The ADI Worldwide Spirits Competitors is a number one benchmark for craft distilling, with a deal with independently owned producers and flavor-first judging. Entries are assessed blind by distillers, bartenders, journalists, and sensory specialists, with awards based mostly on technical benefit and total impression.
On this article, we highlight 4 standout bourbons from the 2025 competitors. Every earned Better of Class or Class, and collectively they mirror the innovation, vary, and high quality driving the subsequent wave of bourbon.
Standout Bourbon Winners on the 2025 ADI Worldwide Spirits Competitors
Joseph Magnus Cigar Mix Bourbon – Better of Class (Bourbon) $170
Cigar Mix is a limited-edition bourbon from Joseph Magnus, blended by Nancy Fraley utilizing well-aged straight bourbons, some over 15 years outdated, and completed in Armagnac casks for between 4 and 12 months. Every batch is launched at cask energy, with slight variations between editions. It’s recognized for its wealthy, concentrated fashion and layered taste profile.
Count on flavors of vanilla, dried fig, tobacco, darkish chocolate, and baking spice, all delivered with vital depth and depth. Most batches fall between 55% and 60% ABV. Retail pricing usually ranges from $150 to $200.
Jos. A. Magnus & Co. revives a Nineteenth-century whiskey model initially based in 1892. Reestablished in 2015, the fashionable iteration is understood for sourcing mature bourbon and enhancing it by way of professional mixing and cask ending. Grasp blender Nancy Fraley has change into central to the model’s id, overseeing its most acclaimed releases.
Joseph Magnus Murray Hill Membership Particular Launch – Calvados – Better of Class (Blended Bourbon) $185
This particular launch from Joseph Magnus is a part of the Murray Hill Membership sequence and encompasses a mix of 8- and 17-year-old bourbons completed in French Calvados casks. The usage of apple brandy barrels brings a unique dimension to the whiskey, including comfortable fruit and spiced notes to its bourbon base.
The whiskey is bottled at 55.5% ABV and options flavors of baked apple, maple syrup, roasted espresso bean, and delicate baking spice. Restricted in amount, it typically retails for $100 to $120.
Starlight Distillery Japanese Mizunara Reserve Bourbon Whiskey – Better of Class (Bourbon) $135
Produced by Starlight Distillery in Indiana, this launch is a mix of 7-year-old bourbons completed in Japanese Mizunara oak. Mizunara is prized for its distinctive fragrant profile and isn’t utilized in American whiskey manufacturing resulting from its price and shortage.
The whiskey is bottled at 58% ABV and non-chill filtered, with flavors that embrace vanilla, toasted coconut, sandalwood, and heat spice. It usually retails for round $150 and is launched in small batches.
Starlight Distillery is a part of the Huber household’s seventh-generation farm in Indiana, established in 1843. Recognized for his or her grain-to-glass ethos, they develop a lot of their grain on-site and are more and more acknowledged for his or her artistic barrel finishes, together with collaborations with winemakers and cooperages all over the world.
Ultimate Ideas: Ought to You Purchase These?
When you’re trying to discover past the mainstream bourbon manufacturers, these ADI award-winning bourbons are a powerful place to start out. Every affords one thing distinct, whether or not it’s a uncommon ending cask, an uncommon mash invoice, or a daring, high-proof mix, and displays the type of innovation driving the American craft whiskey scene.
Availability varies. Some, like Cigar Mix and the Murray Hill Membership Particular Launch, are produced in small batches and could be laborious to search out.
Competitions just like the ADI are a helpful filter, highlighting high quality, character, and craftsmanship, however they’re not the ultimate phrase. Style is all the time private. Use these winners as a place to begin, not a procuring record.
