The World Whiskies Awards 2026 is open for entries!
17.06.25
Entries for the World Whiskies Awards 2026 will be open until 9 SeptemberWe may only be halfway through 2025, but the journey to the World Whiskies 2026 has officially begun! Every year, the World Whiskies Awards seeks out exceptional people, products, and places in the diverse world of whisky, spotlighting the efforts of talented distillers and industry communicators all around the globe. The World Whiskies Awards offers more than 30 different categories across both the Taste and Design awards.
Categories for the awards include Blended, Bourbon, Single Malt, and Rye for Taste, and Best Range, Best New Launch, and Best Gift Pack for Design.
We’re happy to also announce the Icons of Whisky awards are open for entries! The Icons of Whisky celebrates the hard work that goes into every bottle and is open to all individuals, teams, and locations throughout the industry. There are awards for coopers, sales teams, independent bottlers, visitor attractions, and more!
2026 will also see new inductees in The Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame—the highest honour given by the World Whiskies Awards. The award celebrates professionals who have dedicated their lives and careers to pursuing excellence within the whisky industry.
Shena O’Hare, sales manager for Killowen Distillery, commented on the company winning Craft Producer of the Year: “It’s an absolute honour […] hopefully it’ll help us go from strength to strength and also help us expand here at home, both in the UK and in the Irish market.”
Dave Broom, respected spirits writer and one of our latest Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame inductees, commented: “Whisky has this unrivalled ability of all spirits to create conversation. You feel obliged in many ways to talk about the dram in your hand, to talk about how it makes you feel, where it puts you, what place it’s from. [This award] means more than you will ever ever imagine. Slàinte mhath!”
Anita Ujszaszi, awards director, added: “2025 was an incredible year for the World Whiskies Awards, it’s always a pleasure to discuss the whisky world with passionate producers and industry experts, especially over a dram or two! As ever, the global dinner was nothing short of exceptional, with amazing food, kind words from winners, and outstanding live entertainment! For 2026, we’re hoping to see even more entries for all categories and from all corners of the world. If you think you’ve got a World’s Best whisky, don’t wait! Enter and send it in for judging now!”
The entry deadline for the Taste and Design is 9 September. Entries must then be shipped to us by 1 October. The World Whiskies Awards 2026 Global winner announcement will take place on 25 March 2026. To enter, simply make a profile via the World Whiskies Awards website, enter your products, and complete the shipping form.
See below for the full list of winner announcements dates:
3 December 2025 - Scotland
4 February 2026 - Rest of the World Category Winners
12 February 2026 - America
26 February 2026 - Ireland
25 March 2026 - Global Announcement
To keep up to date with competition developments, make sure you check out the official World Whiskies Awards’
Instagram page. For more information on registration, shipping, products and award details, and more, click
here.
<< Back to News