American Distilling Institute’s 18th annual conference and vendor expo took place in-person August 23-25 in Louisville, Kentucky. ADI Founder Bill Owens says the 2021 conference and expo was attended by nearly 2,000 distilled spirits industry professionals. After going virtual last year distillers were eager to hear, see, and get their hands on the latest in distilling products, services and educational workshops.
Craft distillers from all over the world once again competed for ADI’s prestigious Judging of Craft Spirits awards. The event was broken into two days with Bronze, Silver, Gold awards announced on the expo floor one day during happy hour while the Best in Class awards, Bubble Cap Award (Distillery of the Year), and Lifetime Achievement Awards were announced at a luncheon the following day.
The competition recognizes excellence from distillers and blenders that are producing some of the world’s finest artisan spirits. ADI Judging accepts US and International entries in all classes and categories of distilled spirits, RTDs, cocktail bitters, aperitif & fortified wines from small and medium size producers. Spirits awards are handed out in classes including agave, brandy, gin, liqueur, rum, specialty, vodka and whiskey.
Roy and Royce Neeley of Neeley Family Distillery in Sparta, Kentucky with Bill Owens(L to R). 
Eric Zandona of ADI and Sherrie Moore of Nearest Green Distillery in Shelbyville, Tennessee. 
Eric Zandona of ADI, Gavin Whealy, Sharon Calhoun and Michael Calhoun of Red River Brewing Company & Distillery in Red River, New Mexico (L to R).
How are the Craft Spirits Scored?
The scoring of spirits is based on a 100-point system and each judge assigns an overall score which is correlated to a medal recommendation or no medal recommendation for each spirit. Below 70 no medal is recommended, 70-79 for a bronze, 80-89 for silver, and 90-100 for gold.
After all the spirits in a flight have been scored the entire panel awards double gold, gold, silver or bronze medals for spirits judged worthy of recognition. It is not uncommon for no spirit in a flight to receive a medal.
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Best of Category Award
Once all the spirits in a particular spirit category have been judged, the “Best of Category” designation is awarded to a spirit the judges identified as the best example of that category entered into the entire competition. For example the Best Classic Gin, the Best Blended Bourbon, the Best Citrus Liqueur, etc.
Best of Class Award
Once all of the spirits for a particular class have been judged, the “Best of Class” designation will be awarded for both US and International spirits in a particular spirit class, such as Best US Whiskey or Best International Brandy. To be eligible for a Best of Class award, a spirit must have been awarded both a gold or double-gold medal and “Best of Category.”
Here’s a summary of the categories along with the complete list of winners below.
- Best of Class
- Certified Craft Distilled Spirits – CCDS
- Certified Craft Blended Spirits – CCBS
- Best of Category
- Certified Craft Distilled Spirits
- Certified Craft Blended Spirits
- Medal Winners
- Double Gold – Certified Craft Distilled Spirits & Certified Craft Blended Spirits
- Gold
- Certified Craft Distilled Spirits
- Certified Craft Blended Spirits & Merchant Bottled Spirits
- Silver
- Certified Craft Blended Spirits
- Merchant Bottled Spirits / Other Spirits
- Bronze
- Certified Craft Distilled Spirits
- Certified Craft Blended Spirits
- Excellence in Packaging Awards
- Best Backbar Packaging
- Best Retail Packaging
- Best Brand Identity
- Gold
- Silver
- Bronze
One last thing before we jump into this year’s awards. The 2021 event marked the seventh time the ADI Conference and Expo took place in Louisville. The 2022 event will for the first time take place in St. Louis, Missouri. Many Missourians were on hand at this year’s event to invite distillers to the “Show Me State”. Hope to see you all there.
And now, without further ado, here is ADIs complete 2021 list of craft spirits award winners.
The Complete List of ADI 2021 Medal Winners
Click on any field name to sort the list by medal, spirit or distillery. For example, click on “Distillery” to easily find all the awards for your favorite distillery. We hope you’ll find this a great resource for fulfilling your thirst for new and creative spirits.
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