One of Australia’s most-loved, iconic distillers has once again shaken up the whiskey world, and we’re not surprised. For the second consecutive year, The Gospel Whiskey has taken the title of Australia’s Best Whiskey at the prestigious 2024 International Wine & Spirits Competition (IWSC) with its $95 bottle of The Gospel Straight Rye Whiskey. Taking out the gold medal and Australia’s highest score across all categories, The Gospel is also the 2nd-highest-scoring rye whiskey in the world.
This is the type of news we love to deliver – whether you’re a whiskey fiend or prefer to dabble, we believe that knowing which whiskey to indulge in is paramount.
This latest accolade makes perfect sense – the 100 per cent rye whiskey from the Victorian distillery is unlike anything we’ve ever had the pleasure to taste. Made in Brunswick in Melbourne’s eclectic inner north from all Australian grain grown in the Murray Mallee region of South Australia, the delicious drop is chocolatey, spicey where it counts and lingering with liquorice and cognac undertones. The award-winning whiskey is both sweet and refreshing – just talking about it is salivate-worthy.
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The judges were also very impressed with The Gospel’s Straight Rye Whiskey, commenting “It is perfumed and wonderfully peppery on the nose, full of pleasing, punchy rye spice aromas with deep liquorice tumbling through. Dry and remarkably layered, with well-defined flavours of cognac, green tea, and menthol, adding complexity to the palate. The finish is long, sweet, and satisfying with a refreshing hint of mint complementing indulgent chocolaty tones. Devine!”
If it’s not already obvious, winning the best Australian whisky award is a big deal. One of the world’s biggest and longest-running spirits competitions, the IWSC attracts some of the most prominent producers of wines and spirits in the world. The honours are judged by the best in the business, with over 250 specialist judges joining forces from all over to test countless entries from 98 countries.
The team at The Gospel seek to showcase the distinct taste of Mallee-grown rye and is incredibly proud of recent successes in helping endorse this mission. “We’ve spent years defining The Gospel’s unique style of whiskey to craft something distinctly Australian and expressive to the site we source the grain from. We’re not aiming to taste like other whiskeys or fit in with the crowd – it’s unique to us, and I think the judges at the IWSC appreciated its difference,” says Andrew Fitzgerald, Co-Founder of The Gospel.
In fact, many other Aussie spirits did well at this year’s IWSC. Four Pillars Barrel Aged Bloody Underhill Shiraz Gin, Mt. Uncle Distillery FNQ Iridium X Agave Cask 10 YO Rum, Dune Distilling Co. Mediterranean Gin and Naught Distilling Overproof Gin all took out gold medals. Move along, Scotland, Australia is looking set to take over the ranks in the whiskey world.
The Gospel’s Legacy Rye and The Gospel’s High Wheat Rye also each won a Silver medal. These latest wins for The Gospel are particularly deserving, following an outstanding year for the distillery and its team. Ian Thorn, The Gospel’s Master Distiller, was also the winner of the Master Distiller/Master Blender of the Year at the 2024 Icons of Whisky Awards.
If you’re wondering about the other whiskeys to keep an eye out for, The Gospel’s Straight Rye Whiskey tied for equal second with the Thomas H. Handy Straight Rye Whiskey in the global rye whiskey category. The Sazerac 18-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Rye was also the only rye whiskey to outscore The Gospel Straight Rye (but you better save up some cash for this one, it costs $2,400!).
Luckily, The Gospel Straight Rye Whiskey is a little bit more attainable. It is available for $95 from www.thegospelwhiskey.com below or from select spirits retailers and on-premise venues. For more whiskey-related news, The IWSC will announce the Spirit Trophy results later this year.
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