What Whiskies Took Top Honors at the 2026 World Whiskies Awards

You find out the best whiskies at the World Whiskies Awards 2026 Global Winners. You see names like Bowmore from Scotland, New Riff from the United States, and Sullivans Cove from Australia. Winners are from many countries. Some of these are China, Japan, Indonesia, and Belgium. You see how great whisky is made all over the world.

Key Takeaways

• Check out the best whiskies from the 2026 World Whiskies Awards. Winners came from places like Scotland, Japan, and Australia. Each whisky has its own taste and style.

• Taste new whiskies like Bowmore 21 Years Old and New Riff Bottled in Bond. You can enjoy the different flavors that won big awards this year.

• Find out about new whiskies like Suntory World Whisky ‘Ao’. It mixes flavors from five countries. This shows how creative the whisky industry is.

World Whiskies Awards 2026 Global Winners

You might wonder which whiskies were the best this year. Here is a list of the top winners in each big group. Each winner has something that makes it stand out.

Best Single Malt

Bowmore 21 Years Old Sherry Oak Cask from Scotland won.

“It smells like pear, apple, and toasted oak with some smoke. The taste is smooth. You get earthy smoke, pear, flowers, sweet spice, and toasted oak. These flavors last until the end.”

Best Blended

Ballantine’s 23 Years Old from Scotland was the best blended. You taste orange, apple blossom, honey, vanilla, red fruit, and candy. The finish is short and spicy.

Best Blended Limited Release

Ichiro’s Malt & Grain Blended Japanese Whisky 2026 from Japan won. You notice Japanese oak, apricot, mango, a little smoke, cherry, white chocolate, and a long finish.

Best Blended Malt

Kwun Cheung Blended Malt Whisky Aged in Changbai Mountains Mongolian Oak from China won. You taste walnut, dried fruit, lychee, flowers, maple syrup, cherry, toasted oak, cacao, baking spice, and tropical fruit.

Best Bourbon

New Riff Bottled in Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey from the United States won. You get lemon zest, butterscotch, cinnamon, caramel, fig, vanilla cookie, pastry, rye, and a warm sweet finish.

Best Rye

Siderit 2026 Whisky PX Cask Rye from Spain won Best Rye. You taste chocolate, honeycomb, white chocolate, honey, nougat, ginger, cinnamon, turmeric, and a warm finish.

Best Grain

Fercullen 15 from Ireland won Best Grain. You smell flowers, ripe tropical fruit, vanilla, milk chocolate, Turkish delight, macadamia, and a silky feel.

Best Corn

Black Jack Classic from Indonesia won Best Corn. You taste a rich, sweet style with sugar puffs, apple pastry, buttery cornbread, butter candy, marzipan, and tropical fruit.

Best Flavoured Whisky

Woven WXC from Scotland won Best Flavoured Whisky. You taste coffee grounds, milky latte, hazelnut yogurt, orchard fruit, lemon oils, gentle bitterness, and soft sweetness.

Best New Make & Young Spirit

Ohtani Whisky Niigata Kameda NewPot Peated 2026 Edition from Japan won. You smell smoke, taste a milky full body, sweetness, and a gentle finish.

Best Pot Still

Spots Whiskey Red Spot from Ireland won Best Pot Still. You smell a little leather and taste chocolate, like cake or sticky pudding.

• They use both malted and unmalted barley.

• The whiskey ages in bourbon and sherry casks.

• This makes a smooth, complex drink with dried fruit and nutty flavors.

Best Single Barrel Bourbon

Presidential Dram 2 Term Bourbon from the United States won. You taste pecan, cherry, tobacco, dark fruit, and raw sugar at the end.

Best Single Cask Single Grain

Waterloo The Duke Rum Cask from Belgium won. You smell buttery spiced caramel, taste a spicy mouthful with cinnamon and caramel, and get a tannic finish.

Best Single Cask Single Malt

Sullivans Cove French Oak White Wine Old & Rare TD0112 from Australia won. You taste hard caramel, orange, oat and raisin cookies, cinnamon buns, licorice, treacle, tropical fruit, candied lemon, and a creamy feel.

Best Single Cask Single Rye

Greenbanks Tasmanian Whisky Co Rye Cask 027 from Australia won. You taste orchard fruit, flowers, tropical fruit, pear, apple, menthol, and warming spice.

Best Small Batch Bourbon

EH Taylor Small Batch from the United States won. You taste sweet tea, brown sugar, vanilla custard, baking spice, almonds, and a short finish.

Best Small Batch Single Malt

The English Small Batch Sherry Hogshead from England won. You taste sherry, dried fruit, wood, sweetness, and a long warm finish.

Best Tennessee Whiskey

Jack Daniel’s 14 Years Old Tennessee Whiskey Batch 1 from the United States won. You smell oak, smoky barley, and sage. You taste spice, caramel apple, roasted nuts, and a long spicy finish.

Best Wheat

Star Hill Farm Whisky Wheat from the United States won. You taste caramel apple, rose flowers, baking spice, black tea, charred oak smoke, leather, sorghum, and a dry finish.

Best Canadian Blended

JP Wiser’s 27 Years Old Mizunara Oak from Canada won. You taste maple caramel, waffles, nutmeg, hazelnut, mace, ginger, and strong rye spice.

You can see that winners come from all over the world. Each whisky brings something new and special. You can use this list to try new flavors and styles. The World Whiskies Awards 2026 Global Winners show how fun and different whisky can be.

Notable Distilleries and Special Recognitions

Distillery Manager of the Year

Distillery managers help make great whisky. They lead their teams to win awards. This year, Shinji Fukuyo from Suntory got special attention. He made Suntory World Whisky ‘Ao’. He mixed whiskies from five countries. His hard work shows how skill and ideas can make something new.

Good distillery managers help their teams do their best. You can see their work in every bottle.

Standout Country Achievements

Some countries did very well at the awards. China won Best Blended Malt with Kwun Cheung. Indonesia won Best Corn with Black Jack Classic. Spain got Best Rye with Siderit PX Cask Rye. Australia won Single Cask Single Malt and Single Cask Single Rye. Japan won Blended Limited Release and New Make & Young Spirit. These wins show whisky is growing in many places.

• China: Best Blended Malt

• Indonesia: Best Corn

• Spain: Best Rye

• Australia: Single Cask Single Malt and Single Cask Single Rye

• Japan: Blended Limited Release and New Make & Young Spirit

Innovative Releases

You find new and creative whiskies at the 2026 awards. Suntory World Whisky ‘Ao’ is the first world blended whisky. It mixes flavors from Japan, Scotland, Ireland, Canada, and the US. You taste heather, smoothness, and many flavors in one bottle. Other new whiskies are Bain’s 18yo PX Cask Finish, Scottish Leader Blended Malt, and Bunnahabhain 25yo. These whiskies bring new ideas and styles to the world.

You see how the 2026 World Whiskies Awards changed the whisky world. These winners show what makes whisky exciting and diverse. Try new bottles and visit distilleries to learn more.

Find the full list of winners and details on the official World Whiskies Awards website.

FAQ

Why are the World Whiskies Awards important?

These awards show the best whiskies in the world. They help you find new types of whisky. They also show which distilleries make great whisky.

The awards help you pick good bottles and brands you can trust.

Which countries won new awards in 2026?

What should you try if you want something different?

You can try Sullivans Cove from Australia. You can also try Black Jack Classic from Indonesia. These whiskies have flavors that are not common.