PRESS RELEASE

Neustadt, 12 May 2016

Meiningers International Spirits Award ISW 2016:

-23 spirits received the highest award Grand Gold

-Distillerie Studer & Co. „Producer of the Year“ /
Bremer Spirituosen Contor „Importer of the Year“

Studer & Co. AG Distillerie from Escholzmatt in Switzerland has been proclaimed “Producer of the Year 2016” at this year’s Meininger’s International Spirits Award (ISW). The jury recognized the company’s achievements in winning two Grand Gold medals, along with five Gold and two Silver medals.Another outstanding result was achieved by the Bremer Spirituosen Contor, which was awarded the title of “Importer of the Year 2016”, having gained five Grand Gold, 17 Gold and five Silver medals.

The jury also awarded Special Awards for individual products that achieved an outstanding result. The title of Spirit of the Year went to the brown rum Matusalem Gran Reserva 23, which was submitted to the competition by Schlumberger, the Meckenheim-based distributor. The winner of the Spirit Brand of the Year was the blended Scotch whiskey Johnnie Walker Black Label, from Diageo Germany in Hamburg.

Altogether, the jury of experts awarded 299 ISW medals, including 23 Grand Gold, 144 Gold and 132 Silver. The winning products come from a cross section of the world of spirits: while German products lead with 102 medals, they were followed by distillates from Italy (42), the United Kingdom (34) and France (31). Products from more unusual destinations such as Nicaragua and Taiwan were also to be found among the winners.

More than 800 products were registered in the competition ISW 2016, which represents an increase compared to the previous year.

According to the organizers of ISW, the rise in participation is mainly due to the growing diversity of the spirits market. “For instance, we have many producers of gin, which is currently experiencing a boom. Those producers like experimenting and developing new styles apart from the classic London Dry Gin,” explains Christian Wolf, Tasting Director of the ISW. “Many of them convinced the jury of 50 spirits experts with their high quality.”

Moreover, the percentage of distillates from smaller distilleries is growing, he adds. He is also impressed with the high quality of the entries. “The standards and the skills of the distillers are rising,” says Wolf.

First held in 2004, the ISW is the most prestigious competition for international spirits.

For more information about the results, please visit:

About MEININGER VERLAG:

MEININGER VERLAG, founded in Neustadt / Weinstrasse in 1903, is one of Germany’s oldest specialist publishers and is managed by the fourth generation of the Meininger family. The company mainly specialises in publications for the wine and beverage industry and is the European leader in this field. The company also organizes trade shows, industry events and congresses.

Meininger Verlag has an international reputation due to the Grand International Wine Award MUNDUS VINI to which nearly 10,000 wines are submitted per year. Moreover, the media company organizes other wine competitions such as Meiningers International Craft Beer Award, Best of Riesling, the Meininger Rotweinpreis (award for German red wines) and Meiningers Deutscher Sektpreis (award for German sparkling wines).

Press contact:

Christian Wolf
MEININGER VERLAG GmbH
Maximilianstr.7 – 17
67433 Neustadt/Weinstrasse
Tel: +49 6321-8908-13
Fax: +49 6321-8908-954
E-Mail:

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