Spirits from all over the world participated in the fourth annual London Spirits Competition, which took place in London on March 17, 2021. Spirits were judged on the basis of three primary criteria – quality, value, and packaging – and then scored on a 100-point scale. Spirits that scored 90+ points were awarded Gold medals, spirits that scored 76 to 89 points were awarded Silver medals, and spirits between 65 and 75 were awarded Bronze.

Legent™ is a Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey partially finished in wine and sherry casks. But it's more than that. It pushes the boundaries for how bourbons can be created while remaining true to the core of bourbon's principles. It's a collaboration between two whiskey legends – Fred Noe & Shinji Fukuyo – and two unique styles of whiskey making.

Fred Noe

Since his birth, Master Distiller Fred Noe's life has revolved around the distillery in one way or another. Always looking for new challenges, Legent was a chance to do something that nobody's ever done before. Create a unique bourbon by taking everything from his family's 220-year history of making bourbon and combining it with the craft of Japanese blending.

Shinji Fukuyo

From Japan to Scotland to Kentucky, Chief Blender Shinji Fukuyo has traveled the world over learning, studying, and perfecting the art of blending whiskey and distilling spirits. For him, Legent presented numerous unique challenges. Bourbon isn't a spirit that's blended routinely. He also wanted to honor Fred's family heritage and produce a unique bourbon of the highest quality. After years of tasting, testing, and refining the recipe with Fred, Legent has become another step in Shinji's pursuit of mastery.

Two Whiskey Legends Come Together. Like any bourbon, it all starts with the grains. But unlike any other bourbon, how Legent ends up in your glass is a completely unique process. See how Fred and Shinji each played an integral, collaborative role in the creation of this truly unique bourbon.

Legent Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

This is what the judges said

“Lovely American and Japanese stiles can only make perfect blend taste” - Tudor Cosmin, Award-winning mixologist and Head Bartender at Vintry and Mercer, London.

“A rich combination of flavors such as chocolate, orange, and vanilla give a fantastic and unique aroma that goes across the palate and adds wood and coffee essence. The finish is warm thanks to the distinctive nutmeg. What a journey of the most perfect flavor pairing.” - Vitor Lourenço, Head of Bars at Harbour Hotels, London.

Creamy smooth mouthfeel, rich with notes of white pepper, oak, dark chocolate, caramel - peppery & dark fruit finish - mellow alcohol burn for the ABV - Tiago Vasconcelos, Bar Manager at The Goring Hotel, London.

How the London Spirits Competition Judges

The primary reason for using three criteria rather than just one was to focus on the overall drinkability of each spirit. As a result, the judging panel ranked spirits not just by how they taste, but also their overall presentation and appearance in the bottle. In addition, judges assessed spirits on their relative value in relation to their peers, as determined by retail pricing.

Staff at the London Competitions

The London Spirits Competition is organized by Beverage Trade Network, which organizes alcohol beverage industry events all over the world. The goal of this event was to judge spirits the way consumers assess them.

At the judging session, judges tasted and scored spirits on a blind basis before seeing bottles and marking them for on-shelf appeal as well as value for money. This enabled them to come up with an overall score that reflects their overall drinkability.

These are the results highlights from this year’s competition

By Spirits Types:

Spirit Of The Year - Ramsbury Single Estate Vodka by Ramsbury Brewing & Distilling Co. Ltd

Vodka Of The Year - Ramsbury Single Estate Vodka by Ramsbury Brewing & Distilling Co. Ltd

Rum Of The Year - Rum Nation by Rum Nation International

Tequila Of The Year - IZO Tequila Extra Anejo Cristalino by Belzmart Group, Llc Dba Izo Mezcal   

Gin Of The Year - Botanic Australis Navy Strength Gin by Mt. Uncle Distillery

Whisky Of The Year - Dingle Distillery Fourth Single Pot Still Release by The Dingle Distillery

Brandy Of The Year - St-Rémy Signature by St-Rémy

Liqueur Of The Year - Muyu Vetiver Gris by De Kuyper Royal Distillers

Cognac Of The Year - A. de Fussigny Grande Champagne VSOP by A De Fussigny Sas

Distillery Of The Year - De Kuyper Royal Distillers from Netherlands.

Country Category Winners:

United Kingdom - Ramsbury Single Estate Vodka

Netherlands - Muyu Vetiver Gris

Australia - Botanic Australis Navy Strength Gin

Italy - Rum Nation

Ireland - Dingle Distillery Fourth Single Pot Still Release

France - Eau De Vie De Poire Williams Vrp

Japan - Enso Japanese Blended Whisky

United States - Legent Bourbon

Canada - Georgian Bay Vodka

Germany - Mahiki White Coconut

Mexico - IZO Tequila Extra Anejo Cristalino

By Judging Category:

Best Spirit By Quality - Ramsbury Single Estate Vodka

Best Spirit By Value - Eau De Vie De Poire Williams

Best Spirit By Package - Muyu Vetiver Gris

Click here to see the full results

What makes the London Spirits Competition distinctive from its peers is that it does not just taste the spirits blind and base its decisions and medals on that, but goes two steps further. First, it takes off the cover to reveal the spirit’s label, design, and packaging and asks its judges to base a proportion of its scores on what spirits look like, and how successful it is in the story it is trying to tell, and then equally crucially from a consumer’s point of view how the brand looks, feels, tastes and if the quality matches up to its price point. Does it offer the consumer true value for money?

That’s why the London Spirits Competition can lay claim to the fact it is a competition that puts the interests of the consumers first as it is through their eyes the judges are tasked with making their decisions.