The New Orleans Spirits Competition (NOSC), presented by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation (TOTCF), is pleased to announce the 2025 “Spirits of the Year” winners alongside the prestigious Distillery of the Year recipient, as part of its fourth annual competition at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans.
Since its founding in 2022, the New Orleans Spirits Competition has emerged as a premier international competition celebrating and recognizing best-in-class spirits from producers worldwide. Held during Tales of the Cocktail, this year’s NOSC featured live judging across all spirits categories, both domestic and international, including whiskey, gin, brandy, baijiu, vodka, rum, agave spirits, liqueurs and non-alcoholic. NOSC is proud to partner with Imbibe Magazine as the competition’s official 2025 Media Partner.
In celebrating the Distillery of the Year and Spirits of the Year, NOSC presents the following winners in each class:
2025 NOSC Distillery of the Year
- Distillery of the Year: Heaven Hill Distillery
2025 NOSC Spirits of the Year Winners
- Agave Spirit of the Year: Cardenxe Sotol de Pradera by Cardenxe Sotol
- Whiskey of the Year: Balcones Lineage Single Malt by Balcones Distilling
- Brandy of the Year: Cognac Hardy XO Rouge by Maison Hardy
- Gin of the Year: Bosque Alta Montaña by Bosque
- Liqueur of the Year: Savoia Orancio Vermouth by Casa Savoia
- Rum/Cane Spirit of the Year: Planteray Xaymaca Special Dry by Maison Ferrand
- No & Low Elixir of the Year: Fluère Spice Cane by Lucas Bols USA
- RTD of the Year: Cutwater Gin Collins by Cutwater
- Specialty Spirit of the Year: Death in the Afternoon Absinthe by Key West Trading Co.
- Vodka of the Year: Irish Vodka by The Muff Liquor Company
- Mixer/Syrup of the Year: Mixybar Plus Elderflower by Fabbri
NOSC also highlights its 2025 “Best of Category” winners, recognizing the top-rated spirit in each category, including Best Cognac, Best Tequila Reposado, Best Absinthe, and more.
2025 NOSC “Best of Category” Winners
Winners for the “Best of Category” can be viewed on https://www.nolaspiritscomp.com/best-of-category.
2025 NOSC Packaging Award Winners
Packaging Excellence Awards for the New Orleans Spirits Competition can be viewed on https://www.nolaspiritscomp.com/packaging-excellence.
2025 NOSC Final Medalists
Medalists for the New Orleans Spirits Competition can be viewed on https://www.nolaspiritscomp.com/awards-25.
About The Judging Process
Judges were seated in four-person panels and served blind flights of spirits, identified only by class of spirit and range of proof. Each spirit was rated individually on a 100-point scale, and scores from each panel were then averaged to determine medal winners. After the medals were decided, the top finishers across each category were selected for Best of Category recognition.
Spirits of the Year were selected in several rounds of public blind tasting on Monday, July 21 and Tuesday, July 22 in New Orleans at Tales of the Cocktail. The finalists were determined through a preliminary round held in June, after which the six highest-scoring spirits in Gin, Rum, Liqueur, American Whiskey, World Whisky, and Agave Spirits advanced to the final round. Spirits of the Year were determined by the judges marking their top three in order. These votes determined the best-of-class awards listed above.
New Orleans Spirits Competition Judges 2025
- Abigail Gullo, Creative Director of International House Hotel, Host of Drink & Learn Podcast
- Brett Pontoni, Specialty Spirits Buyer for Binny’s Beverage Depot
- Bridget Albert, Founder of the National Charity Foundation of the United States Bartenders’ Guild
- Nancy Fraley, Master Whiskey & Rum Blender, International Consultant, Nosing Services
- Dale DeGroff, DeGroff’s Spirits, Partner & Owner of DeGroff’s Amaro, DeGroff’s Bitter Aperitivo
- Lee Hedgmon, Distiller/Honey Alchemist, The Barreled Bee
- Danny Ronen, Founder & CEO of DC Spirits
- Elayne Duff, Director of Advocacy for Samson and Surrey
- Emma Janzen, Spirits & Cocktail Writer; Midwest Academy Chair World’s 50 Best Bars, Author of Mezcal: The History, Craft and Cocktails of the World’s Ultimate Artisanal Spirit
- Flavien Desoblin, Owner of Brandy Library & Copper & Oak
- ms. franky marshall, Bartender, Educator & Consultant
- Garnett Phillip, Owner: The Rogers Garden & Rum Bar Brooklyn
- Geoffrey Wilson, Leadership Staff at Turning Tables New Orleans
- H. Joseph Ehrmann, Proprietor of ELIXIR
- Henry Preiss, President of Preiss Imports
- Kate Gerwin, Owner of Happy Accidents
- Keli Rivers, Senior Beam Suntory Gin Brand Ambassador
- Lauren Patz, Head Distiller at Redwood Empire Whiskey
- Lisa Wicker, Master Distiller
- Martin Cate, Owner of Smuggler’s Cove, San Francisco
- Matthew Rowley, Culinary Historian, Spirits & Arts Writer, James Beard Award finalist
- Paul Clarke, Editor in Chief of Imbibe Magazine
- Tiffanie Barriere, Educator & Consultant; Member of the Tales of the Cocktail Grants Committee, James Beard Beverage Advisory Board Member of the Atlanta chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier
- Stephen Beal, International Drinks Expert
- Vivian Pei, Founder of Pei Sisters Projects
- Virginia Miller, Dining & Drinks Writer/Judge/Consultant
- Ryan Csanky, Owner and Distiller at Aria Gin
- Tom Burkleaux, Founder and Owner at New Deal Distillery
- Maritza Rocha-Alvarez, Spirit Specialist, Marble and Rye
- Benjamin Jeffers, Spirits Specialist and Entrepreneur
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ABOUT NEW ORLEANS SPIRITS COMPETITION:
Founded in 2022 by Andrew Faulkner, Matthew Sharpe, and Wayne Curtis, the New Orleans Spirits Competition is an international spirits competition bringing wider recognition to fine spirits from top-flight producers across the globe. NOSC was created because New Orleans, a world-class destination for beverages and cuisine, deserves a world-class spirits competition. The judging takes place in partnership with Tales of the Cocktail®, with more than three dozen prominent members of the spirits community serving as judges and assessing the quality of the spirits based on a strict set of criteria. All spirits are delivered blind to tasting panels, ensuring integrity and honesty.
For more information on New Orleans Spirits Competition, please visit New Orleans Spirits Competition’s website, email [email protected], and follow along on social media: @nolaspiritscomp, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
ABOUT TALES OF THE COCKTAIL FOUNDATION:
Tales of the Cocktail Foundation is a non-profit organization that aims to advance the global hospitality industry and create a lasting impact in our host communities. Tales of the Cocktail Foundation is the global leader in spirits education and a platform to tackle issues facing the industry. The pillars of the Foundation are to Educate, Advance, and Support the hospitality industry through programs that benefit individuals and organizations in the community and to make a lasting impact in the communities that host our events.
For more information on Tales of the Cocktail, please visit the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation website, Instagram, and Facebook
ABOUT IMBIBE MAGAZINE
Imbibe (@imbibe/imbibemagazine.com) is a multi-platform drinks destination combining an award-winning print and digital magazine, website, newsletter, podcast, books, and events, including the annual global charitable initiative, Negroni Week. Imbibe celebrates drinks as a distinct culinary category, exploring the people, places, cultures and flavors that make the world of drinks so fascinating. With wide-ranging recipes, reviews, how-tos, interviews, and stories, Imbibe is the go-to guide to drinks, from coffee to cocktails.
