Every year, whisky enthusiasts worldwide are eager to find out which whiskies topped the charts at the World Whiskies Awards (WWA) where the very best in all internationally recognized styles of whisky are judged by a panel of experts. Presented by TheDrinksReport.com and Whisky Magazine, the World Whiskies Awards select, reward and promote the world’s best whiskies to consumers and trade across the globe.

While all entrants receive a personalised WWA tasting note and an invitation to the WWA final round of tasting in London, aside from coverage on the WWA website (and in the news) the winners receive access to high resolution logos and invaluable point of sale material such as stickers and neck-ringers. For those new to whisky, or looking to buy a special gift, for example, those accolades proudly displayed on bottles are sure to sway purchase decisions, while we've all seen powerful advertising proclaiming award-winning whiskies. Brands as powerful as Johnnie Walker Gold Label Reserve proudly advertise their status as WWA award-winners, no doubt helping to boost the coveted titles even more for those lesser-known brands. Who remembers when the Taiwanese whisky, Kavalan, burst onto the global stage with its 2015 win of World's Best Single Malt for the Kavalan Solist?

Here's a quick summary of how it all works:

Each company is invited to enter the World Whiskies Awards and each entry is paid for. Entries can be for design and taste ($410 for one entry and on a sliding scale down to $365 per entry for more than four entries); just design ($280 for one entry down to $250 per entry for more than four entries) or either taste or design ($280 for one entry down to $250 per entry for more than four entries).

There are a number of stages to the awards.

Round 1

Each product is tasted and awarded by category, age range and country. This is done by over 60 experts worldwide who all receive numbered samples and score independently, except in Japan, the USA and Canada where the first and second rounds are held in person. This is where the Queen Margot Blend Scotch Whisky, costing just £14.99 at Lidl - yes, the discount grocery chain in Europe and America - won in the '12 year old and under' category in the 'Blended' section, which caused quite a stir!

Image credit - Lidl

Round 2

All category, age range and country winners compete against each other resulting in a winner per category, per country. Scotch is now added to these winners and a special tasting is held in Scotland.

Round 3

This is the final round where country winners compete for the title of World’s Best in each category and this is held in London. Over 40 judges from around the world attended and participated in the 2019 World Whiskies Awards where the winner of the sought-after World's Best Single Malt title was an Irish whiskey: Teeling Whiskey 24-Year-Old Vintage Reserve. Distilled in 1991, matured in bourbon and wine casks and hand-bottled in decanters we can imagine that if anyone manages to get their hands on one of the only 5 000 bottles ever released, they'd be smiling right now!

We covered the results here and if you’d like more info on exactly what qualifies the (we think) hugely lucky judges, read more about them here.