World Gin Awards 2023 – The Best Gins in the World

Gin lovers around the world were excited to discover which brands grabbed trophies at the World Gin Awards 2023. Ones judged to be the best gins in the industry today. And a Cyprus gin received a gong too! We’ll spotlight which gins are industry shakers below…

You may fancy trying out some new cocktail blends and flavour ideas, yourself. You’re sure to impress fellow cocktail enthusiasts, family and friends.

Check out our featured gins and other spirits in our gin store in Limassol.

The World Gin Awards is one of many categories of global World Drinks Awards for “taste” and “design excellence”, held in February at the Waldorf Hilton Hotel, London.

Deciding this year’s best gins in the industry is not so straightforward. Latest estimates suggest there are some 6,000 different gin brands around the world.

Not only hundreds of new brands but also gin styles. There is now a colossal range of flavour and aroma profiles added to the core base of traditional gin botanicals.

So many gin styles that the awards are split into diffrent categories, including:

• Taste Winners
• Icons of Gin

If we look at Taste Winners, we can see there are a further 11 categories, each with their own Gold, Silver and Bronze country hero brands.

Taste Winners

1.World’s Best Classic Gin

Gold Winners

Germany – Hamburg-Zanzibar | Suburban Gin

“A smooth, gentle alcohol, with soft aroma, earthy and aromatic with herbal-juniper on top”.

Argentina – Flipa | London Dry

“The classic London Dry Gin, well-balanced, complex, and juniper-forward”.

Armenia – Vogis Gin

“Earthy juniper aroma with a pleasant balance of spice and citrus on the palate.”

Other Country Gold winners included:

England – Falmouth Black Rock | Classic

United Kingdom – Weavers Irish Gin | Dry Gin

Italy – 25Zero14 | Botanic Gin

It’s not just Classic Gins which are seeing flavour innovations from around the world.

In the World’s Best Contemporary Style Gin, a top Gold Winner is:

Poland – Heritage |Magnolia Gin

“Intense but attractive pine and juniper, with citrus flavours and pine note and a menthol finish.”

Australia had a powerful showing, winning 6 Golds, including:

Broken Hill Distillery | Far West Gin

“Mint, rosemary, and bright creamy lemon. A big pepper hit on the palate, with bubblegum, minty sweetness.”

Greece – Epos Gin – “Intense wood character with many spice notes. And an array of complex, yet balanced, bold flavours – including rich, dark, and dusky notes of chocolate and coffee.”

Poland was not the only East European country to win Gold. Others included:

Estonia – Peninuki | Seaside gin

“Floral aromas and tiny fruit highlights. Zingy and creamy lemon flavours and perfumed pine notes.”

A big trend in recent years is for bartenders, mixologists to give spirit base classics an intriguing twist.  Discerning cocktail drinkers are seeking out new flavour and aroma accents to refresh the senses. Gin, of course, continues to be in the forefront of endlessly new taste experiments.

So no surprise a big category at the Awards was for:

World’s Best Flavoured Gin

And Cyprus was a Silver Winner for Aoratos Dry Gin producer, Aristides Distillery:

Angelica Blue Gin | Aromatic

“Aromas of dried citrus, flower petals, coriander seed and herbal leaf. Flavours of eucalyptus, floral notes, and a sparkle of pine, all pleasingly alcohol balanced.”

Signature Botanicals is another prestigious sub-category.

Taiwan were big winners with: Perfumer’s Gin | Varec

“Floral perfume with smoky tea notes. Light and dry with green tea a touch of juniper and alcohol heat.”

Another Gold winner was Italy with:

Principum Gin | Bergamotto E Peperoncino

“Harmonious, playful balance of chili and Earl Grey tea. Light, elegant and cooling finish, perfect with tonic.”

Among the Gold Awards for Old Tom Gin were:

Sweden – Old Tom Gin

“Rich juniper and delicate spice notes with spot-on flavour intensity and sweetness.”

England – Hayman’s Gin

“A beautiful citrus, and rich, elegant palate. With a subtle sweet and well balanced profile.”

Which brands were honoured as Icons of Gin 2023?

Brand Innovator of the Year went to Old Young’s Gin Distillery, Perth Australia, who were also awarded with Craft Producer of the Year.

Distiller of the Year was awarded to Archie Rose Distilling Co. which produces whiskies, gins, vodkas, and rums in Rosebery, Sydney, Australia.

With so many thousands of gold winning brands from around the world to explore, discovering subtle new gin cocktail flavours was never more exciting!

Find world’s best gins in our gin store in Cyprus.