticker delivery is free of charge, but it is the responsibility of the receiver to pay any import costs to the shipping carrier, such as VAT, duties and clearing fees, upon delivery.
Yes you can, you will need to purchase hi-res artwork and also a printing license for every 1,000 labels you print. Or you can purchase pre-printed stickers to put on your label.
Please click below to access your chosen medal artwork:
We will promote our winners globally, via:
- Features on the IWSC's trade focused website (2+ million global page views) and in our consumer magazine, Club Oenologique (1.4 million global page views)
- Publications in our partner media, The Buyer
- Dedicated episode in The Drinking Hour podcast (25,500 downloads)
- Year-round social media campaign highlighting the winners (70,000+ global reach)
- Award-winning whiskeys will be showcased at the UK's leading consumer event, The World Whisky Experience
- IWSC newsletters (21,000+ subscribers)
- Showcasing award-winning drinks at international trade fairs and tastings
IWSC winners are regularly featured in key media, from Forbes to Time Out and many others. Our Kentucky Judging results will gain its own PR spotlight, outside our London Judging results, maximising the exposure for our North American winners.
The IWSC is one of the only competitions to provide constructive feedback to non-winners. This feedback is put together by our expert panel of international and local judges and is a valuable tool contributing to the further success of the company.
Please don't hesitate to get in touch.