Last week, the winners of the 2026 World Whiskies Awards were announced in Louisville, Ky., at a black-tie event held at the historic Brown Hotel. The esteemed awards, which are put on by Whisky Magazine, are highly regarded in the industry, and the event was attended by many familiar bourbon legends and icons of the industry.
Think of it as the Oscars of bourbon.
I was fortunate to once again be a part of the judging panel for this year’s World Whiskies Awards, which took me to Bardstown, Ky., Washington, D.C., and London. It was fun and informative to get to peek behind the scenes of a worldwide judging competition such as this one, and I was humbled and appreciative to be a part of it.
It also took an astute team of professionals to pull off the judging process smoothly, and I credit Maggie Kimberl, Anita Ujszaszi and Lauren Macey for keeping us wrangled and on track leading up to and during all three judging sessions.
The London event was held on Jan. 28 at Woolwich Works, and we sipped through 34 whiskeys in five categories. My table in particular judged the categories: Blended Malt; Single Cask Single Grain; Single Malt; Rye; New Make & Young Spirit. And we had whiskey experts from England, Scotland and Italy, along with this sipper from Kentucky.
As we moved through each category, we discussed our opinions after everyone had recorded their scores, and for the most part there was at least one other person at the table who agreed with you. In the last couple of rounds, it was a matter of simply rating the whiskeys in order of preference — no tasting notes and very few explanations required. I enjoyed this style, because it allowed me to trust my gut instinct and just go with the whiskey I would order at a bar.
By this point in the competition, the American whiskeys had already been finalized, so these were the best of the best of the rest of the world. And it truly opened my eyes and my palate to so many types of whiskey. At the end of the day, it’s all in what you like best and what is best balanced.
Here’s a look at some of the U.S. winners in the 2026 World Whiskies Awards:
WORLD’S BEST BOURBON
Best Kentucky Bourbon: New Riff Bottled in Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Best Non-Kentucky Bourbon: 15 Stars Artisan Collection
WORLD’S BEST FINISHED BOURBON
Best Kentucky Finished Bourbon: Maker’s Mark 46
Best Non-Kentucky Finished Bourbon: Redemption Cognac Cask Finish
WORLD’S BEST SINGLE BARREL BOURBON
Best Non-Kentucky Single Barrel Bourbon: Presidential Dram 2 Term Bourbon
Best Kentucky Single Barrel Bourbon: Elmer T. Lee Single Barrel
WORLD’S BEST SMALL BATCH BOURBON
Best Kentucky Small Batch Bourbon: E.H. Taylor Small Batch
Best Non-Kentucky Small Batch Bourbon: Wyoming Whiskey, Buffalo Bill Cody
WORLD’S BEST TENNESSEE WHISKEY
Jack Daniel’s 14-Year Old Tennessee Whiskey Batch 1
BEST AMERICAN RYE WHISKEY
Elijah Craig Toasted Rye
WORLD’S BEST AMERICAN STYLE WHISKEY
Onyx & Amber American Light Whiskey Double Oaked
BEST AMERICAN SINGLE CASK SINGLE RYE
Tumblin’ Dice Rye Single Barrel 11 Years Old
BEST AMERICAN SINGLE MALT WHISKEY
Virginia Distilling Company Blue Ridge Toasted Barrel Finish
BEST AMERICAN SMALL BATCH SINGLE MALT
The Notch Nantucket 15 Years Old
BEST AMERICAN SINGLE CASK SINGLE MALT
Hinterhaus Distilling American Single Malt Singularity
BEST AMERICAN BLENDED
Proof and Wood Curated Seasons 2024 Extraordinary Blended Whiskey
BEST AMERICAN BLENDED LIMITED RELEASE
Old Elk Cigar Punch Cut
BEST AMERICAN BLENDED MALT
Lost Lantern Shadow & Light
BEST AMERICAN WHEAT WHISKEY
Star Hill Farm Wheat Whisky
BEST AMERICAN CORN WHISKEY
Ironroot Republic Hubris
BEST AMERICAN GRAIN WHISKEY
Early Times American Blended
BEST AMERICAN POT STILL
Talnua Distillery Olde Saint’s Keep
