Building a spirits company is one thing, but growing a spirits brand is another ball game altogether. The most commonly known and effective forms of growing your spirits brand include marketing, sponsorships, advertisements, commercials, and ambassadorships.

Being a spirits brand, it’s very easy to endorse yourself and gain customers to purchase your product. However, where is the credibility? Where are the advocates for your brand? Imagine having your products being endorsed by your customers, without being paid, or given a script to read from. Moreover, imagine having your spirits getting tasted by industry experts and receiving reviews for them based on what customers would actually buy. The good news is that, with the world moving quicker day by day, this is totally possible.

There are a plethora of spirits competitions around the world that offer brands an opportunity to have their spirits tasted bling by a panel of industry experts who judge them on the basis of their quality, and the likelihood of a consumer to purchase that product. Entering into a spirits competition is a simple and effective way of creating credibility for your product.

Whether you’re an already established brand, or a new brand looking for ways to sprout up into the market, who wouldn’t want their products to be tasted and reviewed by industry experts? Some of the highest ranked spirits competitions around the world include San Francisco World Spirits Competition, New York International Spirits Competition, World Whiskies Awards, and London Spirits Competition.

Entering into a spirits competition is highly recommended, no matter what size and credibility your brand has at the moment. Earning a Spirit’s Award is a sign of excellence that will be recognized amongst the bar industry. For producers from anywhere across the globe, it is a good chance to gain a market in the Beverage Industry. With that said, here are a few benefits of entering into a spirits competition.

Get your spirits tasted by industry experts

We all love the taste and feel of our own spirits, and why wouldn’t we? But receiving an unbiased opinion from experts who are well versed in the world of spirits is going to help in a different way as a whole.

Having beverage experts taste your product and give point to point reviews on them will help you to improve your product, based on what consumers would actually pick up and buy at the store, or gravitate towards at a bar or a restaurant.

Media Publicity

Most spirits competitions give good digital media coverage to spirits and companies that take away medals. Brands and products are promoted on social media, websites and other digital platforms. This brings your product into the light for both customers and other buyers from the industry.

Medals and Category Awards displayed

Having medals from a spirits competition displayed on bottles is something that catches the eye of many consumers. It attracts consumers and lets them know that experts around the world also love that particular spirit. And as far as human psychology goes, consumers usually pick up things that others also pick up.

When asked about the importance of competitions and medals; Daniel Kong Fisher - Senior Bartender at Mark’s Club, London said “They bring products straight away to the frontline and they let people know that it’s been viewed and opinionated by people. So people have tasted it and it’s got a broader spectrum of people that have tried it so like I was saying earlier when trying a spirit, you need to go for everyone, not just one type of person. So I think that’s why everyone’s in groups and you kind of get different palates tasted so it comes from every aspect of it”

Earned Awards provide credibility

Awards aren’t like media partnerships, sponsorships and advertisements where you can easily pay people to endorse your product. Awards are earned based on the quality of your product, and judges are unbiased due to the blind tasting session at spirits awards.

The London Spirits Competition is one of such competitions that give a platform for the producer. The London Spirits Competition judges the spirits and drinks on the basis of Quality, Value, and Packaging – and not only Quality, as both price points and packaging are equally important.

“Packaging is very important. Bear in mind that when you first walk in the bar, you look at the bar and you might not be aware of what the products are but if the packaging pleases you on the look obviously, you most likely will go for it. So, that will make your decision easier in a way and obviously from the bartender’s perspective it will make our job more interesting because if the packaging has a bit of history behind it, we can take that as a line and just move forward and guide the guest throughout the whole experience” says Tiago Mira – Head Bartender at Annabel’s Club in Berkley Square.

Blind tasting and judging will take place in order to make sure there are no biased judgments made, ensuring every new participant receives a fair and right-minded score.

The score based on the judgment of the best bartenders and experts creates a mindset for the buyers and on-premise managers and helps them choose what they are buying and gives them proper speculations about the product. The final assessment of judging a spirit on the basis of their packaging, back-bar appeal and their ease of pouring also defines the functionality of the bottle.

Winning a medal at the London Spirits Competition comes with many benefits such as a rise in your brands’ profile, prestige, and credibility with importers, distributors, press, retailers, and consumers. Boost awareness of your brand in the media via extensive editorial and press coverage via London Spirits Competition’s media partners.

The objective of the competition is to introduce new and innovative producers to the industries as well as guiding and promoting them while creating opportunities for the producers to create a market in the Beverage Industry. The competition can also become a stage for buyers as well, to choose from a vast range of choices in spirits for their inventories.

London Spirits Competition is back with its 4th round of judging spirits by Quality, Value & Packaging. Held 17th March 2021. Submission is open. 

Enter your spirits now.