Explore the San Francisco Spirit Competition

MIXOLOGY TALK PODCAST #196

While there are many classic cocktail competitions, the San Francisco World Spirits Competition is one of the few prestigious spirits competitions. It’s certainly the most influential spirits competition in the U.S. and is considered by many to be the most important international event.

Today, we are lucky to have two expert judges of this esteemed competition– Anthony Dias Blue, the executive director and President of The Tasting Alliance, and Jeffrey Morgenthaler, one of the most renowned experts in the spirits industry and the head judge of the SF World Spirits Competition.

And while you have cocktails on the brain, make sure to check out our shop (and some new products!) for everything you need to make yours at home.

SF WORLD SPIRITS COMPETITION INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS:

• 1:13– Background on the San Fran World Spirits Competition
• 12:35– Development of craft spirits in competitions & what they look for in a spirit
• 19:35– Finding a category winner: Sweepstakes & structure of the SF World Spirits Competition
• 27:07– Esteemed judges, underrated spirit categories, & fun competition stories
• 35:50– Eclectic combination: Spirits that didn’t work

SAN FRANCISCO WORLD SPIRITS COMPETITION

Even in a pandemic, this prestigious competition is going strong– and just announced the winners of the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2021! In case you’re unfamiliar, let’s look at how this competition works, and definitely check out the full podcast for funny stories and tips on how to win such an event.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SF WORLD SPIRITS COMPETITION

• After running the San Francisco International Wine Competition since 1980, the Tasting Alliance formed the San Francisco Spirits Competition in 2000.
• They began as a small event in a hotel in San Francisco, which they outgrew after only a few years as entries increased.
• With a lack of international competitions of its kind, it became an esteemed competition quickly.
• They were inspired by the craft cocktail movement that became popular in the late 90s, elevating cocktails and the spirits themselves.
  

  “I looked around and I saw that all the coffee houses were turning into bars, and I said ‘I think there’s a trend here.’ And sure enough… […] The first one, we had 287 entries.”— Anthony Dias Blue

This year, they had 3,800 entries, qualifying them as the largest spirits competition, well beyond the other best-known event for the spirit industry, the London Spirits Competition, which received approximately 850 entries this year.

STRUCTURE OF THE SF WORLD SPIRITS COMPETITION

It’s no easy task to judge 3,800 spirits– especially not during a pandemic! This year, the event was spread out over the course of a couple weeks so that all the judges were not in the competition space at one time, unlike in past years. So what does judging protocol look like?

• The event begins around 9:00 am and typically wraps around 2:00 or 3:00 pm.
• Three or four judges sit at each table and taste entries from all categories of spirits, beginning with vodka.
• The judging panel tastes approximately 120 spirits in a day. Thank goodness for spit buckets! (Gross but totally necessary.)
• To avoid palate fatigue, judges eat things like cheese, bread, and celery throughout the day.
• They use a neat glass, which helps the actual aroma of the spirit come to the front (rather than the taster getting a noseful of ethanol).
• Judges taste every type of spirit to determine the finest products and the double gold medal winners in each category. They often spit out the strongest alcohol after tasting.
• Then they narrow down those double gold winners from about 25 to 4-5 in each class of spirits.
• Those 4 or 5 go to the sweepstakes round, where the ultimate winner is determined.
  

  “It’s really good to start with vodka, too, because you’re fresh and vodka is always full of subtle differences that starting fresh at 9:00 in the morning with vodka instead of just punching your palate in the face with mescal or single malt scotch first thing in the morning, means by the time you get to vodka, you’re not picking up on a lot of those nuances.” — Jeffrey Morgenthaler

WHAT DOES WINNING MEAN TO THE SPIRIT PRODUCER?

The San Francisco Spirits Competition is perhaps the most influential spirits competition there is, and receiving a double gold medal designation signifies that you have one of the finest spirits in the world. 

Let’s be honest: The vast majority of beverage companies can’t say they have produced award-winning spirits. It’s an extreme honor in the distributor community, and a gold medal winner can use that in advertising and on their packaging. Which is also great for consumers eager to find a stellar new bottle of their favorite alcohol!

“I think we provide a very good service to consumers because it basically says, when you walk into a spirits shop and you see 60 single malts or 60 gins, where to go, how to choose. So I think that’s very helpful.” — Anthony Dias Blue

JUDGING THE SF WORLD SPIRITS COMPETITION

The world of alcoholic spirits has evolved significantly over the last 20 years, and it’s hard to keep up with all the innovative, creative products the beverage industry is offering. Judges can’t just go with a popular category choice but rather need to be in-the-know about new, key spirit categories to execute the actual judging.

HOW TO GET ON THE JUDGING PANEL

Although every bartender probably thinks he/she/they can be on the judging panel, this job requires beverage industry professionals who have extremely sophisticated palates and can determine premium spirits from the rest. 

There is no formal process for becoming a judge at the San Fran World Spirits Competition, but 

Anthony and Jeffrey are always looking for passionate people who care about spirits and are experts in the spirits industry. It’s all about who you know, so get out there and start networking!

“It’s a big industry, but it’s also, in a lot of ways, a small industry, and we all kind of know each other. And we’re meeting new people all the time, which is exciting, and talking amongst ourselves about people we really want to work with.” — Jeffrey Morgenthaler

WHAT JUDGES LOOK FOR IN DOUBLE GOLD MEDAL WINNERS

These expert judges with years or even decades of industry experience have one job: Taste different classes of spirits and determine which of these exceptional products deserves top prize. So what do they look for?

• The spirit producers must have a general sense of the alcoholic spirits they have recreated. If you say, “This is an aromatic brandy” or “This is a strong aroma baijiu,” your product has to live up to the general standard of that particular spirit.
• Similarly, the judges need to know what the producer is trying to achieve and will determine whether or not that goal comes through in the finished product.
• Show your personality: The craft cocktail industry is known for pushing boundaries, but there’s a fine line between being inventive and not knowing what a spirit traditionally is like. The judges have the difficult task of distinguishing between the two.
• It really is a marriage between executing the traditional alcoholic spirit very well and being extremely creative in how you do so.
• To avoid biased judging, each expert judge must put in the time to really look at each product and grade it against the distinguishing characteristics of the spirit.

FROM THE SFWSC TO THE HOME BAR: HOW DO YOU JUDGE A SPIRIT?

From floral aromas to mouthfeel, what do you look for in a category of spirits? Which are your favorites– medal winners or something more commercially popular? Do you look for the double gold medal when searching for new bottles at your local liquor store?

However you pick your favorites, we’d love to hear about it in our Craft Cocktail Club! If you’ve ever judged a cocktail competition, we’d also love to know what you look for when you’re evaluating the entries. And don’t forget to hop over to our shop to get everything you need to make your own cocktails, too!

Thanks for Listening!